David Späth (born 29 April 2002) is a German

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor 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 thr ...

player for

Rhein-Neckar Löwen Rhein-Neckar Löwen is a professional handball club founded in 2002, based in Mannheim, Germany. The club competes in the German Handball-Bundesliga and continentally in EHF European League. Rhein-Neckar Löwen play their home games in SAP A ...

and the German national team.

Club career

Having begun his handball career at the age of six, Späth played for a variety of teams based in his hometown of Kaiserslautern, before joining the under-19 team of

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

team

in 2018, where he finished second in the German ''A-Jugend'' (age group) championship in his debut season. As a result of injuries sustained by

Andreas Palicka Andreas Miroslav Palicka (; , ; born 10 July 1986) is a Swedish professional handball player for Paris Saint-Germain and the Swedish national team. Club career Palicka began his professional handball career at Redbergslids IK in 2002. He join ...

and

Mikael Appelgren Kent Mikael Appelgren (born 15 October 1961 in Stockholm) is a Swedish former table tennis player. Table tennis career He was 4-times World Champion, 9-times European Champion, 2-times Europe Top-12 winner, and World Cup winner. He also won ...

, the main team's goalkeepers, Späth made 26 appearances in the

2020–21 Bundesliga The 2020–21 Bundesliga was the 58th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 18 September 2020 and concluded on 22 May 2021. The season was originally scheduled to begin on 21 August 2020 and conclude on 15 ...

season, earning praise for performing well despite his inexperience. He also made his international club debut in the

EHF European League 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. Previo ...

, a competition which the team ended in third place. The following year, Späth continued playing for both the main team and the reserve squad until November, when a collision with the goal post caused him to sustain an

ACL injury An anterior cruciate ligament injury occurs when the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is either stretched, partially torn, or completely torn. The most common injury is a complete tear. Symptoms include pain, an audible cracking sound during in ...

which prevented him from playing for almost a year. He made his return at the back end of 2022 in a game against

HSV Hamburg Handball Sport Verein Hamburg is a professional handball club from Germany, located in Hamburg. Currently, Handball Hamburg competes in the Handball-Bundesliga. The full name in German is ''Handball Sport Verein Hamburg e.V.'' but the club has t ...

. Having fought his way into the position as starting goalkeeper, Späth played a large role in clinching the 2023 DHB-Pokal, saving three seven-meter throws in what he called the "biggest moment of iscareer" to date. Späth signed a contract extension that summer, one that would keep him at the club until 2027.

International career

Späth represented Germany at the 2021 European U-19 Championship, where Germany won gold. He was chosen for the All-Star team as Best goalkeeper. He also participated at the 2023 Junior World Championship where Germany won gold again, and he was once again in the All-Star team. He debuted for the German national team in November 2023 against Egypt, and was selected for the team for the

2024 European Men's Handball Championship The 2024 EHF European Men's Handball Championship was the 16th edition of the tournament and the third to feature 24 national teams. It was hosted in Germany from 10 to 28 January 2024. The two opening games of the tournament were attended by ...

. Späth came into the tournament in the role of backup keeper to Andreas Wolff, a European Champion and mentor to the eleven-years younger Späth. The debutant shone through in a group stage match against North Macedonia, where a string of saves and Späth's impassioned celebrations made headlines. The team finished fourth, with Späth having a save percentage of 28% compared to Wolff's 35%.

Individual awards

* All-Star Team as Best goalkeeper at the 2021 European U-19 Championship * All-Star Team as Best goalkeeper at the 2023 Junior World Championship

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Späth, David 2002 births Living people German male handball players Handball-Bundesliga players Rhein-Neckar Löwen players Handball players at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic handball players for Germany Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Germany Olympic medalists in handball Sportspeople from Kaiserslautern Handball players from Rhineland-Palatinate 21st-century German sportsmen