SUMMARY: Best handball players honoured at the Excellence Awards

• second edition of the EHF Excellence Awards, at Erste Bank Campus
• 21 new handball legends were inducted into the Hall of Fame
• Ricardo Castro (POR) and Meike Kruijer (NED) were named ‘Beach Handball MVPs’
• Petra Simon (HUN) and Martim Costa (POR) received the ‘Young Players of the Season Award’
  
• Mathias Gidsel (DEN) and Katrine Lunde (NOR) were chosen for the newly introduced ‘European Olympic Excellence Award’
• women’s team of the season: LW Chloé Valentini (FRA), LB Henny Reistad (NOR), CB Stine Oftedal (NOR), RB Anna Vyakhireva (RUS), RW Viktória Győri-Lukács (HUN), LP Sarah Bouktit (FRA), GK Sandra Toft (DEN); defender Line Haugsted (DEN)
• men’s team of the season: LW Emil Jakobsen (DEN), LB Elohim Prandi (FRA), CB Felix Claar (SWE), RB Dika Mem (FRA), RW Hans Lindberg (DEN), LP Ludovic Fabregas (FRA), GK Emil Nielsen (DEN); defender Magnus Saugstrup (DEN)
  
• MPVs of the season: Stine Oftedal Dahmke and Emil Nielsen
• Iulia Burnei reported from Vienna; photos courtesy of Koletiff Images

20:45

The live coverage of the EHF Excellence Awards 2024 has come to an end. For the second consecutive year, some of the biggest handball stars have gathered for an unforgettable night to honour those who contributed to the development of the sport.

The gala closed with the most important reveal of the evening — the MVPs of the 2023/24 season. Stine Oftedal Dahmke and Emil Nielsen walked on stage to receive their awards, as the sound of applause filled the room to celebrate their outstanding performances.

Thank you for joining us on this beautiful night in Vienna! The 2024/25 season is in full swing, so keep an eye on the best handball spectacle until the next edition of the EHF Excellence Awards. You can start tomorrow, as the Women's EHF EURO 2024 will crown the new champions.

Good night!

20:31

The EHF Excellence Awards 2024 have brought on stage the athletes that stood out the most during the 2023/24 season. These amazing handball players are truly an inspiration due to the hard work and motivation that they have shown on and off the court. 

Read more about some of tonight's stars below!

20:17

So many well-known faces in just one place. What an amazing night to honour the best players of the sport!

20:02

On the men's side, Emil Nielsen is named MVP of the season! 

19:58

And the announcement we have all been waiting for! Your women's MPV of the 2023/24 season is Stine Oftedal Dahmke.

19:53

A round of applause for our 'Team of the Season'!

Women’s team of the season: LW Chloé Valentini (FRA), LB Henny Reistad (NOR), CB Stine Oftedal (NOR), RB Anna Vyakhireva (RUS), RW Viktória Győri-Lukács (HUN), LP Sarah Bouktit (FRA), GK Sandra Toft (DEN); defender Line Haugsted (DEN)

Men’s team of the season: LW Emil Jakobsen (DEN), LB Elohim Prandi (FRA), CB Felix Claar (SWE), RB Dika Mem (FRA), RW Hans Lindberg (DEN), LP Ludovic Fabregas (FRA), GK Emil Nielsen (DEN); defender Magnus Saugstrup (DEN)

19:48

'Team of the Season' awards are up next and we are about to find out the players who stood out during the 2023/24 season — both on the men's and women's side. Who will go home with a trophy?

19:42

Next category — 'European Olympic Excellence Award'. Who else to receive these if not Mathias Gidsel and Katrine Lunde? Unfortunately, they could not join the celebrations tonight, but their importance to the sport cannot be contested!

19:36

Martim Costa and Petra Simon are next on the stage, receiving their awards for 'Young Players of the Season'. When asked about who he was looking up to as a child, Costa admits that it was his father who inspired him. Such an emotional atmosphere here tonight!

19:30

Ricardo Castro and Meike Kruijer are the first winners to be handed their trophies tonight.

“It is the best position!” says Ricardo Castro when asked about the importance of goalkeepers in beach handball. Meike Kruijer then shares her thoughts on the future of beach handball, hoping that one day it will become an Olympic sport.

19:24

First trophies are about to be awarded — and the first category is 'Beach Handball MVPs'!

19:20

Here are all the names that have been officially added into the Hall of Fame!

19:09

It is time to induct 21 new names into the Hall of Fame. Anja Althaus and Victor Tomás join the spotlight, as they introduce the handball legends one by one. So many big names!

19:05

"It is a special moment," says EHF President Michael Wiederer, the first one to take the stage tonight. He talks about promoting the sport to the future generations while acknowledging the protagonists of the night — former and current handball players.

18:56

The stage is set and the countdown begins! Four minutes until the start of the EHF Excellence Awards 2024 and the room is almost at full capacity.

18:47

The first guests stared to arrive and we have some big names walking down the blue carpet — and Bent Dahl is one of them. Who are you looking forward to seeing tonight?

18:32

It might be a cold December evening in Vienna, but the atmosphere is starting to heat up here at Erste Bank Campus. Just look at the beautiful set-up especially prepared for tonight and ready to welcome some of the queens and kings of the sport!

18:15

We are less than one hour away from the start of the gala, at 19:00 CET, so let’s take a look at what we expect tonight.

The first part of the schedule is reserved to honouring handball legends, as 21 names who had significant contributions to the development of the sport will be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Later on, we will start awarding the best players of the 2023/24 season in five categories: ‘Beach Handball MVPs’, ‘Young Players of the Season’, ‘European Olympic Excellence’, ‘Team of the Season’ and ‘Most Valuable Players’.

18:00

Good evening from Vienna and welcome to the second edition of the EHF Excellence Awards. Handball players are used to shining on the court, but now it’s their time to shine on the blue carpet!

We have an exciting night ahead of us, as we get ready to honour some of the biggest stars of the sport.

Make yourself comfortable and follow our live coverage of the most glamorous event in handball. Our show is also live on the Home of Handball YouTube channel starting at 19:00 CET, so tune in to watch the gala unfold.