World Handball Championships: Lionesses make history, emotional coach Bertin Tabeth speaks

Bertin Tabeth Njantou’s ladies validated their ticket to the next round of the competition by defeating the Paraguay national team at the end of a match full of suspense on Monday December 4, 2023 in Sweden.

The 26th edition of the Senior Women’s Handball World Championship will forever be etched in the history of Cameroon.

The Senior women’s national team of Cameroon obtained its first victory and its qualification for the first time in its history to the main phase of the competition.

It was on Monday, December 4, 2023 in Sweden, by defeating Paraguay with a score of 26 to 23 (12-12) during its third outing in the world championship.

Even if the harvest was not fruitful during Cameroon’s first two matches against Montenegro and Hungary respectively, Bertin Tabeth Njantou’s ladies armed themselves with solidarity, combativeness and Figthing Spirit to overcome their opponents during the Blockbuster match.

“It’s a feeling of satisfaction, pride and joy. Because we came to the world championship with the ambition to do better than in previous editions by going as far as possible in the competition. We will say that the first objective has been achieved. Now, we can only congratulate our players who deserve the credit. What made us strong during this decisive match was to continue to believe after the defeats conceded in the first two matches. I would also like to salute the performance of the Paraguayan team which caused us a lot of problems. Fortunately, we were able to win this match,” declared Bertin Tabeth Njantou, head coach of the Cameroon Senior women’s Handball national team.

“We are making history. Little by little, Cameroon is gaining a place of choice in this competition. We hope to continue to progress. For this purpose, we thank the State of Cameroon which provided the necessary means for good preparation as well as the general management of the Cameroonian Handball Federation which believed in our project. We will continue to work to honor our country.”

Voted best player of the game, Cameroonian handball international Paola Ebanga did not hide her joy: “We are happy with this victory because it was one of our objectives. We were more efficient in attack. In short, it’s a team victory. We dedicate this victory to coach Christian Guebogo who left us at the start of the year.” Present for the occasion at this 26th edition of the Handball World Championship, the representative of the Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Dr Rodrigue Ngando welcomed the success and the combined efforts of the top management of Fecahand and those of Minsep: “Cameroon registered its first victory in the history of Senior Women’s Handball World Championship and as a result qualified for the first time for the main phase of the competition. This has not been easy. We dealt with a lot of stress until the end of the party. I would like to thank the players and members of the technical staff for managing this match. My congratulations goes to the top management of Fecahand and especially to the Minister of Sports and Physical Education who spared no effort so that these girls could take part in this tournament.” Having created history, the Lionesses dream to better the stats.