{{short description|German handball player (born 1982)}} {{use dmy dates|date=June 2022}} {{Infobox handball biography | name = Anja Althaus | image = Anja Althaus (crop).jpg | caption = <!-- other than just name --> | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1982|9|3|df=y}} | birth_place = Magdeburg, East Germany | nationality = German | height = {{height|m=1.77|precision=0}} | position = Pivot | currentclub = | clubnumber = | youthyears1 = 1990–1998 | youthclubs1 = SC Magdeburg | years1 = 1998–2000 | clubs1 = HC Niederndodeleben | years2 = 2000–2007 | clubs2 = DJK/MJC Trier | years3 = 2007–2012 | clubs3 = Viborg HK | years4 = 2012–2014 | clubs4 = Thüringer HC | years5 = 2014–2017 | clubs5 = ŽRK Vardar | years6 = 2017–2018 | clubs6 = Győri ETO KC | nationalyears1 = 2002–2014 | nationalteam1 = Germany | nationalcaps1 = 243 | nationalgoals1 = 527<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dhb.de/nationalteams/frauen/spielerinnen/detailseiten-spielerinnen/anja-althaus/persoenliche-daten.html|title=Profile|publisher=dhb.de|accessdate=14 June 2014}}</ref> | managerclubs1 = North Macedonia (assistant) | manageryears1 = 2023– | medaltemplates = {{MedalCompetition|World Championship}} {{MedalBronze|2007 France|Team}} }}
'''Anja Althaus''' (born 3 September 1982) is a retired German handball player who most recently played for Győri ETO KC and formerly was a member of the German national team.<ref name=dhb>{{cite web|url=http://www.dhb.de/index.php?id=althaus |title=Anja Althaus – Deutscher Handballbund |publisher=German Handball Federation |language=German |accessdate=2009-06-17 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100920072127/http://dhb.de/index.php?id=althaus |archivedate=2010-09-20 }}</ref> She won the Champions League three times in her career (twice with Viborg, once with Győr).
She was included in the European Handball Federation Hall of Fame in 2023.<ref name="hof">{{cite web |url=https://www.eurohandball.com/en/news/en/legendary-players-enter-the-hall-of-fame-of-european-handball/ |publisher=European Handball Federation|website=www.eurohandball.com|title=LEGENDARY PLAYERS ENTER THE HALL OF FAME OF EUROPEAN HANDBALL|date=26 June 2023|accessdate=27 June 2023}}</ref>
==Career==
Althaus made her debut on the German team in 2002.<ref name=dhb/> She received a bronze medal at the 2007 World Championship. She competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where Germany finished 11th.<ref>{{cite Sports-Reference}}</ref>
She announced her retirement from professional handball after the Champions League final in 2017, where HC Vardar fell short to Győri ETO. She changed her mind and a few weeks later signed a contract with Győri ETO.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nemzetisport.hu/kezilabda/noi-kezi-ugy-volt-hogy-visszavonul-most-alairt-a-gyorhoz-2572503|title= Úgy volt, hogy befejezi, ehelyett most aláírt a Győrhöz |publisher=Nemzeti Sport |date=1 June 2017|accessdate=1 August 2018|language=Hungarian}}</ref> She won the Champions League title, the Hungarian Championship and the Hungarian Cup as well and then she retired from handball in 2018 for good.
==Honours== *'''Bundesliga''': **Winner: 2003, 2013 *'''DHB-Pokal''': **Winner: 2013 *'''Damehåndboldligaen''': **Winner: 2008, 2009, 2010 *'''Danish Cup''': **Winner: 2007, 2008 *'''EHF Champions League''': **Winner: 2009, 2010, 2018 **Finalist: 2017
==Individual awards== *Best Defensive Player of the European Championship: 2012<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ehf-euro.com/Singe-News.2807.0.html?&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=22141&cHash=3f5271d0e1d7bfa037c35e411167a017#.UM8UWV-Fws0 |title=All Star Team announced |publisher=European Handball Federation |date=16 December 2012 |accessdate=17 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121221012952/http://www.ehf-euro.com/Singe-News.2807.0.html?&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=22141&cHash=3f5271d0e1d7bfa037c35e411167a017 |archivedate=21 December 2012 }}</ref> *EHF Hall of Fame in 2023.<ref name="hof" />
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == * {{European Handball Federation|new_id=mHEAR9os2P2m1SHADKlWjQ|id=511609}} * {{Olympics.com profile|anja-althaus|org_archive=20200625020143}} * {{Olympedia|112077}}
{{Navboxes | title = Germany squads | bg = white | fg = black | bordercolor = black | list1 = {{Germany squad 2011 World Women's Handball Championship}} {{Germany squad 2012 European Women's Handball Championship}} {{Germany squad 2013 World Women's Handball Championship}} {{Germany squad 2014 European Women's Handball Championship}} }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Althaus, Anja}} Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:Sportspeople from Magdeburg Category:Handball players from Saxony-Anhalt Category:Sportspeople from Bezirk Magdeburg Category:German women's handball players Category:Olympic handball players for Germany Category:Handball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Viborg HK players Category:Győri Audi ETO KC players Category:German expatriate sportspeople in North Macedonia Category:20th-century German women Category:German expatriate handball players in Denmark Category:Expatriate handball players in North Macedonia Category:German expatriate handball players in Hungary Category:21st-century German sportswomen Category:German handball coaches Category:Female handball coaches {{Germany-handball-bio-stub}}