PSG star Nikola Karabatic speaks before returning to the THW Kiel

He is undoubtedly the greatest handball player of our time. Nobody has won more titles than Nikola Karabatic, nobody shaped the game in the past two decades as he did. There should be no better brand ambassador for handball worldwide.

Karabatic has become an Olympic champion three times, four times world and three times European champions. He won the Champions League with three different clubs, became national champions several times in France, Germany and Spain. Karabatic, a three -time world handball player and knight of the Legion of honor, is the personified success. Since 2015 he has been playing for the French Krösus Paris -Saint Germain, with which he is still waiting for the very big international throw - despite great investments from Qatar.

Many opportunities no longer remain with regard to the autumn of the career. On Thursday (8:45 p.m., live! At times European), Karabatic has to win a big win in Kiel to get the chance of his fourth champions League title. In the quarter-final first leg a week ago, Karabatic scored two goals against the THW at 30:30, it didn't play as much as it was years ago when he "torn" 60 minutes at the front and back for the success.

Traces have left more than 20 years at the highest level. To date, it is being dragged on Karabatic, everyone wants to prove themselves against him. If he stands in the field, it is the natural center of the game. "There are days when everything hurts when I get up and I actually don't feel like training," Karabatic admits in the latest edition of "Bock on Handball", which will be released on May 24th: "But there is still still exist The days when it is a lot of fun. "

"I have always tried to forget all the previous titles"

Woe when Karabatic caught one on Thursday. The right -hander can still tear games, make the difference in crucial moments. Over 70 medals hang in the cabinet of the French national player, some of whom are no longer sufficient for superlatives. But which title was the best? "Always the last one," Karabatic describes his secret of success: "I have always tried to forget all the previous titles in my career. Otherwise the motivation will go to the basement."

But the 1.96-meter edge, which the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is unlikely but not impossible, are no longer the most important thing. The family came first, but the sport had undoubtedly shaped and shaped him. "The handball taught me a lot about life. And I learned which person I want to be myself."