“I do not usually go to the beach by myself to soak in the sun, to enjoy the sea or the ocean, even if I live two blocks away from one in Matosinhos.”

For a beach handball player, this surely sounds a bit anticlimactic. Or even quirky at times. But make no mistake, Catarina Oliveira loves the beach and especially beach handball. She has become one of the top players in Europe over her career, in spite of all the challenges she faced on her way there.