It’s about a few centimeters of fabric and Katinka Haltvik has been concerned with clothing for a long time. The 30-year-old is not just anyone in beach handball, she has already won several medals with the Norwegians, and her mother was once a world handball player in the hall. But Haltvik has not always felt comfortable when performing on sand.
The reason is the dress code, especially the bikini panties, which you must wear. “You are more concerned with ensuring that they don’t slip than with handball,” Haltvik once said and made it very clear to the Norwegian broadcaster NRK: She knows people who don’t even dare to take part in the sport because of this.
Only last year the world association (IHF) failed to get beach handball into the Olympic program, and the associations are not in a particularly good light either: Because Haltvik and her colleagues refused to play for third place at the recently concluded European championship, To appear in bikini bottoms and instead run up in tight-fitting shorts, the European Handball Federation (EHF) muttered a fine of 1500 euros, 150 euros for each player. The reason: “Inappropriate clothing”. The trousers may only be ten centimeters wide on the sides. It is an escalation with an announcement: The officials from Norway have been trying to defend themselves against the dress code for years.
“The players tell me they feel uncomfortable, naked and watched,” said one coach
The Norwegians therefore had full support from their own association, President Kare Geir Lio had tried in April to initiate the change of dress code at the EHF and to bring it through at the umbrella organization IHF. “We’re fed up with clothing being a restriction for people who want to play beach handball,” Lio said at the time. The European federation finally wanted to exchange ideas with the world federation, but nothing had happened until the European Championship.
So the Norwegians applied again. This was rejected with a reference to a fine of 50 euros per person and game, according to Haltvik. The Norwegians wanted to accept that, their own federation was willing to pay the fee, then they would have been threatened with disqualification. The European association denies that the regulation will now be reviewed.
In fact, the incident caused a stir in the scene, athletes from other nations also show solidarity with the Norwegians. France coach Valerie Nicolas told the newspaper Verdens gangShe also knows players who would have given up the sport because of their clothing: “The players tell me they feel uncomfortable, naked and being watched. This is a sport with a lot of movement, a bikini is annoying. There is no comfort in that regard on menstruation or in connection with religious reasons. ” And finally Katinka Haltvik summed up the situation most impressively: The sport should be inclusive and not exclude anyone. Last but not least, the associations should have increased interest in this.