National Team in Türkiye: Our stories

At the beginning of this month, the national team was in Türkiye to qualify for the World Championship. The team fought hard and surprised many experienced teams, who thought Switzerland would be an easy game. In the end, they didn’t manage to qualify for the World Championship, but by coming 4th, they are automatically qualified for the European Championships 2024, what an excellent achievement! And if a team steps back, Switzerland might still go to Taipei. 

To give you an impression of what an experience the players, coaches and staff had in Türkiye, some of us volunteered to write a diary entry. So enjoy reading!

Saturday, 29th November 2022
by Vas

Saturday was the official arrival date on Turkish ground for our National team. Me and Sam were the first ones to reach the hotel that would host us for the next 7 days of the tournament. After a rich breakfast in the morning, we went out exploring the area of Kemer trying to scout for the fastest route to the beach, while boosting our vitamin D production walking under full sunshine. After taking advantage of the all-inclusive lunch buffet, we took the opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the hotel facilities that were about to be appreciated the following days such us the (ice cold!) pool, the sauna and Turkish hammam. As we were waiting for the rest of the team to arrive, we enjoyed one last gin n’ tonic before we switched to the “sports” mode. An evening walk around the seaside of Kemer allowed us to relax our minds from the anticipation of the games to come. The day concluded at time at the hotel lobby where the team was waiting its last members to arrive from the airport.

Sunday, 30th October
by Carra

Our first night in the hotel was not a great one. I was woken up by the prayer in the morning at 6, and then decided to go to breakfast with my roomies Anouk and Lieke. After a short first training session, we all have lunch together and then I go on a tour of the hotel, to check out all of its facilities. A small stop in the hotel room and then I have to run to get to our first team meeting on time! The coaches share the goals and expectations of the tournament and the whole team gets hyped up for the first game on Monday. After a bit of chilling at the pool, I go get my notebook and pen for the team managers meeting. I finally get to meet all the team managers (and again see how young I am compared to all of them), get to ask all of my questions (yes, there were a lot), and receive all the needed information to get through the whole week smoothly! Let the tournament begin!

Monday, 31st October
by Jet

Training, shared meals & beers, friendly matches, since April the team gathered a lot to finally reach that point of the first match.
All being extremely eager to see what is the strength of the team in comparison with the other teams. Fully aware that Catalonia is one of the strongest we will play. No pressure to win. Me being proud to represent Swiss Korfball together with a group of friends, a real strong team.
National anthem, shivering, it is real. Good game and the first whistle. Fast pace, strong rebounds by the Gfeller’s. Fighting for every ball. A real match. A fantastic buzzer beater of Julien 10-6.
Half time it is clear for both teams. Yes, Catalonia might be better, but Switzerland is not going to give anything for free.
Third quarter, 15 – 11, Catalonia still a the better side, but WoW we are still in the game. After the final whistle it is indeed Catalonia that wins this match but hey, our confidence grow more.
Time for a happy jump to our fans that made it all the way from Basel to Turkey. Tomorrow, next game, we are ready to rock!

Tuesday, 1st November
by Ineke

Today I’m woken up by a couple of roosters. They started their day even before the Imam of the local mosque starts the sun rise prayer. An early morning it is. Luckily the pool bar party last night finished at a decent hour. Every other day there is live music in our hotel and it feels like the band is standing next to my bed.

We have our daily training at 9am today. We train our shot and the tactics of our next game coming up: Scotland. I’m in the starting 8, so I take some time to practice the national anthem of Switzerland. I realize that it is made in German and the French translation is impossible to get. Words just don’t fit the melody. I decide to follow Federer and Wawrinka and just keep my mouth shut, while looking seriously straight ahead. My supporters at home make the comment later that I should do better on that part. I play the first half where we are able to get the lead of the game, but the Scottish team is tight behind: 8-7 at half time.

In the third quarter it gets really tense. The Scottish team takes the lead for a bit. A wake up call to get back into the game. We take a bigger lead now and are able to finish the game with a 14-11 win.To end the day we go and watch the very tense game between Catalonia and Turkey. Turkey will be our next opponent and they are strong!

A good night sleep will be required! Luckily no pool party tonight. And let’s hope the roosters have a long sleep as well (and the Imam runs late on his prayers).

Wednesday, 2nd November
by Ben

After the win against Scotland on Tuesday we knew that the game against Turkey would decide if we could play for 2 or 3 place or if 4th would be the highest possible. Before the game we were confident that we had it in us as a team to beat them. Unfortunately they started really strong and we weren’t helped by the decisions of the ref. Carra had to (try to) prevent both coaches taking a yellow card. After it was clear that coming back would be impossible we decided to make some changes. Which gave a shock effect and even brought us back in the game.. But the Turkish played their game of the tournament which made them deserve the win against us. Looking back at the game we had some mixed feelings.. Disappointment because the 3th place was gone but also proud of the way we played and mostly how motivated everyone came on and almost changed the game.

Thursday, 3rd November
by Simmy / Lieke

After 3 days of having a morning training and a match, today it was time for a bit of rest. As optimal preparation for the match against Hungary, it was time for our physios to shine. Instead of training, Ben, Anouk and Lieke did their best to get all the tension out of those tight muscles to make them shine during the game against Hungary. Not sure whether it was the massages but we got off to an amazing start. After the first quarter the score was 3-5 in our favor. Sadly hard work doesn’t always pays off and we finished the match with a 23-10 loss.

