Nanguita Antonioli was introduced to Tchoukball in 2009 by current teammate Gaël Sieber and now plays for Swiss club La Chaux-de-Fonds. Two years later she found herself in the junior Swiss national team, progressing through to the senior squad soon after, and has represented Switzerland in the European Championships from 2014 to present, captaining their 2016 team. Antonioli’s club have placed second and first in the European Tchoukball Silver Cups in 2017 and 2018 respectively, so it is fair to say that the right-handed defender spends her life dedicated to this unique sport.
Having joined the game in 2003 after searching for a different sport other than football or ice hockey, 23-year-old Guillaume Cuche has been playing tchoukball for La Chaux-de-Fonds ever since. The high level of the game and incredible opportunities enticed him and, 15 years later, the left-handed left shooter has notched up 41 appearances for the Swiss National team in both junior and senior squads all the way from Kaoshiung in Taiwan to Castellenza in Italy.
Right-handed UK player Eithne Mc Carthy is one of Guilford Inferno’s key defenders, playing for them since 2015. Discovering Tchoukball in 2012 at Portsmouth University whilst study Geological and Environmental Sciences, after she graduated she transferred to Farnborough Jets in 2013, becoming a member of Inferno in 2015 when the clubs merged.
This week, our attention turns to Polish tchoukball – more specifically, the one-club lady of Ursus Rybnik: 18-year old Agnieszka Mirek.
Mirek has been playing as a defender for Ursus Rybnik for five years and has a wealth of international experience since her debut in 2014, including having played in both of the last two European Tchoukball Championships (ETC).
This week, we speak to Ferrara Bulls left shooter, Antonio Notarangelo, 27, who tells us all about his tchoukball career and what his hopes are for the upcoming EWC in Radevormwald.