Ole Gustav Gjekstad to replace Hergeirsson in Norway
Ole Gustav Gjekstad will be the handball girls’ new national team manager. He has a contract until June 2029.
Gjekstad is currently the head coach for Odense. Sandefjordingen won three Champions League titles with Vipers Kristiansand before taking over the Danish club team in 2023. From 1 January, Ole Gustav Gjekstad will become national team manager for the Handball Girls, with a contract ending on 30 June 2029.
– It is a privilege and an honor to coach the Norwegian national team. Thorir and his team have delivered fantastic results over a long period of time, so there will be big shoes to fill. I am looking forward to working with the tasks and complexity surrounding a national team. It will be very exciting, he says.
– On behalf of the confederation’s board, I am pleased to be able to announce that we have hired Ole Gustav as national team manager. He is very qualified through his achievements, he has leadership experience in both sports and social life, and he has a personality that is suitable for a top management job, says handball president Kåre Geir Lio.
From the new year until the end of the 2024/25 season, Gjekstad will combine the job as head coach in Odense with the position of national team manager during a transition period.
– The federal board is positive about such flexibility during a transition period, says Lio.
The hiring process has been led by the general secretary of the NHF, Erik Langerud.
– The job as national team manager for one of the world’s best national teams is a very attractive position, and many stakeholders from home and abroad have contacted us, says Langerud.
– It was nevertheless clarified early on in the confederation’s board that Ole Gustav was the confederation’s first choice, and the process has essentially become concrete around the possibility of this. The conversations with Ole Gustav have been inspiring – not least hearing his motivation and thoughts about the position. We are very pleased that we have received this land so quickly. At the same time, we would like to thank Odense Handball for a good and constructive dialogue, says Langerud.
Gjekstad’s first two meetings with the team will be held in March and April 2025. Before then, the coach must make a thorough analysis.
– First of all, I will have a good talk with Thorir, the team, the players and key people in the association to get the big picture and get a little more information than I have now. The plan is to maintain much of what is already there, then we will see what will be new – I won’t know that until I have a more thorough analysis done, says Gjekstad.
The coach is “very happy” to start a new job, but admits at the same time that it is a bit sad to leave Odense.
– It has been a great club to be in, he says.
As a coach in several top Scandinavian clubs, Gjekstad has had a close dialogue and collaboration with Hergeirsson. Both are concerned with creating a common foundation in the teams they lead.
– I am very concerned about culture – that the team must have a good performance culture and know what is involved in that. Then it’s hard work that lies at the bottom, taking the heavy lifting and making sure that everyone understands the importance of being part of a team, says Gjekstad, who views the transition from daily training work to relatively few gathering days positively.
– I have been on the floor for many years, so I don’t think I will miss the daily training. I am looking forward to working a little more generally for a period of time. It will be important to have a good dialogue with the club teams and coaches, and ensure that the players are followed up. It is a different way of following up than you do in a club team where you see them every single day. It will be exciting, says Gjekstad.