Today was also a day where our mascot had a day off. Simmy went to the spa, the pool, the slide, the team meeting and supported us during the game.

Friday, 4th November
by Fabienne

I started the day with the usual ritual: breakfast, transfer to the hall, training, transfer back, lunch and getting ready for the game. There was even some time to chill by the pool and enjoy the sun and the fun company of the teammates.

Then it was game time. I had full trust in my teammates that they would rock this game and supported them with the loudest “Hopp Schwiiz” shouting I could offer. And they did, after a few goals into our korf, we managed to take the lead. That’s when I was told to warm up and to join the game. I was super enthusiastic to show what I have trained for over the last months. We fought hard, but soon got some goals against us.

I was then subbed off and on again in the other division. I took it as a fresh start and things worked better. Some nice feed positions, runners, shots from the outside. I could focus more on my opponent, there were no more runners against me and we only got one korf against my division. Then the ref blew the final whistle, the score was 13:16 to us, we won! Even though we could have won with a higher score had only the most experienced players played, this game showed that we are a team, and that also the less experienced players can be of support and valuable players for the team. I was proud of our achievement. Now, I could enjoy the evening and look forward to our last game against France, which we would start off strong again, and which I was sure we would win.

Saturday, 5th November
by Daan

Saturday was the day where we would play against France for the 4th place in the Tournament. Moral was good before the game but unfortunately we quickly found ourselves behind during the first quarter. We started our comeback in the 2nd quarter where we seemed to be the fresher team and we continued the same way after the break to come out on top with a score in the end of 14-20. Afterwards there was joy on everyone’s faces. All the tension from the week came out it was a great experience to be in the dressing room with all of the players and fans.

Once back in the hotel we all ran to the pool and jumped in while still wearing our Swiss home kit… this was great fun! After enjoying our well-deserved beers, we went to the ceremony and enjoyed a fun Turkish party night.

Following the national team: supporting the team in Turkiye

By Martin Haag

With a group of Basel players we travelled to Turkey to support our national team and enjoy some time in the sun. It was an amazing experience to be there live, cheering and supporting our friends in the national team. Those of us who didn’t make the trip made sure to tune in from work or organize a viewing together to celebrate the national team. Many of the games were super exciting and great fun to watch, from close and afar. Turkiye did not disappoint outside of the korfball tournament either – good (not to mention cheap) food, friendly people and a hotel at the beach made for a great week.

KCZ and Friends

By Korfball Club Zurich

On the 12th November, we invited korfball clubs all over Europe to join their annual KCZ and Friends tournament. And what a tournament it was! With friendship at the core of the tournament, we were excited to welcome not only our Swiss club friends, but also good old friends from Ulm, the Netherlands and some new friends from Belgium, Slovakia and France.
Short games in the morning decided who would play in division A and fight for the title, and who would play in division B, and fight for the B-title. Team BlauwZwart, Vanderbiestjes from Belgium, St. Etienne and Nitra qualified for Division A, and Zurich, Basel, Ulm and Massy played in division B.
In the B division, Zurich could give a comeback after a bad start in the morning, and win against all teams except against Basel, where they drew. That made Zurich winner of Division B.
In division A, there were also some very tight games, and team BlauwZwart, which to a majority consisted of last year’s winner team Tukkers, could claim the title once more.

Invitation Match Day and Korfball Clinic (10/11 Dec) in Basel

Match Day – Saturday 10 December
The goal of the match days is to play korfball, to learn, and to have fun. We will set up the games such that each division will play against as many different other divisions as possible. Are you new to korfball? Then this is an excellent opportunity to play your first real games!

Clinic for trainers (and players) – Sunday 11 December
On Sunday, special guest Leon Simons from the Netherlands gives a trainer development clinic. Leon Simons has many years of Korfball experience as an (international) player and doing courses such as this one. 

Who should join?

• If you are an experienced player/trainer and would like to be able to give the occasional training, this is where you will learn how to do it.
• If you are relatively new to korfball, you can join as a player participant, and learn the basics of korfball and Swiss tactics. From experience, we can tell this is an excellent opportunity to understand our sports from A to Z. Also, you will better understand why korfball trainings are made like they are.
• If you are not new to Korfball and don’t want to be a trainer: this day is also for you if you want to play Korfball and learn from Leon Simons.

Logistics
Location: behind Basel Badischer Bahnhof (direct location will follow)
Saturday: 13:00 – 17:00, followed by social/dinner
Sunday: 11:00 – 14:00

We look forward to seeing you all in Basel!

Best wishes, Korfball Basel

KCZ and Friends & Referee Clinic by Jan Weber were a great succes!

The KCZ and Friends tournament organized by Korfball Club Zurich was a great success. KCZ welcomed 7 teams from 6 different countries: France, Belgium, Slovakia, Germany, the Netherlands, and of course Switzerland. The organization committee and club are so grateful for every single player who travelled to Switzerland and hope to see you all again next year!

