From a phone call to bronze in Vilnius
Wheelchair handball in Lithuania began almost two years ago when team leader Paulius Glaska called his friend, longtime handball coach Karolis Kaladinskas, and suggested forming a national team. With the coach’s agreement, a group of athletes was formed within a couple of months, and already in November of the following year, at the first European 4×4 championship held in Vilnius, the Lithuanians debuted and immediately won bronze medals, thus earning a ticket to the world championship.
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The new 4×4 format was used for the first time at the European championship: previously, the games were played six against six, but the European Handball Federation (EHF), in cooperation with the International Handball Federation (IHF), decided to change the format. It is hoped that it will become part of the program for the 2032 Brisbane Summer Paralympic Games.
In the group – Egypt and Chile
In September, 12 teams from all six continents will compete in Granollers. The teams are divided into four groups of three, with two from each group advancing to the knockout stage. Lithuania was placed in a group with the defending champion Egypt and the Chilean team, which played in two previous world championships.
The main goal is to reach the knockout stage. P. Glaska does not hide that Lithuania arrives at the championship as the youngest and least experienced team: France, for example, has actively developed wheelchair handball for 15 years and has its own national championships.
The national team’s head coach Karolis Kaladinskas approaches the competition without fear: “If you want to be among the best, you have to beat them. We will treat every match as a new battle, ignore the opponents, and try to win all,” he says.
Ten athletes, one team
At the world championship, Lithuania will be represented by 10 athletes – 7 men and 3 women. Wheelchair handball rules require that the team have at least two women, and there must always be at least one on the court.
“Without women, we simply couldn’t play. It poses challenges on how to coordinate them with men on the court, but at the same time makes the game more interesting,” says P. Glaska.
- The team consists of: Edgaras Čiaplinskas (captain), Mažvydas Butkevičius, Dalius Žymantas, Raimondas Stanislovaitis, Haroldas Tukanas, Artūras Mažeika, Aurimas Černiauskas, Aistė Krušinskaitė, Aušra Vaitulevičienė, Marija Gintarė Bigataitė.
- The team staff consists of: head coach – Karolis Kaladinskas, physiotherapist – Kristina Čiaplinskė, technical staff – Olegas Stočkus, team leader – Paulius Glaska.
K. Kaladinskas has worked in handball for two decades, most notably leading the Lithuanian women’s handball team, and came to wheelchair handball unexpectedly. From beach handball, where he worked for many years, the coach brought some tactical decisions: “Tactics start with defense, and here the players themselves help me a lot,” adds K. Kaladinskas.
Some players came to wheelchair handball from other parasports: basketball, athletics, or swimming. Today, more and more people who previously did not play professionally are joining wheelchair handball. The captain also plays an important role in the team: E. Čiaplinskas maintains communication between the athletes, staff, coach, and federation. “His discipline and experience developed in other sports mean a lot to the whole team,” says P. Glaska about the captain.
Asked what success in the championship would be, K. Kaladinskas does not mention results: “The measure of success in the championship is one: to remain a team in every sense and enjoy the game.”
The world championship will take place from September 16–20 in Granollers, Spain, and the Lithuanian team will face Egypt and Chile in the group matches.
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