VIPERS KRISTIANSAND TAKE THIRD TITLE IN A ROW
A record-setting crowd of 20,022 fans – the most to ever attend a women’s handball match – watched the semi-finals of the EHF FINAL4 Women 2023 at the MVM Dome in Budapest. The previous record for women’s handball matches stood at 19,467 spectators set at the final of the IHF Women’s World Championship 2013 between Serbia and Brazil in Belgrade on 22 December 2013.
VIPERS KRISTIANSAND TAKES THIRD TITLE IN A ROW
The weekend made history in many ways, not least as Vipers Kristiansand became just the second team ever to secure three titles in a row.
Vipers defeated Györi Audi ETO KC 37:35 in the semi-final, the highest-scoring match in the history of the EHF FINAL4. Györ trailed by five goals after the first half before mounting an impressive comeback steered by captain Stine Oftedal, but Vipers proved too strong in the end.
EHF FINAL4 debutants FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria won the second semi-final 30:29 over Team Esbjerg in a thrilling game. The Budapest-based team benefitted from loud local support and mounted a big turnaround in the second half to take the win and a place in the final.
In the final, Vipers goalkeeper Katrine Lunde was outstanding. She finished the game with 16 saves and a 47 per cent save rate, and by leading the Norwegian side to victory became the first player in history to win the EHF Champions League seven times.
Vipers’ Anna Vyakhireva became the first right back in history to seal the MVP award at the EHF FINAL4, with excellent performances in both games in Budapest. She racked up 11 goals across the two matches played on the final weekend and won her first EHF Champions League Women trophy.
Meanwhile, Henny Reistad was Esbjerg’s second top scorer in the placement match with five goals, which made her the all-time top goal scorer at the EHF FINAL4 as she reached a 60-goal tally — three more than the previous record held by former Györ players Nycke Groot and Anita Görbicz. Despite this performance, Györ were able to win bronze in a nailbiting finish which saw them emerge victorious 28:27.
Reistad was also the top scorer for the Champions League season as a whole, with a huge 142 goals scored across 20 matches. That put her some distance ahead of Vipers’ Markéta Jerábková and CSM Bucuresti’s Cristina Neagu in second place, both with 118 goals.
Spectators in the arena (world attendance record for women’s handball match)
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fans reached via respective digital channels