At the tournament, we had the great honor to welcome Jan Weber in Zurich. After an initial virtual meeting last week, where those interested could get a crash course in refereeing, learning about the theory of rules and tactics, Jan was so kind as to offer us hands on experience as “the man/woman with the whistle“, trying out what it means to not be an invested player or cheering spectator, but a level headed, objective and attentive referee enjoying the role of ensuring a just game through in-the-moment fair decisions, and not having to do this alone but whilst getting advice by him over a headset! Thank you, Jan, for this unique opportunity and hopefully, see you soon!

If you would like to read more about Jan’s experience, check out this link (in German).

Our national team ranks 4th at the IKF European World Korfball Championship Qualifier!!

By Vasilis Cheras

We made it!!

The Swiss National Team qualified for the European Korfball Championship 2024! After a preparation of several months with trainings & friendly matches across Switzerland, the Netherlands and Germany , we reached Antalya, Turkey and took up the qualification challenge. We gave our best against top-notch teams, all with better rankings, and won against Scotland, Wales and France to conquer 4th place in the tournament. We gave our best against Catalunia, Turkey and Hungary showing that we are an opponent that should not be taken for granted.

We shared strong emotions during the games (hype, happiness but also frustration) that reached their pinnacle in the final match with France. The energy on the bench and on the pitch was high at all times, celebrating every goal, every defensive stop, every single rebound in every single game.

I feel blessed that I shared such an intense experience with a group of people who made me feel part of ONE team, no matter the experience level of each player.

Let‘s keep building upon the feelings and impressions of this tournament.

A big thank you goes to:
1. the coaches Matthias Friedel and Ben De Boeck who gave me the opportunity to be part of the team.
2. the staff (Anouk van Kammen, Carra Tillon, Lieke Dam Wichers) who supported the team throughout the preparation & tournament.
3. my fellow players (too many people to list ) for all the effort, energy and support during the games, and of course the amazing time we had in our rest time.
4. my brothers in crime Sam Malkin & Tom Rickli for their creative thinking in our celebrations (and our bro-mance!).
5. my girlfriend, family and friends that supported me in any way possible in the past few months.
6. to our fans that followed us in Turkey creating an explosive atmosphere during every game.
7. to our supporters in Switzerland and in the Netherlands who helped us keeping the spirits high.
8. to every sponsor that made it possible for the team to achieve this qualification.

Until the next tournament…. Hopp Schwiiiitz!!!!

Our national team plays the IKF European World Korfball Championship Qualifier tournament this week

Watch our national team live this week (31 Oct – 5 Nov) on the IKF YouTube channel:
Monday 12.45 h: Catalonia – Switzerland
Tuesday 13.00 h: Switzerland – Scotland
Wednesday 15.30 h: Türkiye – Switzerland
Thursday 13.00 h: Hungary – Switzerland
Friday 14.45 h: Switzerland – Wales
Saturday 08.00 h: France – Switzerland
All other matches can be watched via the IKF channel here (YouTube).
Results of all games and all match statistics are posted on the tournament page (IKF) and the current ranking (updated daily) can be found on the World Korfball page.

Hello Swiss Korfballers!
As some of you will know, the 2023 World Korfball Championships will be taking place in Chinese Taipei, and in November this year we will be heading to the IKF EU World Korfball Championship Qualifiers in Turkey. ✈️
Understandably, taking part in these events takes a lot of time and effort, and can be costly. While the team will pay for their own travel and accommodation, we also need monetary support with training facility fees, entrance fees, medical costs, uniforms etc. 

We’d sincerely appreciate any donation you can spare to help us towards our World Korfball Championship goal. We’re also offering some goodies that you have the opportunity to receive with your donation.

1. 🤝 Become a friend of Swiss Korfball and receive a shoutout on our Instagram and Facebook pages (10 CHF)

2. 💌 Receive a postcard from the team when they head to Turkey in November (25 CHF)

3. 👟 Join us for 1 hour of our training (100 CHF)

4. 🖋️ Receive your very own korfball, signed by the Swiss team (250 CHF)

If you are a company/business interested in sponsoring us, please send an email to info@swisskorfball.ch – we’d love to speak with you! 

Thank you! ❤️

The national team needs your support!

The national team is currently in preparation for the qualification tournament for the World Championships Korfball, but they need your help. Support us on our road to Chinese Taipei in 2023, which starts with the tournament in Turkiye in October/November 2022:

Road to Chinese Taipei: national team update

The national team is currently training, and the final selection is still being made. The next training session will be on Sunday 26th June after Korfball at the Lake in Lausanne. The Swiss team will play in an official friendly match against the French national team, so if you’re still in Lausanne, you might want to watch! It’s great practice for our team and they are all excited for the first official game of the season!

Update from the board

Strategy session

In the shade of trees at the Hönggerberg campus of the ETH Zurich, we had a great session discussing how we see korfball in Switzerland in the next 1-2 seasons, but mostly in the long(er) term. Thanks to Jantine for providing some drinks and snacks. We thank all participants from the club boards, the national team coaches, and the SK board members for their active preparation and/or participation, this is greatly appreciated!

