MAIN Sports 2012 Summer Olympics Handball

If you think of handball only as a wall sport played with a little rubber ball -- you might be an American... and you're missing a great game!

While handball is typically played against a wall, and beach handball is played on the beach, Olympic team handball uses a version of a soccer (foot)ball in a game that is sometimes compared to a mix of basketball and soccer.

Fast paced and physically demanding, men's handball became an Olympic sport in 1936. It was later dropped as an Olympic event, and then restored in 1972. The women's events were officially added in 1976.

Worldwide, hHandball is one of the most popular spectator sports at the Summer Olympic Games, and if you've never seen it played, take the virtual tour just up ahead ...

More information on Olympic handball around the Web:

International Olympics Committee - Handball - The first page provides a general history and overview, with a link to a Flash animation explaining how the sport is played.. Click to the second page to get the technical details and updates scores & results.

International Handball Federation (IHF) - General information about handball, teams competitions, referees, rules & regulations, plus the promise of expert coverage as the 2012 Summer Olympics draws near.

Team Handball USA - Not much in the way of Olympic coverage, but a first class team handball site. As a verification that the sport is gaining popularity in the States, the lists of local groups is getting longer all the time.

European Handball Federation - This site is about handball in Europe and makes no mention of the Olympics except as a link, but it is a top notch handball site with downloadable videos, info on beach handball, and plenty of other reasons to stop in and visit.

US Handball - For those of you who prefer the wall sport, this site is an excellent reference and the links are pure wall sport with not a field handball lead among them. Events, tournaments, rules, 3 wall and street are all covered.

EdGate Summer Games Spotlight Team Handball - Check out the collection of links and handball information at this site. Brief coverage of the sport with links to help you learn more with lesson plans and an article entitled... "What is this crazy sport?" written by - who else - a handball player.