London University Handball Club providing inclusive and exciting experience for all

Teddy Skingle, Chairperson of Brunel Handball, said: “Handball brings players together from all across the globe, for people to learn each other’s cultures and also it is a very social team sport, everyone depends on each other and it’s that social aspect with your teammates which can be a great relief from the stress of class during the week.

“Handball is good workout as well; it is end-to-end action with something happening all the time!

“With our club no matter the challenges we face we continue to grow and develop every year.

“To getting a partnership with a high-level handball club, to getting a sponsor which is not common for a university team, to having the personnel of the club change a lot from year to year but bringing new players in and giving alumni a reason to stick around after university.

“We also like to give back to the community, being involved in multiple charity fundraisers, a highlight of this would be our fiesta night which raised over £1000 in previous years!

“Alumni of the club go on to play handball at a high level, become the coach of the team and still have a massive roll to play.”

International Day of University Sport, widely celebrated in over 170 countries, serves as a day to promote physical activity, health and education.

On September 20, the day is a good opportunity for to provide a space for discussions on the issues and the benefits of university sport, but more importantly the social and educational value of sport.

With students returning to studies for the start of their term, Skingle would encourage anyone to try the sport, he added: “You should join us because at the end of the day you can combine a great sport, with a great group of people who will welcome you as if you are family.

“There is very much a social aspect, we try to go out as a club once a week and go out for dinner or drinks after games most of the time.

“We have players from all over the globe and with people graduating the club changes a lot but the thing that is really special is the family ethos as a club remains the same.

“It’s all you can really ask for from a university club.”

The club offers two training sessions a week, plus an ‘active at Brunel’ session, which is a taster session that runs throughout the year, plus opportunities to do more with the club, Skingle added: “We also have a partnership with WLE (an external handball club for players to train and develop, as well as player at a higher level if that’s what they want to achieve.

“We have BUCS teams for men and women, and we like to organise plenty of games with regional league or university teams through the year, with regional league being for players that want to push themselves.

“There are also volunteering opportunities with fundraising events throughout the year, as well as helping with tournaments, we also offer people who want to go into coaching the chance to run sessions as well to help their learning.

“In collaboration with our student union we get professional development opportunities such as first aid, referee, table official courses and more.”

With the introduction of alternative sports, such as Handball, recent studies from the International University Sports Federation’s show an increased overall student participation in university sport by up to 15%.