One sport that is known worldwide, but not as much in the United States is the sport of team handball.
Team handball began in the early 1900s in central Europe as an outdoor sport. Having some origins as far back as ancient Rome and Greece, team handball became an Olympic sport in the 1936 Summer Olympic Games in Berlin.
Owen McFadden holds the position of director of recreational sports at Furman University. Of the 22 years he has held the position, McFadden has coached and played the sport of team handball since 1997.
McFadden said that he believes the sport will eventually catch on here in the United States once the general rules of the game become more known.
"Team handball is one of the most popular sports that most people have never heard of," McFadden said. "The object of the game is to throw a ball, which is a little bit bigger than a cantaloupe, into the goal."
One of the first details that McFadden thinks people should be aware about is the number of players on the court. With so many similarities between basketball, soccer and at some points football, McFadden said that once people understand those differences, it will be a lot easier to accept the sport itself.
"Handball is a game played between two teams," he said. "Each team has six court players and a goalie."
According to McFadden, another detail that makes the sport of team handball different is the court size, time frame for a game and the way the game is played.
"The court is a little bit bigger than a basketball court," he said. "Typically games are thirty minute halves at the international level. The idea of the game is to pass and dribble the ball down the court, set players up and just try to work it to where you get an opening shot at the goal."
"The game is continuous, similar to hockey, except that you can't substitute while in transition," he added. "So, you have to wait until one of your teammates comes off the court before you can enter the court."
Unlike most other sports, there are small differences between the men's and women's game of team handball.
The main and most significant difference in the sport of team handball is the size of the ball. Just as in basketball, the size of the handball differs between men and women.
"There is a different in size in the women's and men's handball," McFadden said. "The circumference of the ball is 21-22 inches for the women and 23-24 inches for the men. There are never any coed games. It's a pretty physical sport match, men and women against one another. It's really fast paced and there is a lot of contact so it gets pretty physical out there."
