Just don’t think too much! When Renars Uscins made his national team debut at the end of April, he went from follower to decider in a matter of seconds. Uscins says: “We were far behind, I noticed that there was uncertainty when I came in. I was immediately placed in a good position and tried not to worry, preferring to throw on it quickly.”
Uscins grins when he thinks of the game of the elite selection of the German Handball Association (DHB) in Kristianstad against Sweden. Not because of the result (23:32). But because of his five goals and the strange circumstances that framed his first appearance in the senior team. Because instead of goalkeeper Andreas Wolff or captain Johannes Golla, those responsible preferred to talk about Renars Uscins and his prospects in the right backcourt afterwards.
The left-hander from TSV Hannover-Burgdorf has already audibly knocked “upstairs”. So it’s no wonder that he has the leading role “downstairs”, as captain of the U21s. The team born in 2002 and 2003 wants to win the title at the current World Cup in Germany.
“I have peace within me”
National coach Martin Heuberger’s team is still in action in the preliminary round in Hanover, where the last game against Algeria is scheduled for this Friday (6 p.m., Eurosport); one point is enough to reach the main round in Magdeburg. The 35:14 against Libya on Tuesday was followed a day later by the 46:31 against Tunisia; In front of 3,400 fans in the hot stadium sports hall, Heuberger made a substitution after the break without the quality suffering.
“We are very well positioned in this double year,” says Heuberger, “thanks to the academies, the boys have more playing time in the Bundesliga than ever before.” His starting seven only plays for top division clubs. And someone like Uscins even plays an important role in his club. 27 appearances, 64 field goals: he had his share of Hannover’s place in the European Cup.
Uscins, 21 years old, says: “I have the calm in me and know in the game what the better throw is, when it’s better to let it go, when to slow down. I was able to learn a lot from others and now I have the experience of doing the right thing. My aim is to get the team back on track when things don’t go well.”
Wants to go far with Germany at the U-21 World Cup: Renars Uscins : Image: dpa
Of course the chunks are still to come; France and Croatia are already waiting in the main round, and even more so in the quarter-finals when Denmark could stand in the way in Berlin on June 29th. But an attack with the Berlin professional Nils Lichtlein as a playmaker and Uscins, who can throw hard and pass cleverly, is already outstanding at this age group.
Renars Uscins already knows how to win titles among youngsters. Born in Latvia, raised in handball in Germany because his father Armands moved to Saxony-Anhalt in 2005, Uscins won the U-19 European Championship with the DHB two years ago and was voted into the all-star team.
In the Bundesliga, Uscins only faced the competition in Magdeburg, where he attended sports school. Loans to Bergisches HC and Hannover ensured more playing time before TSV coach Christian Prokop trusted him and let him play frequently in his first full Bundesliga season.
Frank Heike, Köln Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 4 Frank Heike, Köln Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 9 Frank Heike, Kiel Published/Updated: ,
There aren’t many good German left-handers in the backcourt, so the next home tournament could come to Uscins; the European Championships with the senior team in January 2024. He knows that national coach Alfred Gislason is watching him in Hanover and will do so over the course of the day.
