Luka Karabatic facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Luka Karabatic |
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 April 1988 Strasbourg, France |
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| Nationality | French | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Pivot | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current club | Paris Saint-Germain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior clubs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2008–2012
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Montpellier Handball | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2012–2015
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Pays d'Aix UC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2015–
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Paris Saint-Germain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2011–2025
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France | 172 | (182) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| 1 National team caps and goals correct as of 5 July 2024 |
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Luka Karabatic (born April 19, 1988) is a French professional handball player. He plays as a pivot for Paris Saint-Germain and was a key player for the French national team until his retirement from international play in February 2025.
He is the younger brother of Nikola Karabatić, who is also a famous handball player.
Contents
About Luka Karabatic
Luka Karabatic was born in France. His dad is from Croatia and his mom is from Serbia. Handball runs in his family! His father, Branko, was a goalkeeper for the Yugoslavian national handball team. Luka's older brother, Nikola, is known as one of the best handball players in the world. Nikola was even named the best player by the IHF (International Handball Federation) two times.
Early Sports Career
Even though his family loved handball, Luka first chose to play tennis. He was very good at it! In 1998, when he was 10 years old, he won the French championship for his age group.
However, in 2007, when Luka was 19, he decided to try handball. He started training with the youth team of Montpellier Handball. He played as a center back at first.
Joining the Senior Team
In 2009, Luka joined the main senior team of Montpellier Handball. This was the same year his older brother, Nikola, also returned to the club.
In his first two years as a professional player, Luka helped Montpellier win the French championship twice, in 2009 and 2010. Because of his success, the club extended his contract until 2016. He became an important player, often playing as the second pivot after Issam Tej.
A Difficult Time and New Club
In 2012, Luka and his brother faced a challenging situation related to a handball game. Because of this, Luka left Montpellier AHB. He then signed with Pays d'Aix Université, a team that had just moved up to the top league. His brother Nikola also joined him there. In their first season, the Karabatic brothers helped the team finish 9th in the league.
Playing for France
Luka Karabatic made his debut for the French national team in a friendly tournament in Argentina in June 2006.
His first time playing for France in a big official competition was at the EHF Euro in Denmark in 2014. He helped France win the gold medal there!
He continued to achieve great things with the national team:
- In 2015, he won the World Championship with France.
- At the 2016 Rio Olympics, he won a silver medal.
- In 2017, he won another World Championship gold medal.
- He won a bronze medal at the 2018 European Championship.
- He also won a bronze medal at the 2019 World Championship.
- At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he won a gold medal, which is a huge achievement!
- In 2023, he won a silver medal at the World Championship.
- In 2024, he won another gold medal at the European Championship.
- At the 2025 World Championship, he won a bronze medal.
Luka Karabatic retired from playing for the French national team in February 2025, after a very successful career.
See also
In Spanish: Luka Karabatic para niños
