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LOS ANGELES — <\/span>Rylee White had never even heard of the fast-paced sport of handball<\/a> until her roommate mentioned a TikTok video about tryouts in Los Angeles for the U.S. Olympic<\/a> women’s team \u2014 no experience necessary.<\/p>\n White, a 27-year-old screenwriter, knew she had to go. She wasn’t the only one. More than 150 women \u2014 buoyed by the viral video \u2014 attended the tryouts in January, a five-fold increase from previous turnouts.<\/p>\n Five months later, White is one of a handful of women who have packed their bags and moved to Florida to join USA Handball’s national residency program, hoping to eventually be selected to represent the United States at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles<\/a>. <\/p>\n As the host nation, the U.S. automatically qualifies for every sport. <\/p>\n The last time the United States had a women\u2019s handball team at the Games was in 1996. Finding the money and resources needed to field a competitive U.S. team is a constant challenge. Athletes are often dual citizens from Europe who play professionally overseas.<\/p>\n While handball is little known in the U.S., it is popular in Germany<\/a>, France<\/a>, Norway<\/a> and Denmark as well as Balkan nations in southeastern Europe. These countries usually dominate at the Olympics.<\/p>\n Men\u2019s handball was introduced in the 1936 Olympics, and women started participating at the 1976 Games. But while many Olympic athletes start training in childhood to compete for their country, handball athletes in the U.S. often pivot to the sport later in life.<\/p>\n The game involves two teams of six players who use their hands to pass a ball \u2014 covered in a sticky resin \u2014 to get it into the other team\u2019s goal, protected by a goalkeeper. It\u2019s fast, full-contact and can draw tens of thousands of spectators overseas.<\/p>\n Many female handball players were Division One athletes in college or are former professional basketball players. Most are in their 20s and 30s, but some play into their 40s.<\/p>\n White had hoped to have a college athlete career playing basketball and lacrosse but was hindered by injuries and several surgeries on her knees. Handball felt like her chance to play competitive sports again.<\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot of people would describe me as the most competitive person they\u2019d ever met,\u201d White said. \u201cI definitely was raised in a house where we had big, big dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n She told the coach after tryouts: \u201cI\u2019m ready to go do this and I will work as hard as you want me to work.\u201d<\/p>\n The goal of the residency is for players to improve enough to be paid to play professionally overseas.<\/p>\n Many have left partners behind to pursue their dreams, including White.<\/p>\n \u201cI told him I\u2019m going to take him to Europe with me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n