THE FIRST OFFICIAL DRAW OF LIMA 2019 GAMES COMPETITIONS TAKES PLACE

The official draw of the handball groups took place this morning. The event was a historic milestone for the Lima 2019 Games since it was the first draw of many to come for the Pan American Games.

Carlos Neuhaus, president of Lima 2019, Ramón Gallego, technical delegate of the International Handball Federation, and the president of the Peruvian Federation, César Gonzales Acevedo, attended the ceremony. The groups and the schedule of each discipline were drafted.

The opening day for the women’s category is scheduled for July 24, and the teams from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil and one qualified by the repechage (to be played between Chile, Mexico, Guatemala and Canada) are in Group A. The United States of America, Dominican Republic, Argentina and Peru are in Group B.

Likewise, the men’s category will compete on July 31, where the teams from United States, Cuba, Argentina and one qualified by the repechage (to be played between Chile, Dominican Republic and Colombia) are in Group A. Mexico, Puerto Rico, Brazil and Peru are in the Group B. Both competitions will be held at the Sports Center 1 at VIDENA and the first two positions will advance to the next stage.

“With the formation for the series after this draw, the road to Lima 2019 begins. We are in Lima 2019 Games mode on and we want to share this spirit with all the delegations that will participate in Lima,” Carlos Neuhaus said.

This competition will be a "before and after" in the history of handball in Peru, since we will see the best players of the world who stand out in the main professional leagues of Europe, at the Lima 2019 Games, since they will be competing also for a quota place for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in men’s and women’s competition.

“WE KNOW OUR RIVALS”

Mario Ramos, coach of the Peruvian women’s team, said that the Peruvian delegation is expected to have a good performance.  “We know our rivals because we have faced them before, and we will be competing against the United States and the Dominican Republic for a place in the semifinals. We will face every opponent with the same spirit," he said.

“We can play at the same level of Puerto Rico and Mexico to advance to the next stage.  Our plus is that we are locals, so we should take advantage of it,” said Iván Bendezú, technical director of the Peruvian men’s team.

Drawing photo gallery (Click on here)