Call for a new Cup name

One of the ideas and wishes of the clubs is to form a new outdoor cup competition! We are very excited about this idea! To get things going we will need a new name for this tournament!! Here is one to inspire you: The Alp Breeze Cup. We want you to get creative and find a name for our new outdoor cup!
If you are more of a visual person and have an idea for a logo instead of a name, feel free to pitch your idea for that as well. Anything is welcome! Let your creative spirit flow!
Send us your ideas by the 15th of July 2022. We will vote for the final name on the AGM, 20th of August. Looking forward to your ideas!!!

Call for the perfect partnership match

With the latest strategy session, we have finalized and determined our values:
Teamwork      Energy      Equality      International      Friendship

To support our funding we are looking to find companies that match our values and have the potential to become a friend or a long term partner of the Swiss Korfball. If you know a company you think that would be a „Perfect Match“ in terms of values, let us know! We would be grateful for any good recommendations and ideas

Calendar 2022-2023 published!

We have a lot of new dates for you! Swiss Korfball, in agreement with the clubs, have announced the calendar for next seasons. The dates of all currently planned events (and likely more to come!) can be found on our website: go to calendar.

Exciting news from IKF

The IKF announced the members of the IKF Olympic Format Taskforce. This taskforce is responsible to lead the project aimed at helping IKF to determine which of the new Korfball formats, with a smaller number of players compared to traditional Korfball8, has the largest chance of broad appeal among athletes, fans, National and Regional Federations and sponsors with the ultimate goal of appealing to the IOC for a possible inclusion on the Olympic program. The members of the Taskforce are Gabi Kool, Jorge Rodrigues e Sousa, Samiha Dabholkar, Jens van Poucke, Ya-Wen Lin, Marjan de Jong, Williard Johnson and our very own Geert Hendriks.

The project has been initiated in Q1 2022 and is expected to be completed by Q3 2023 after which the promotion towards the IOC will be initiated as part of a more holistic Olympic inclusion strategy. Key milestones are the creation of a research framework, including the competitive landscape of other sports and mapping out possible appeal among all stakeholders; field research among all identified stakeholders including possible competition formats, playing formats and the creation of a scaling framework. This will be followed by a presentation to IKF of the report and recommendation to support IKF’s Executive Committee in their decision making. Following that decision during the World Korfball Congress in 2023 at the World Championship in Chinese Taipei, IKF will then start the roll out, scaling activities and active promotion of its chosen format towards IOC as well as the World Games. More information about the members and a reaction of Gabi Kool, chair of the Taskforce, can be found here.

Korfball in Bern

Korfball Bern is on its way! After 2 training sessions in April and 2 in May, leading up to the match day in Bern last week (see for a full story below), the group of players in Bern is growing! At a field in Neufeld, outdoor korfball has been being played by a fantastic group of people under the guidance of trainers Daan and Lize. With Daan as head coach and team captain on the match day, the group hopes to continue growing. Already 4 new faces were seen due to great advertisement on Meetup, and players from other clubs have been joining on a semi-regular basis too. Check out the Facebook and Instagram pages of Bern, and feel free to promote this sport among your friends/colleagues/fellow students living in the Bern area.

As Swiss Korfball is very proud on all efforts taken by Daan and fellow local Bern players, they were rewarded with a ball, proudly presented by Geert on behalf of the SK board during the match day.

More outdoor training sessions are already planned. Weekly training sessions take place on Tuesdays. Material out/walk in: 18.30-18.45h and start of the training at 19.00h until 20.30h. Please register via Meetup or let Daan know
you will join so each training can be tailored to the number of people joining. See you in Bern!

Match day in Bern

Bern is not only located at the geographical center of Switzerland, but also right between the three Swiss clubs Lausanne, Basel and Zurich. Hence, we were all excited that we didn’t have to travel too far, and that we could at the same time support our newest club Bern.

Five divisions had signed up for the match day, two from Zurich and one each from Lausanne, Basel and – of course – Bern. Five divisions mean that four would always play, and one would be responsible for score keeping and refereeing, giving everyone more than enough playing time. The final score showed how equal the divisions were, three teams placed second, and we
were all very happy to congratulate Bern on their win! We’d like to thank the host Ineke, organiser KC Lausanne and Daan as the local support. Furthermore, it was excellent to see some new referees, and to have Geoff there too, who supported us and took a lot of nice pictures!

Swiss Korfball looking for help

We need you! The Swiss Korfball Federation is completely run by volunteers, and we are so grateful for everyone’s efforts. This season alone, we have people in the SK board, a social media team, an Alp League taskforce, national team staff, event organizers, many volunteers at all (starting) clubs, and many more. We are so grateful to all of you. Many of you have already informed us that you are willing to continue in their role next season, or moving on to some new adventures. To keep korfball active in the next year(s) in Switzerland, we are now looking for more volunteers. 

We are looking for support in the SK board, a webmaster, and many event organizers for upcoming events like korfball clinics, train-the-trainer events, and referee clinics. 

We also welcome people with new ideas or to continue and support Swiss Korfball to keep our sport alive and kicking. Are you willing to help too? Let us know by talking to us at the Korfball at the Lake event in Lausanne or contact us via info@swisskorfball.ch or directly via phone or whatsapp. Did you know some of our volunteers were featured on social media and the website last year? Check this out (scroll down to “Our people”)! Join this fantastic group of people : )

Korfball comes to Bern!

