Men's Handball -- Hanguo Jiayou! (go Korea) on PNN

Phase 4 of ticket distribution in China was at the end of last month. Individuals could go to the ticket venues directly in Beijing and buy a certain number of released tickets. Most everything sold out on the first day (a Friday), which was the day I first arrived in Beijing. However, because information is so difficult to get in China I went the following Saturday morning to buy tickets...all that was left was handball. I'd never heard of handball at this point, but since we were there and tickets were available, I went ahead and bought them.

Here's the gymnasium for handball -- it is near the Olympic Park, but in a different area. Again, blue skies. And not humid. Probably some of the best weather I've experienced in China.

Here's the inside of the gym. Handball is a lot like other sports...except you can hold the ball as you run around. You have to occasionally dribble (though I'm not sure what the rules are for this specifically), and you try to throw the ball into the goal.

Our first game was China v. Brazil. China lost by a pretty solid margin. Handball is actually a lot of fun to watch, and some of the players are very skillful. There is an area around the goal where you are not allowed to stand, so players will jump in and then throw the ball mid-air into the goal.

Our second game was Korea vs Egypt, which turned out to be a lot of fun. The Korean fans are very loud and excitable so we decided to join them in their cheers -- goo Korea, Hanguo Jiayou!