Guillaume Gille
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Valence, Drôme, France
| Guillaume Gille | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Gille playing for HSV Hamburg in 2007 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Guillaume Alain Gille | ||
| Born |
12 July 1976 Valence, Drôme, France | ||
| Nationality | French | ||
| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Years | Team | ||
1984–1996 | HBC Loriol | ||
| Senior clubs | |||
| Years | Team | ||
1996–2002 | Chambéry Savoie Handball | ||
2002–2012 | HSV Hamburg | ||
2012–2015 | Chambéry Savoie Handball | ||
| National team | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1996–2013 | France | 308 | (678) |
| Teams managed | |||
2016–2020 | France assistant | ||
2020–2026 | France | ||
Medal record | |||
Guillaume Alain Gille (born 12 July 1976) is a retired French handballer and current coach.[1]
He was the winner of the gold medal at the 2008[2] and 2012 Summer Olympics[3] and is the older brother of Bertrand Gille.
Gille's career as a handballer began early. Already in 1984, he was playing for HBC Loriol, followed by a sport étude. From 1996 to 2002, he played for Chambéry SH, before joining HSV Hamburg in the Bundesliga. At Hamburg he won the 2006 DHB-Pokal. In 2012 he returned to Chambéry.[4] He retired in 2015.[5] He has been playing with his brother, Bertrand Gille, since their childhood and they played together for their entire career. At Chámbery they also played with their third brother, Benjamin Gille.[4]
He has been a member of the French national team since 1996. Gille got his debut on 26 November 1996 against Serbia-Montenegro. He has played 276 matches and scored 658 goals in full. He was a play-maker on the team, that won the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics, 2009 World Championships and 2010 European Championships. He has been a part of the French team, that completed a hat-trick by winning in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Gille was named Hamburgs Sportler des Jahres (Hamburg athlete of the year) in 2010.
Coaching career
In September 2016 he became the assistant coach on the French national team under Didier Dinart. In this position he won the 2017 World Men's Handball Championship; his first tournament as part of the French coaching team.[6]
In 2020 he replaced Dinart has the head coach.[7] His first major international tournament was the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship in Egypt, where France finished 4th.[8]
At the 2020 Olympics (which were delayed to 2021) he won Gold medals.[9] This made him the third male handballer to win Olympic gold medals both as coach and as player, behind Vladimir Maksimov (1976 & 2000) and Branislav Pokrajac (1972 & 1984).
At the 2024 European Men's Handball Championship he won another gold medal as the French coach. In the lead up to the 2024 Olympics the French Handball Federation announced that they planned to keep Gille as head coach long term until at least the 2029 World Championship.[10]
He left the position as the head coach of France after the 2026 European Men's Handball Championship, after France had disappointingly been knocked out in the main round. He was replaced by Talant Dujshebaev.[11]
Personal life
He has two younger brothers; Bertrand Gille, born in 1978 and Benjamin Gille, born in 1982.
Medals and victories
As player
- French Handball champions 2001
- Vicechampion in Germany 2004 and 2008
- Supercup winner in Germany 2004, 2006 and 2009
- German Cup-winner 2006, 2010
- French Cup-winner 2002
- Winner of Cup Winners Cup 2007
- Bronze medal from European Championships 2008
- Gold medal from Summer Olympics 2008
- World Champion 2009
- European Champion 2010
- Hamburgs Sportler des Jahres 2009
- Gold medal from Summer Olympics 2012
As Coach
- Gold medal from Summer Olympics 2020
- European Champion 2024
- Silver medals at the 2023 World Men's Handball Championship
- Bronze medals at the 2025 World Men's Handball Championship