Korfball Bern has started with open training sessions in April and May. You are welcome to join their training on 12th, 19th April, 3rd May and 10th May. Sign up here via the Doodle so the trainer knows how many people to expect. All four training sessions will be outdoors. Please share within your network and invite your friends/colleagues/acquaintances that live in or near Bern. You can find more information at the Facebook page, see you in Bern!

Alp League: Final

On 26th March, we had the final of the Alp League. Even though Basel had already won two games and hence also the title of Swiss National Champion, Zurich and Basel still played the last official game. The atmosphere was a lot more relaxed than before previous games, seeing the result would no longer determine the champion. Zurich’s goal was to start off better than in the previous two games, which, despite not having the full team available and almost no subs, they achieved. It was a very tight game from the beginning, with Zurich drawing or not being far behind Basel. 

In the end, Basel got their Hattrick and decided the last game for them, thanks to great team play, some amazing long shots and excellent scoring at penalties. 

The Alp League 2022 was a success: not only did we all have fun and connected more within the Swiss clubs, but most of all, all teams displayed a solid level of Korfball. The Alp League is proof of how far Korfball in Switzerland has come: full teams with subs, playing tactical, fighting for the win. For each game, we also had official referees from the Netherlands or Belgium. Overall, we are proud of how far Swiss Korfball has come, and of Basel, who for the first time claimed the title as Swiss Champion, congratulations!

The Swiss Korfball Federation would like to thank the KBKB for their support in the development of korfball in Switzerland. A big thanks to both Nick Vertessen (Alp League Day 3) and Hans Van Hellemont (Alp League Day 1) for refereeing all matches, and their additional useful feedback to all players – this is much appreciated! Also many thanks to Tom Rickli (Alp League Day 2) for refereeing, the Alp League Taskforce Ben and Vasilis for the organization, and all players and clubs for joining this year’s national championship.

Interview with Renate: President of Korfball Basel

How do you feel about Basel winning the Alp League for the first time?
Winning the Alp League for the first time was a very special moment! We had a good start in the first game (or actually all games) that gave us a great boost. After winning the first game we knew that it was possible to win the league and I’m very happy that we did.

What does it mean for Basel as a club?
It’s a big milestone for our club that has only existed for 3 years. Many of our players are new to korfball, we learned a lot and grew as a team during the tournament.

How did you celebrate your first Alp League win?
Our celebration was kind of spread out over multiple days. We had some celebrations after the second and last alp league day, including champagne in the shower, and we dressed up “Basel chic” for the dinner following our AGM. Right now the cup is touring the households of our players.

Clinic with Nick Vertessen

After a short night with our bellies filled with friet and bitterballen, some of us started the day with a slow breakfast while others went for a walk at the very beautiful lake Geneva.

Afterwards, everyone headed to the sports hall again, where we got together in the conference room to discuss some defensive tactics. Nick Vertessen from the Belgian Korfball Federation (KBKB) explained the different tactics and some other tips & tricks. This was then put to the test in a fun training with a lot of 4 vs 4. All together a cool day where we learned a lot thanks to Nick.

Swiss Korfball would like to thank Nick and the KBKB for their support of development of korfball in Switzerland!

Road to Chinese Taipei

In the weekend of 23/24 April, the national team selection training took place in Basel. A variety of people joined from Lausanne, Bern, Zurich, Basel and the Netherlands. Coaches Matthias and Ben had a close look at all the eligible players and challenged them with some tactics, a lot of shooting and the infamous “Cooper test”. They now have the tough job to make a selection by the end of the month and decide who will go to the IKF EU World Championship Qualifiers in Antalya in the first week of November of this year. Make sure to read our next newspaper for more information on the team!

Alp League: Review of Day 2

Both Zurich and Basel players entered the sports hall with nervous faces: Zurich, because they knew they needed a win, Basel, because they were still looking for a 4th girl, as COVID drastically reduced their team size. When referee Tom Rickli blew the starting whistle, Basel had managed to find a solution for their girl-problem and started off with some very nice goals, putting
themselves into a 5-0 lead. This déjà-vu startled the Zurich players and they started scoring and showed great effort. Both teams were able to display a solid level of Korfball, but unlucky Zurich did not manage to catch up with the leading Basel team, despite many excellent chances.

The 10-7 win for Basel ends Zurich’s 2-year winning streak, and Basel has been able to claim their first ever title as Swiss national champion through brilliant team work and shooting skills, even before the Alp league is officially finished. Swiss Korfball congratulates Basel for their achievement. While the third Alp League event on 26th March now no longer decides the Alp League outcome, it will for sure be a fun day of Korfball!

Road to Chinese Taipei

The national team taskforce is quietly working in the background. They had a staff meeting and the prospective players have received an information email recently, confirming the latest information and training dates. The selection training takes place in less than a month, exciting times are coming! In the meantime, the IKF has drawn the teams and Switzerland will be playing in Ankara, Turkey from 31st October – 5th November. With Turkey, Scotland and Wales, we will have some familiar faces in our group, but also some new (highly challenging) territory to conquer with Hungary, Catalonia and France.

Swiss Alp League 2021-2022 started!

