Yeliz Özel

Yeliz Özel

Personal information
Born	6 March 1980 Ankara, Turkey
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position	Middle Back
Club information
Current club	Yenimahalle Bld. SK
Number	7
Senior clubs
1998-1999 1999-2000 2000-2001 2001-2002 2002-2004 2004-2007 2007-2010 2010-2012 2012-2013 2013-	PTT Türk Telekom SK Byåsen Trondheim PTT Türk Telekom Anadolu Uni, Eskisehir Üsküdar Beld. SK Kometal Skopje Maliye Milli Piyango SK CS Oltchim Üsküdar Beld. SK Yenimahalle Bld. SK
National team ^1
	Turkey
Medal record Women's Handball Representing  Turkey Mediterranean Games 2009 Pescara Team
^1 National team caps and goals correct as of 5 July 2012

Yeliz Özel (white/red) attacking Austria at the 2015 World Women's Handball Championship European qualification match.

Yeliz Özel (born 6 March 1980, in Ankara)^[1] is a Turkish handballer, who plays for Yenimahalle Bld. SK and the Turkish national team. She is widely considered best handball player ever from Turkey.

Playing career

Club

She started her career in Ankara team PTT, played first European Cup level matches same year. With outstanding skills in game-reading, Yeliz labelled as a 'prominent young talent' by several handball experts. She transferred to Norway League for Byåsen Trondheim, played there one full season. Then she back to Turkey to play in Eskisehir Anadolu University and Uskudar Belediyesi SK.

In 2004, Yeliz went to Skopje to playing for Kometal Gjorče Petrov Skopje. After a brillant stint there, she was one of the best players of EHF Champions League 2004-05 season. She scored 61 goals and made a huge contribution to promote her team final.^[2]

In June 2010, Yeliz Özel signed for Romania's top club CS Oltchim Râmnicu Vâlcea. Played two season in Romania, then she returned again to her home country back.^[3]

Özel returned home in June 2012 to rejoin her former team Üsküdar Belediyespor.^[4] After one season, she transferred to the Ankara-based team Yenimahalle Bld. SK.^[5]

International

Özel was a member of the Turkey women's national handball team, and served as their captain.^[6] She was part of the team, which won the silver meedal at the 2009 Mediterranean Games held in Pescara, Italy.^[7]

Honours

Turkish Women's Handball Super League

• Winners (5): 2003–04, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2014–15
• Runners-up (2): 2012–13, 2013–14

Women's EHF Champions League

• Runner-up (1): 2004–05

Handball at the Mediterranean Games

• Runner-up (1): 2009

References

1. "Yeliz Özel". European Handball Federation.
2. "EHF Women's Champions League 2004/05 – Top 50 scorers". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
3. "Yeliz'e Avrupa'dan özel ilgi". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2010-07-07. Retrieved 2016-02-09.
4. "Üsküdar Belediyesi'nin en özel transferi". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2012-06-01. Retrieved 2016-02-09.
5. "Yeliz Özel, Yenimahalle Belediyesi'nde". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2016-02-09.
6. "A Milli Takım Kaptanı Yeliz Özel'den Rize'ye Büyük Övgü!". Rizenin Sesi (in Turkish). 2013-02-24. Retrieved 2016-02-09.
7. "Hentbolda gümüş kazandık". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2009-07-05. Retrieved 2016-02-09.

External links

• EHF profile