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Olympians
1976 National Championships Silver 1977 National Championships Silver 1978 National Championships Gold 1999 Collegiate Championships Bronze 2000 Collegiate Championships Silver 2000 Division II National Championships Gold 2002 Collegiate Championships Gold 2003 Division II National Championships Gold 2004 Collegiate Championships Bronze 2004 Division I National Championships Gold 2006 Collegiate Championships Bronze 2007 Collegiate Championships Bronze 2008 Collegiate Championships Bronze 2009 Collegiate Championships Bronze
1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games Bob Djokovich ’78 Tom Schneeberger ’78 1988 Seoul Olympic Games Kathy (Rex) Callaghan ’84 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games Dave DeGraff ’93
THIS SEASON In Europe the sport is just called “handball,” and it’s wildly popular. If you’re ever in a place like, say, Budapest, flip through the local TV channels—there’s a good chance you’ll find 14 large, five o’clock shadow laden middle-aged men (who look like they just chased a pack of menthols with a fifth of absinthe) winging a ball around a semicircle on a court. Ripping passes out of the air with their adroit hands, they’ll take an explosive dribble (in handball you’re allowed three steps without dribbling), before bounding into the air to fire a laser toward the goal. In Europe they play for both cash and country while frantic hordes of spectators anxiously look on. U.S. Team Handball hasn’t qualified for the Olympics since 1996 (receiving a bid as a host country). Qualification isn’t an easy task as only the winner of the Pan American games receives an automatic bid. When you watch the sport it’s somewhat inexplicable to think that the United States couldn’t be a world power. The core skills of leaping, throwing and dribbling are essential in our sporting culture. Yet, in 2012 only about 1000 Americans played the sport competitively according to USA Team Handball technical director Mariusz Wartalowicz. “This question has come up a lot in the media, especially since the London Olympics this past summer,” says C3C Drew Donlin, who plays left back for the
team. “I heard a quote somewhere that said, ‘handball is the most American sport that no one has heard of.’ I think that’s really true. USA Team Handball is working hard to gain publicity for the sport of handball. I think that if we can get more college basketball players aware of it the U.S. could become a great program.” Donlin is a member of the Team USA Under-20 Men’s Junior National Team. At 6’5” and 215 lbs. the former high school quarterback and basketball player is the type of athlete who could help change the international fortunes of the country. You would think that athletes of his caliber could be found on almost any collegiate basketball team and inserted into a highlevel team handball lineup with little trouble. This hasn’t been the case. At some level there is a disconnect between the player and the sport, and that x-factor has to be experience. Across Europe kids play the game their entire lives. This USAFA team has played in two tournaments this season. The first was held in Chicago and the team got a taste of that European style of play when they faced a club from Kiev. “They had a ton of talent and vision,” says team captain C1C David Bradfield who, as the team’s bulkiest member, plays pivot, the equivalent of a center in basketball. “We ran them hard with our youth and athleticism and were up two points very late in the game. We made some crucial mistakes and ended up
Checkpoints | March 2013
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