Romanian handball champions, CSM
Bucharest, had a poor start in the new European inter-club season. In the first
two games of Champions League, Adrian Vasile’s trainees lost, first to Team Esbjerg
of Denmark, 21-22 away from home, then to Rostov-Don of Russia at home, 30-27.
The difference was much higher than the scoreboard shows. In both games, CSM’s
top player, Cristina Neagu, had a subpar performance, scoring only two goals.
On Saturday, things changed radically. CSM Bucharest grabbed its first win in
the new Champions League season, 36-31 against Podravka Koprivnica of Croatia.
Cristina Neagu was the best player on the field for CSM, scoring 14 goals. For
her stellar performance in Croatia, we have designated Cristina Neagu Athlete
of the Week on RRI.
Cristina Neagu was born August 26,
1988 in Bucharest. She made her debut at a local sports club. In Under-21
competitions, she was designated best player in the world on several occasions,
starting 2005, when Romania won silver at the European Under-21 Championships
in Austria. In 2006 she joined the big-league handball, playing for Rulmentul Braşov
first, then transferring to Oltchim Râmnicu Vâlcea. In 2010, with Oltchim, she
reached the Champions League semi-finals. After the team from Râmnicu Vâlcea
got disbanded, she moved to Buducnost Podgorica, winning the Champions League
in 2015. Since 2017 she has been playing for CSM Bucharest.
Her record with Romania’s national
team, whose captain she has been since 2016, includes a bronze medal at the
European Championships of Denmark and Norway in 2010, and another bronze medal
at the World Cup in Demark in 2015. In 2010, 2015, 2016 and 2018, the
International Handball Federation designated her best player in the world, thus
becoming the first player in the history of women’s handball to win the trophy
four times. (VP)