Handball, Men

Originally, ten nations intended to send teams to Berlin, but Denmark, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden eventually withdrew their entries. The absence of the Scandinavian countries, where the indoor variety was more popular, was particularly disappointing. This essentially left the title to the other native country of the sport, Germany. Also competing in Berlin were four Central European nations – Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, and Romania – and the United States, the only non-European entry, with the Romanian team made up of ethnic Germans from Transylvania. After setting aside Hungary (22-0) and the United States (29-1), Germany encountered somewhat more resistance in the final pool. The last match against Austria, played in a packed Olympic Stadium was relatively closely contested, but the Germans still emerged victorious: 10-6.

In 1938, Germany and Austria also finished 1-2 at the inaugural world championships (indoor handball). Later that year, the first outdoor handball world championship was also won by the Germans. Austria was absent, as it had been annexed by Germany earlier in the year. Apart from eight German Olympic champions, the world champion team also featured Austrian Leopold Wohlrab, who had won a silver medal in Berlin.