ACTUALITE |
22.11.2005
Handball : Lionesses Camp For World Cup
The national female handball team is in Nantes, France, to train for the 2005 edition of the World Cup.
In less than one month, the women’s handball world cup competition will kick-off in St Petersburg, Russia. The competition, which runs from December 5 to 22, will bring together the best teams from the various continents. Cameroon will be participating in the competition for the first time since. Cameroon will play in Group D alongside France, Ukraine, Romania Macedonia and Argentina.
Ahead of this important event, intensive preparations have been going on in the country to ensure good results in Russia. After several months of preparation in Cameroon the female national handball squad arrived in Nantes, France, yesterday to continue with the preparations. 16 players are taking part in the training camp. After training in France, the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon will have another training camp in Luxemburg before going to St. Petersburg.
Prior to their departure, the Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Philippe Mbarga Mboa gave the team government’s encouragement in a farewell ceremony that took place in Douala over the weekend. The team also played a test match with a powerful selection from the Littoral Province to keep the players in the spirit of competition. The Lionesses dominated the Littoral Province. Out of the 16 players selected on 11 left for France. They are expected to train for two weeks in France under the guidance of coach Nyongha Augustin and national technical director, Mouthé Marius.
The national ladies team however did not train without hitches. The team faced a lot financial difficulties coupled with inadequate infrastructure. The fact that almost all the players have been training together in the country is a booster to the team. One of the professionals, Ngoh Mbah, will join the team in France. The national female handball team has made great strides in the international scene.
Despite the difficult condition of preparations, the team qualified for the World Cup last year during the African Cup of Nations in Cairo, Egypt, where they finished second. The three leading teams of that competition qualified for the World Cup. The Indomitable Lionesses won the gold medal at the 8th All Africa Games in Abuja, Nigeria in 2003.
According to the national team coach, Augustin Nyongha, Cameroon does not have any experience in such a competition. But their major preoccupation is to represent Cameroon at the World Cup in a befitting manner. After the World Cup, the national female handball team will take part in the 2005 edition of the African Cup of Nations which will take place in Tunisia as from January 6, 2006.
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