It is ironic that in a sport that relies on its practitioners’ ability with a ball in hand, that the organisers couldn’t simply open balls in their own hands in the draw for the Handball Champions League.
Draws for any tournament held in front of television cameras tend to be drawn-out and awkward affairs and people only put up with the whole fuss that surrounds them so they can find out who is going to be playing who as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, trying to determine the teams that would play each other in the Handball Champions League proved a terribly difficult task for the two dignitaries with the responsibility of drawing names from fancy balls in the draw which took place in Cologne recently.
After spending a couple of minutes grappling with the balls in a manner similar to that of someone trying to prise the top off a particularly stubborn soft drink bottle, the organisers were forced to intervene with a kettle of all things to open the previously unbreakable ball and reveal the name inside.
Very awkward and very embarrassing for all involved, but we’d still take it ahead of the terribly long and ridiculously boring events that pass for World Cup draws these days.
Hat-tip: James Dart
