From 22 to 26 November, Barquisimeto in Venezuela was for the second time the host of the IHF Trophy Tournament. Five nations in the men’s and three nations in the women’s category competed for a place on the Continental Phase of the IHF Trophy for Pan America which will take place in spring 2013.
Even though the tournament was foreseen to be played in two groups out of three, the late withdrawal of Bolivia meant that it would be played by a round-robin system in the men’s competition and a double round robin in the women’s competition.
In the men’s tournament Paraguay and Colombia were the biggest competitors to the host in their quest for the Continental Phase, but Venezuela managed to win both games, firstly winning against Paraguay by 33:28 in round 3 and then defeating Colombia with a clear 32:18 on the final day of the tournament.
The women’s tournament was a clearer issue, as the Venezuelan team was a class above Colombia and Peru and won all four matches of the tournament clearly, thus qualifying for the Continental Phase.
The tournaments were followed by courses for coaches and referees organized by the International Handball Federation. The course for referees was held by Mr Javier Moure Fernandez (ESP) on behalf of the International Handball Federation, while the course for coaches was conducted by Mr Yvon Laurans (FRA).
The complete results and ranking are as follows: