Anna Kristensen adds MVP and All-star goalkeeper award to silver

Anna Kristensen was chosen as MVP by a panel of EHF experts based on her performances during the Women's EHF EURO 2024. She was Denmark's fortress and a vital part of their success, saving 91 times at 40.27 per cent save efficiency before the final game.

In the final, where Denmark won silver, she made nine saves, after stopping five shots out of five attempts at the start of the match, leaving Norway goalless for eight minutes. Her overall total was 100 saves at 38 per cent save efficiency as she waves goodbye to Vienna with the silver medal around her neck.

“I have a mix of disappointment and feeling proud right now. Proud of the team and how we handled this tournament,” said Kristensen after the final.

Kristensen is only the second goalkeeper in history to earn the MVP award at the EHF EURO, following in the footsteps of her compatriot Karin Mortensen, who earned the accolade in 2002 when Denmark were last crowned European champions.

In fact, Kristensen is only the third Danish player to receive the MVP award, joining the legendary Anja Andersen, an EHF Hall of Fame inductee who won the award in 1996, and Mortensen.

“I have never even dreamed of it. It's nothing at all I expected from going to this tournament. This is my first major tournament. I was surprised when I heard I won because I thought it would go to Henny (Reistad). I know her very well from home and she is super good. And she was a very good choice. So, I'm even more proud that I got this trophy,” Kristensen says.

Adding to this, Kristensen is just the third Danish goalkeeper to be in the All-star Team at the Women's EHF EURO, joining Mortensen (2002, 2004) and her current teammate Sandra Toft who achieved the same in 2016 and 2020.

“Sandra and Karin were the goalkeepers I have been watching my whole childhood, so to be able to have this is amazing. Also to have been able to learn from Sandra, play by her side and get her experience also, it's just a dream for me,” concludes Denmark's goalkeeper.

Since making her national team debut in 2019, Kristensen has played 43 international games. Alongside her individual success, she was part of Denmark's recent medal-winning campaigns, celebrating bronze at the 2021 and 2023 IHF Women’s World Handball Championships and silver at the Women's EHF EURO 2022.

However, the 2024 tournament is her first with a major role between the posts, following on from a strong season for Team Esbjerg in the EHF Champions League, where she has so far made 87 saves (34.1 per cent) across eight games. Look out for more from her in the rest of the season.

Photos © EHF/kolektiff