Japanese sporting goods brand Mizuno has been named Official Partner and Preferred Footwear Sponsor of The British Handball Association in a two year partnership.

The move means that the company will be providing the official competition and training footwear for the men’s and women’s national teams. To mark the sponsorship, both teams will be launching Mizuno’s new handball specific shoe, the Wave Stealth, developed from research carried out with elite handball players from across Europe.

During an eventful period in the international handball calendar, the next two years will not only see the European and World Championship qualification campaigns but also - more importantly - the world’s best teams battling it out at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. European sport promotions and communications co-ordinator for Mizuno Europe, John Hooper, said: "Handball is a rich part of Mizuno’s heritage that we are extremely proud of and we hope that the brand’s ongoing technical expertise and support of the British teams will give them every chance of Olympic success next year."

British Handball’s CEO Paul Goodwin said: "We will be competing with some of the best handball teams in the world at the London 2012 Olympic Games, so it is fitting that our athletes have a world class brand in Mizuno to support them." Mizuno remains committed to a number of long-standing sponsorships within the sport of handball, these including German Bundesliga team TBV Lemgo, the Norwegian national team and Norwegian star player Kristian Kjelling who plays for AaB Håndbold.