BIOGRAPHY
Danish star Mikkel Hansen retired from playing handball with his second Olympic gold medal around his neck, finishing on a high. Hansen played 276 games for Denmark over the course of his 17-year career, scoring 1,387 goals — putting him second on the all-time list for Denmark.
The gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games was Hansen’s third Olympic medal in a row, following gold in Rio in 2016 and silver in Tokyo. He also retired with three World Championship titles and two silver medals; and one EHF EURO gold, two silver and one bronze medal.
Like fellow Hall of Fame member Nikola Karabatic, Hansen was named IHF World Player of the Year three times — in 2011, 2015 and 2018. He was the MVP at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and at the World Championship in 2013, 2019, and 2021; he was also named in the Olympic and World Championship All-star Teams twice, and in the EHF EURO All-star Team four times.
Additionally, Hansen was the top scorer at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and the 2011 and 2019 World Championships.
At club level, Hansen failed to win any European trophies despite playing for some of the continent’s top clubs. He began his senior career at home in Denmark, for GOG, before leaving for two years at Barcelona in Spain. Two years in Copenhagen were then followed by his long stint at Paris Saint-Germain, where he won nine French league and five French cup titles. Hansen reached the EHF FINAL4 five times with PSG, but finished second twice and third three times.
Hansen finished his career back in Denmark at Aalborg, where he made headlines in the 2022/23 season after stepping away for a while to focus on his mental health. He was able to come back from that break to retire on a high, having led Denmark back to the very top of men’s handball.
