Rikke Erhardsen Skov (born 7 September 1980) is a former Danish team
handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
player and Olympic champion. She received a gold medal with the Danish national team at the
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
Viborg HK
Viborg HK (Viborg Håndbold Klub) is the name of a Danish handball club from Viborg. The club has many teams for both women and men, but especially the professional women's team is one of the most successful in Danish and European handball sin ...
, Skov joined the club yet as a teenager in 1994 and it remained her lone team till she retired in 2016 and retired from active sports when she became pregnant in February 2017.
In 2011, she was one of the five handballers, and the only woman who received The EHF Handball Award. The prize was handed out in the 20th anniversary of the European Handball Federation for the players who achieved the biggest successes both in club and international level.
Club career
Skov started her handball career in 1992, aged 12. She played for Overlund GF until she joined
Viborg HK
Viborg HK (Viborg Håndbold Klub) is the name of a Danish handball club from Viborg. The club has many teams for both women and men, but especially the professional women's team is one of the most successful in Danish and European handball sin ...
in 1994. With Viborg, Skov has won numerous titles, both domestic and European. Her achievements include winning the Champions League in 2006, 2009 and 2010, the
EHF Cup
The EHF European League is an annual men's handball club competition organised by the European Handball Federation (EHF) since 1981. It is the second-tier competition of European club handball, ranking only below the EHF Champions League. Previ ...
in 1999 and 2004, four Danish Cups and seven Danish Championships.
National team
Rikke Skov made her debut with the national team on 28 July 2000, and was appointed team captain in 2007. She received an Olympic gold medal in
Athens 2004
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
and a silver medal at the 2004 European Championship. Skov first retired from international handball in April 2009, until when she played 107 matches and scored 296 goals. However, Skov later changed her mind and participated on the
2010 European Women's Handball Championship
The 2010 European Women's Handball Championship was held in Denmark and Norway from 7–19 December. It was the first European Championship hosted by two countries. Norway won their overall 5th gold medal, when they defeated first time finalist S ...
, where she reached the fourth place. In 2011, she continued to play for the national team and participated among others on the
GF World Cup '11
The GF World Cup '11 is the seventh edition of the GF World Cup, which was held in Aarhus, Denmark between 20 and 25 September. Romania entered the tournament as defending champions following their triumph in 2010 against Norway, but were eliminat ...
, but before the squad selection for the 2011 World Championship she withdrew from the team to focus fully on her club duties. On Friday 29 April she announced that she ended her national team career.
Results
* Champions League
: Winner: 2006, 2009, 2010
: Finalist: 2001
* EHF Cup
: Winner: 1999 and 2004
* Danish Championship
: Gold: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014
: Silver: 2007
: Bronze: 2005
* Danish Cup
: Winner: 2003, 2006, 2007 and 2008
Awards
*Danish national team player of the year ( da, Årets Landsholdsspiller) in 2006/07 and 2007/08
*Member of the All Star Team of the
Møbelringen Cup 2008 Møbelringen Cup 2008 was held in Norway, in the cities of Oslo, Gjøvik and Lillestrøm. The tournament started on 21 November and finished on 23 November 2008. Norway won the event by winning all their matches.
Results
All times are Central Eur ...
*The EHF Handball Award winner (2011)
Personal life
Skov met fellow handballer
Lotte Kiærskou
Lotte Kiærskou (born 23 June 1975) is a Danish former team handball player, and twice Olympic champion. She won a gold medal with the Danish national team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney,2012 Olympics: Who Are The LGBT Athletes? Day Twenty — Rikke Skov They were in a registered partnership as allowed by Danish law. but split in 2011. Kiærskou, now retired, gave birth to the ex-couple’s two daughters.
In 2017, Skov herself gave birth to a daughter fathered by her boyfriend, retired handball player Jakob Borrits Sabra, whom she married in 2018.
In 2005, Skov became a
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...