RYT summer events to drive young athletes’ growth across Europe

Inaugurated in 2019, the POTM events are held each summer on the fringes of the YAC competitions, bringing some of the world’s most decorated handball stars — the ambassadors of the programme — to discuss with the players who stood out during the youth tournaments. Talents who receive the “Player of the Match” awards throughout the championships are invited to take part in the workshop sessions, where experienced handball players give practical insights on how to elevate their game on and off the playing court.

RYT summer overview

The RYT schedule for the summer of 2026 includes six YAC competitions, with each tournament set to welcome experienced ambassadors for the ‘Player of the Match’ workshops:

• Men’s 20 EHF EURO 2026, 8–19 July, Romania: Vid Kavtičnik and Luka Stepančić
• Men’s 20 EHF Championship I 2026, 12–19 July, Kosovo: Vlado Šola
• Men’s 20 EHF Championship II 2026, 12–19 July, Kosovo: Vlado Šola
• Men’s 18 EHF EURO 2026, 29 July–9 August, Serbia: Viran Morros and Ljubomir Vranješ
• Men’s 18 EHF Championship I 2026, 3–9 August, North Macedonia: Luka Žvižej
• Men’s 18 EHF Championship II 2026, 2–9 August, Georgia: Carlos Prieto

More than 300 young players are expected to take part in the six RYT sessions held across the YAC events this summer.

Digital activities in the spotlight

The RYT programme aims to contribute to sustainable pathways of young players, helping them become better and more complete athletes.

This year, the POTM events put special focus on the programme’s digital activities — namely the RYT app and Ambassador Sessions — which provide unique digital resources for the coming generation’s career development. The ambassadors will focus on the “Game around the game”, the concepts that are not visible on court but are part of the career of an elite athlete. They will share their valuable experience in a first-hand discussion with the players and will encourage them to take responsibility for their career development, by professionalising their on and off the court approach. 

The app features a broad collection of 38 short training sessions made with the help and expertise of some of the world’s best handball players and leading field experts. Covering essential topics such as dealing with media, self-managing a dual career, taking active care of one’s mental state, gaining fundamental knowledge in anti-doping and sports law and optimising nutrition — as well as the newly introduced training area on injury management — the activities encourage a holistic approach to career development, adding systematic off-court support to the players’ on-court training.

Completing training sessions in the app helps collect tokens, which give access to exclusive Ambassador Sessions — live online meetings with some of the best players in the world, encouraging open discussions on key topics, during which the participants can address questions to their idols and learn from their knowledge.

The RYT app resources are not limited to members of the RYT programme, with anyone able to access the app and register for online sessions. Download it free of charge on the Google Play and iOS App Store.

Photos © Kosova Handball Federation (main & in-text); Nikolle Quni (first in-text)