The 29-year-old national team goalkeeper Johanna Bundsen has not been on a handball court since October last year. Because she was pregnant, she missed the World Cup last year and at the end of March, in the middle of the current corona pandemic, she gave birth to her first child.

- Now in retrospect it went very well. Then of course they were worried then, my partner would be allowed to join as long as he was healthy. They did not want him to get sick there and not be able to attend the birth.

"Feels very close now"

Four months after the birth, she is in full swing with bare ground training but has not yet started to train handball in earnest.

- It will be incredibly cool to see what the body holds for now.

On Thursday, she will return to Denmark and Copenhagen, in the hunt to be in match form for the season premiere on August 22, when Copenhagen is visited by Horsens.

- I hope to be able to be there. It's starting to get a return now. There will be no heavy training at first but I will increase gradually. But it feels very close now.

- I have taken help from physiotherapists and fitness trainers. I think that if I had not received that help from physiotherapists and coaches, I would have gone a little too fast. You are very eager to get started when you have been away for so long.

"It's about being selected"

For Bundsen, the move to the Olympics means that the national team goalkeeper can return to top form for the games in Tokyo. And before that, the European Championships in Denmark and Norway will be decided in December, where the Bundsen aims to take a place in the squad.

- It would have been fantastic fun. Then we get to see how the body reacts to coming back, it was a long time ago I was on a handball court. But of course it's something I would really like to play. Then it's about being taken out.