From January 12 to 27, 2013, Spain will host the 23rd World Men's Handball Championship which will also feature Slovenian team, proudly supported by Gorenje. The team also includes five players of the Gorenje Velenje Handball Club.
As a part of the training camp, Slovenian team played four friendlies, beating Algeria 29:19, Montenegro 31:26 and Tunis 28:23, and loosing to Denmark 30:35. In the first round of the World Championship, Slovenia will play Saudi Arabia on January 12, South Korea on January 14, Poland on January 15, Belarus on January 17, and Serbia on January 19. Last sixteen matches will be played on January 20 and 21; quarter-finals will take place on January 23; semi-finals and finals will be played on January 25, 26, and 27.
Players from the Handball Club Gorenje Velenje, featured at the Championship, will include Matej Gaber, Jure Dolenec, and Marko Bezjak for the Slovenian team, Fahrudin Melić for team Montenegro, and Ivan Gajić for the Serbian team.
Gorenje has been the general sponsor of the Gorenje Velenje for 20 years; for the last 7 year, Gorenje has also been the platinum sponsor of the Slovenian Handball Association.
Slovenia as the 'Barcelona of handball'
On Wednesday, January 9, the chairman of the Slovenian Handball Association Mr. Franjo Bobinac addressed the team before they left for Spain: "We are about to be a part of one of the biggest sporting events in Europe and in the world. I firmly believe Slovenian team will leave a good impression. I do not wish to introduce any pressure; I do, however, wish for the team to repeat the performance from Serbia when they were dubbed by some the 'Barcelona of handball'."
Slovenian head coach Mr. Boris Denič commented on the team's goals: "Expectations are high, but it is difficult to predict anything. We wish to be ranked as high as possible after the group stage in order to avoid the host team Spain in the round of last sixteen. But Croatian, Hungarian, and Egyptian teams are very good as well."
Slovenian team captain Uroš Zorman said: "I believe we completed the training camp well. We can't wait for the Championship to begin. We will do our best. We are striving for the highest goals; we wish to take a step forward compared to Serbia, and we shall play accordingly."