High hopes for handball

Two of Great Britain's handball stars Mark Hawkins and Steven Larsson introduce themselves and the sport and tell Sky Sports what their big aims are for London 2012.

Handball is one of the biggest sports around in mainland Europe, and the hope is that London 2012 can spark some interest in it in the UK.

A fast and furious sport, handball could be one of the success stories of the Olympic Games, and the British duo hope to play a big part in that.

Both men joined Sky Sports News Radio to discuss Britain's chances at the Olympics, and Hawkins also pointed out the sport's big strengths.

"It's one goalkeeper, six players, it's a little bit like water polo but on a court, its fast, furious, lots of goals, lots of physical contact and lots of hard hits and things, so I think it's a great sport for the British public to really get behind and support," said Hawkins.

Honour

Playing in the Olympics will be a huge honour for Britain's handball players with the team only just coming into being after Beijing four years ago.

"It's the peak for every sportsman," added Hawkins. "We love being in front of the bigger crowds, the more that's riding on a game the better it is for us so it's really exciting for us."

Hawkins got into the game after originally wanting to be a basketballer.

"I was too small for basketball so there was a chance just before Beijing to transfer to different sports with an eye to London 2012 and I haven't looked back since really."

Larsson picked up the handball bug after moving to Sweden with his family, but he never thought twice about representing Great Britain.

"I've got a Swedish father and a British mum, so we moved from the UK when I was 11 years old to Sweden, and in Scandinavia it's big sport so I started playing when I was 13 or 14 so I've been playing it for a while now," said Larsson.

"When Britain called me to ask to me if I wanted to try and play in the Olympics it was a natural choice to say yes - I could have played for Sweden as well."

A medal seems out of reach with such an inexperienced team, but just getting more people into the sport is also a big aim for GB Handball.

"Denmark, France and Spain are three best teams around, we're a new team, we're the newest team in the Olympics so we're hoping to win a game or two and start off a big legacy in the sport in this country for us."

Mark Hawkins and Steven Larsson were launching the new Wave Stealth 2 handball shoes - part of Mizuno's 'Seiei' Collection. The Seiei Collection will be showcased at Mizuno's new Performance Centre - open between the 24th July and 12th August at Centre Point Tower, London. Visit www.mizunoseiei.com