The games are on! On Saturday 12 February, the Swiss Alp League of the 2021-
2022 season started in Basel. Under the guidance of referee Hans Van Hellemont
from the Royal Belgian Korfball Federation (KBKB), Korfball Basel and Korfball
Club Zürich (KCZ) played the first game. Korfball Basel got off to a quick start
and was in the lead 5-0 at half time. After the break, KCZ fought back and
showed great teamwork. The first game was won by Korfball Basel with 11-6.
KC Lausanne could not join with a complete team, but players teamed up with players from Bern and KB/KCZ to play friendly games as a mixed/scratch team. KCZ won with 10-5 from KC Lausanne/mixed team, after which KC Lausanne won with 12-5 from Korfball Basel. Great games, sports(wo)manship, beautiful goals, good defense, real team play, an experienced referee who led the games with ease and even gave good and useful feedback to the teams afterwards, followed by a dinner, it was a fantastic day! Thanks to the Swiss Korfball organizing taskforce Ben and Vasilis (also day host), thanks to the referee Hans Van Hellemont and the Belgian korfball federation for support, thanks to all coaches, jury members, scorekeepers, captains, players, photographers, and even a few supporters for joining and making this first Alp League day to such a success. Next game will be played in Zürich, on the 12th of March. See you there!

Note the new Alp League logo, which has been found via your votes on social media! Thanks for creating and voting for the new logo!

Road to Chinese Taipei

The Swiss national team aims to join the World Championship Korfball in Chinese Taipei in 2023. To get there, we will first need to qualify as one of the European teams at one of the Qualifier events in October/November 2022 in Czech Republic or Turkey.

As part of our road to Chinese Taipei, Swiss Korfball wants to give (experienced) eligible players the opportunity to play high level games in Switzerland and train with fellow (almost) eligible players for the national team. The first development event took place on 13 February, also in Basel. With 18 (!) players, we had an intense training focused on tactics led by Ben and despite his injured arm, our head coach Matthias joined the event to meet everyone as well. After the different tactics, there was time for more korfball games. Thanks to Daan for organizing this event, and we are already looking forward to the next clinic and games.

Korfball Clinic by Tom & Daan

Following the Alp League in Zurich, we will have a Clinic/Training event on Sunday. This clinic event is for everyone connected to Swiss korfball players. Do you want to take your korfball skills to the next level? Come and join us for this clinic led by Tom & Daan.

Word from our sponsors

We are incredibly grateful for our sponsors and like to be in lively exchange with them. It’s particularly rewarding when we see great articles like this one, showing how being a korfball player reflects the qualities of a consultant.

Have you ever thought about how you can transfer your korfball qualities to your job?

Swiss Alp League 2021-2022 will start soon

We are happy to invite the three Swiss Korfball clubs – KCZ, Korfball Basel, and KC Lausanne – to the 2021-2022 Alp League. The event is a three-day competition, and the winning team will be announced as Swiss National Champion 2021-2022.

Important information at a glance:
Day 1: Saturday 12.02.2022, 13.00-18.00 h in Basel.
          Primarstufe Erlenmatt, Erlenmattstrasse 6, 4058 Basel.
Day 2: Saturday 12.03.2022, 12.00 – 17.00 h in Zürich.
         Sport Center Hönggerberg, Robert-Gnehm-Platz 1, 8093 Zürich.
Day 3: Saturday 26.03.2022, 13.00 – 18.00 h in Lausanne.
         Centre sportif de Grand-Vennes, Chemin des Abeilles 11, 1010 Lausanne.

Tournament mode: competition games of 8 vs 8 players. Additional friendly games will be played with 4 vs 4, or 8 vs 8 (Incomplete or scratch teams). The results and ranking after each competition day will be published on our website.

Additional information
The following day after each Alp League Day the following events will take place:
Open event: Training/Clinic for all players in Switzerland
When/Where? Sunday 13.03.2022 in Zurich
Development events: Training only for players invited via your club and/or the Swiss Korfball board (eligible and not-yet eligible players).
When/Where? Sunday 13.02.2022 in Basel & 27.03.2022 in Lausanne

We look forward to this year’s competition. Please note, all events will be restricted to holders of a valid COVID-certificate “2G+”. See the Swiss government’s website for more information.

The Alp League taskforce: Ben, Kris & Vas

Happy and Healthy New Year!

We wish you all a healthy and happy 2022! We are looking forward to an exciting year full of korfball events:

We will start with our Swiss national competition: the Swiss Alp League (February-March) to find out if Korfball Club Zürich can prolong their title, or KC Lausanne or Korfball Basel can crown themselves champions for the first time.

We will have multiple events for players eligible (and not yet eligible) for the national team on Sundays in February-March as well, working towards the selection weekend in April. The new selection will then start their preparations for the IKF EU WKC Qualifiers 2022, to be held in October/November in Turkey or Czech Republic. This will be our first participation at a qualifier event for a World Championship, and our first step on Our Road to Chinese Taipei in 2023.

In May, another Match day is planned, and we are also looking forward to the Beach Korfball at the Lake event in Lausanne in June as great finale of the 2021-2022 season. We hope to see many of you at these events.

Best wishes, your Swiss Korfball board,
Afke, Geert, Jet, Jantine, Konstanze

Korfball in the news!

