Cape Verde have forcefully pulled out of the 2021 Men’s Handball World Championship in Egypt as a result of a COVID-19 crisis.
The Blue Sharks barely made it to their opening game with 11 men which they lost by 34-27 to Hungary on Friday before forfeiting their second match against Germany on Sunday.
Sadly, it appeared that debutants exited the tournament abruptly after two of their teammates contracted the virus, reducing them to nine, one less than the minimum squad number required for the competition.
The International Handball Federation (IHF) confirmed that 10-0 defeat against Germany who were also awarded two points for the walkover due to insufficient players.
“Each team needs to have a minimum of 10 players including one goalkeeper,” the tournament’s Covid-19-related regulations stated.
With Cape Verde still facing difficulties to field at least 10 players and compete within regulations, they decided to withdraw.
The IHF confirmed that the “necessary arrangements will now be taken for the team to return to Cape Verde, who confirmed their willingness to work hard to make sure to qualify and return to the 28th IHF Men’s World Championship, co-hosted by Sweden and Poland in 2023.”
The BBC reports that the Czech Republic and the United States had to be replaced by North Macedonia and Switzerland respectively before the tournament began after the former pulled out as a result of the pandemic.
