Hong Kong handball coach hopes National Games pressure gives team wings
Kim Ekdahl du Rietz curious to see how side handle Kai Tak Arena atmosphere, as sport braces for ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’
Head coach Kim Ekdahl du Rietz said he was “curious to see what happens to us as a team” when Hong Kong’s handball players enter Kai Tak Arena for next week’s National Games tournament.
Unlike Swede Ekdahl Du Rietz, who routinely competed in front of large crowds throughout an illustrious career, the city’s amateur players are used to only a handful of people watching their matches.
Hong Kong will play Anhui in their opening game at the 10,000-capacity venue on Saturday, before further pool fixtures against Shanghai, Macau and Beijing over the following three days.
“We know many of the mainland teams are better than us, so there’s no pressure … but the one thing I’m concerned about is that none of our guys have played in that kind of atmosphere,” Ekdahl Du Rietz said.
“I’m curious to see what happens, you can get wings and fly, and outperform yourself, or the environment can become a burden. I don’t know how they’ll react and they don’t either.”
Ekdahl Du Rietz, an Olympic silver medallist in 2012, said he would try to pass on his big-match experience, but acknowledged that “everyone reacts differently to pressure or stress”.