Previously, you could read the inside story of Leah Bonga as a member of the national team korfball (scroll down for her story!). That her participation did not go unnoticed in Switzerland is certain: she was interviewed by the local newspaper La Côte about her experience representing Switzerland in a sports team. Read the full interview (in French) here.

Coaching at the European Championship – an inside story

By Matthias Friedel and Ben De Boeck

Finally we are there: The European Korfball Championship in Wroclaw, Poland. It is the first time the IKF divided the Championship into two groups: A (first eight ranking countries) and B (second eight ranking countries). We start in the B Championship. It is our first European Championship and it is our first tournament that lasts for more than 3 days in total. You could feel the excitement, tension, and intensity of everyone each day. The team is once again a totally new one consisting of players who played Korfball for many years and of course players who started playing Korfball just a few months ago. A perfect mix which will enable us to be successful on the one hand and on the other hand develops Korfball in Switzerland further and further.

To play a tournament through a whole week is exhausting: Time schedules change each day and depend on the match schedule given by the IKF. Routine? Forget it. A mandatory Covid-19 test each morning before the training forced us to have breakfast even earlier. Training was taking place each day in the morning, afterwards quickly back to the hotel, taking a shower and getting ready to be picked-up by the bus to the match again. In between lunch bags were distributed so that the players at least had something to eat in preparation for the match.

However, as a coach you are not only responsible to coach during the matches: You need to prepare the match days one day earlier, inform the team about the new time schedule, announcing the starting eight before everyone is in bed and checking with the physio and manager what constraint or issues we might face on the next day. Having discussions with players before and after the match, coaching the players during the match and making decisions at the right point of time within the match are additional tasks.

The new format of the IKF by dividing the Championship into two groups makes this B group so much more exciting: Each team can beat all other teams. When you win one match it does not mean anything, and pressure does not decrease until the very end of the tournament. There is no match you can give away and you always need to fight until the end. Many matches have been settled in the very last minutes. Considering the match time with 4 x 10 minutes the matches are done so quickly that you need to react fast to changing circumstances. If you are leading with 5 or 6 goals, you are likely to be the winner but for sure it is also the other way round…

The tournament has been a great experience for us as coaches. Decisions need to be made quickly, you cannot wait too long and wait for something to happen. You also need to gauge how you can support the team in the best way by taking a time out, realizing substitutions, shouting, being quiet, pushing or being demanding. It was great to have two coaches, a manager and a physio who were focused all the time. For sure we needed a few minutes in the first matches to experience what the other persons needed and how to approach them, but it was great teamwork during the whole tournament. We are all looking forward to the next opportunity to show how Korfball in Switzerland has developed and we are willing to go for the needed extra mile. Next stop will be in Turkey for the qualification tournament in 2022 to be part of the World Championship 2023 in Asia. Korfball in Switzerland deserves to go there – let’s do it!

Switzerland at the European Korfball Championships

On the weekend of 2/3 October, a group of 4 staff members and 14 players traveled to Poland, to represent the Switzerland at the European Korfball Championships (EKC B) being held from 4 to 9 October in Wroclaw, Poland. Switzerland together with host country Poland, Ireland, and Scotland formed Pool A, and Turkey, Slovakia, Wales, and Greece formed pool B. In the opening game of the tournament, Switzerland played its first ever game at European Championships, and THEY WON with less than a minute on the clock! You can relive and rewatch the game here. Did you also notice the new away shirts in white/blue, don’t they look amazing?! The second game in the pool was an exciting game against the Scottish team and the livestream can be found here. The third and last game in the pool was against the host Poland, where a ticket for the semifinals was at stake (watch it here). A rest day followed to regain energy and get back to strength, and with Switzerland becoming 3^rd in pool A, the team played the cross-finals for the 5-8^th place. Watch the exciting game against Greece again here. The final day, where host country Poland became the tournaments winner, the Swiss team played against Wales and ended the tournament like it started: with a win! If you have not watched this game, it is certainly worth it, and make sure you check out -in our opinion- the most beautiful goal of the tournament via this link.

For more information on all games in the tournament, you could read the summary overview of each day on the IKF website for day 1, day 2, day 3 of the pool phase, the semi-finals, and the finals. The EKC A will soon be played from 25-30 October and will also be livestreamed on the IKF channel on YouTube.

Thanks to our amazing staff Matthias, Ben, Lieke, and Carra (coaches, physiotherapist, team manager) and to all players Estelle, Jet, Afke, Anouk, Leah, Juliette, Fabienne, Rainier, Laurence, Daan, Gian Reto, Sam, Andy, and Tom. You all made us very proud!

We would like to thank again everyone who supported the team on the way to Poland, including our sponsors iET SA, Acumacon, Arcadis, NONAME sports consulting, Physiotherapie L. Kroes, DOM Nederland, EFESO Consulting, and Erbe Nederland, and all the volunteers and staff making the event happen.

Member of the Swiss national korfball team – an inside story

By Leah Bonga

Being part of the Swiss Team for our participation in the European Korfball Championships (division B) in Wroclaw, was a sporting and human experience that I will always remember. As a somewhat new player, this was an extraordinary opportunity to learn and improve so very quickly. By playing and exchanging with experienced players, pushing my physical limits and tactical knowledge to new heights, and benefiting from high-level coaching, is the combination of elements that allowed me to reach a whole new level of playing.

After some weeks of trainings and preparation, going to Poland was something I was both very excited and nervous about. That feeling of having only 1 week and 5 matches to give it all we had, put all the hard work and learnings of the previous month into play, is a particular mix of pressure and fun. Thankfully, we had such an amazing team spirit and support group to get us through this challenge. Our team was the party of the tournament! If we didn’t win the cup, we definitely won the most fun and friendly team award!

The tournament was very well organized, and our team management was so on point! Thanks to our team managers, physio, and coaches, we never had to think too much and just enjoy the ride, focus on matches, and rest when we could. The matches were tough, there were some great players out there. But I was very proud of our team’s achievements.

On a personal point of view, this was perhaps the one opportunity of a lifetime to represent my country in a sport and that feeling is fantastic! It was also a great way to promote Korfball among my entourage. Friends, colleagues, family, everyone asked me about it and even journalists are interested. I will definitely take advantage of this attention to promote the team we have in Lausanne and further develop Korfball in Suisse Romande! I am very thankful to have lived this experience and look forward to seeing the Swiss Korfball Team’s next amazing achievements!

European Korfball Championships will start soon

We are very proud of the Swiss national team, which has – for the first time – qualified for the IKF European Korfball Championships (EKC). Participating in such an international tournament means that we rely on sponsoring and donations from our friends, supporters, and fans. The crowdfunding has been very successful, raising more than CHF 6000 which is used to pay for preparation trainings and to minimize the amount our players pay themselves. We are also very grateful for our sponsors iET SA, Acumacon, Arcadis, NONAME sports consulting, Physiotherapie L. Kroes, DOM Nederland, EFESO Consulting, and Erbe Nederland, who support us on our road to Poland.

Program Switzerland (SUI) in the pool phase, playing against Ireland (IRL), Scotland (SCO), and host country Poland (POL): 
Monday 4 Oct, 13.30h, IRL-SUI 
Tuesday 5 Oct, 13.30h, SUI-SCO 
Wednesday 6 Oct, 19.30h, POL-SUI 
Thursday 7 Oct is a rest day.  
Friday 8 Oct, cross-finals will be played against teams from the other pool (Wales, Slovakia, Turkey, Greece), and on Saturday 9 Oct, the final games will decide the winner and final standings. More information on the tournament and the full match schedule can be found here.  

All games will be livestreamed on the IKF channel on YouTube, so you can watch each game live from your home/office! Links for the games on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are already available. 

We wish the national team a great tournament. Good luck to all players: Estelle, Jet, Afke, Anouk, Leah, Juliette, Fabienne, Rainier, Laurence, Daan, Gian Reto, Sam, Andy, and Tom, and the staff: Matthias, Ben, Lieke, and Carra (coaches, physiotherapist, team manager). We know that everyone will cheer for you from Switzerland! Hopp Schwiiz! 

We made it!

Our crowdfunding was successful! We would like to THANK everyone who donated and/or supported us in any way. Many thanks to Jet, Luzia, Lizzie, Carra, and Matthias for all their efforts in the preparation of the national team for the IKF European Korfball Championships (EKC) in Poland. Let’s go…

Together to Poland!

We wish the national team a good preparation with the many planned training sessions and games in the next weeks.

Together to Poland! – Update

We are very proud of the Swiss national team, which has – for the first time – qualified for the IKF European Korfball Championships (EKC) to be held in Poland! Participating in such an international tournament means that we rely on sponsoring and donations from our friends, supporters, and fans. With this crowdfunding page, we hope to raise enough money to pay for preparation training sessions. Are you part of the Swiss Korfball crowd? Help us out, every Franc counts! Many thanks to our donors so far, but we need more, so if you can, please help us all go…

Together to Poland!

Check out the YouTube video in your preferred language: / / or go directly to our crowdfunding page here.

Thank you very much for your help!

Together to Poland!

We are very proud of the Swiss national team, which has – for the first time – qualified for the IKF European Korfball Championships (EKC) in Lviv, Ukraine in autumn 2019. With 14 players, and under the guidance of trainer Matthias Friedel and team manager Sylvain Gfeller, we won against opponents Armenia and Greece in pool B, followed by another win in the semi-final against Ukraine, which resulted in a ticket for the EKC B in Poland!

The tournament in autumn 2020 was postponed to 2021 due to COVID-19. We are thrilled to inform you that it will now definitely take place between 4th and 9th October 2021 in Wroclaw Poland. 

Participating in such an international tournament means that we rely on sponsoring and donations from our friends, supporters and fans. Not only do we need money for flights, accommodation, food and tournament fees, but also for a new set of t-shirts, hall rentals, and preparation training costs.  

In order to send our team to Poland, we need your help. With this crowdfunding page, we hope to raise enough money to pay for preparation trainings and minimize the amount our players pay themselves. Are you part of the Swiss Korfball crowd? Help us out, every Franc counts!

With your contribution, you not only help out the Swiss National team, you also support a team sport that embodies diversity and gender equality. Our team consists of players with different backgrounds, and as the only mixed-gender team sports, we stand for gender equality.

Thank you very much for your help!

Help us all go…

Together to Poland!

Check out the YouTube video in your preferred language: / / or go directly to our crowdfunding page here.