Borko Ristovski

Borko Ristovski
Ristovski with US Créteil Handball in 2014
Personal information
Born (1982-11-02) 2 November 1982
Skopje, Macedonia
Nationality Macedonian
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Playing position Goalkeeper
Club information
Current club S.L. Benfica
Number 16
Youth career
Years Team
1995–1997 RK Rabotnički
1997–1999 RK Jug
Senior clubs
Years Team
1999–2000 RK Makedonija
2000–2001 → RK Jug (loan)
2001–2003 RK Vardar
2003–2006 RK Metalurg Skopje
2006–2007 SD Teucro
2007 Algeciras BM
2007–2010 RK Metalurg Skopje
2010–2012 RK Vardar
2012–2014 VfL Gummersbach
2014 Al Ahly
2014–2015 US Créteil Handball
2015–2016 Rhein-Neckar Löwen
2016–2018 FC Barcelona Lassa
2018– S.L. Benfica
National team
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Macedonia 118 (3)

Borko Ristovski (Macedonian: Борко Ристовски; born 2 November 1982) is a Macedonian professional handball player who plays for Portuguese club S.L. Benfica and the Macedonia national team.[1][2][3]

Career

Ristovski started his handball career in 1995 as a member of club Rabotnički. Two years later, he signed for RK Jug, where he stayed for two years, until 1999. He spent the season 1999–2000 at Makedonija (now known as RK Metalurg Skopje). In 2001 he won the Macedonian handball championship with Vardar Vatrostalna and the Macedonian Cup.

His first experience in a European Championship was in Greece in 2000 in the juniors championship. Between 2001 and 2003, Ristovski played for Vardar Vatrostalna, and in 2002 he won the second championship of his career. In 2002 he participated in the juniors European Championship in Poland. That year he was proclaimed the best young sportsman in Macedonia. In 2003, after two years with Vardar, he signed a two-year contract with that year's champion, RK Metalurg Skopje.

After his contract expired, Ristovski moved to Spain and signed a one-year contract with second division side SD Teucro in 2006. A year later, he joined Spanish team Algeciras BM and became the first Macedonian handballer to play in the ASOBAL league. However, due to family reasons, he returned to Macedonia in 2007 and signed a one-year contract with RK Metalurg Skopje, where he became one of the best players. In the 2007–08 season, he won the Macedonian championship, the third in his career. After that, he signed for a further two seasons with RK Metalurg Skopje, 2008–09 he won the Macedonian cup.

Later on, in 2010, Ristovski signed a two-season deal with RK Vardar. Afterwards, Ristovski signed a two and a half years contract with German club VfL Gummersbach in February 2012. After a short spell with Egyptian team Al Ahly in 2014, he played one season for French side US Créteil Handball (2014–15) before moving to German club Rhein-Neckar Löwen, where he remained one season. He then returned to Spain and played two seasons for FC Barcelona Lassa. Shortly after, he signed with S.L. Benfica in Portugal for the 2018–19 season.

In a match against Bulgaria in the pre-qualification rounds for the 2009 World Men's Handball Championship, Ristovski scored his first goal for the senior Macedonia national team, the third in his career. From that moment, he became a vital part of the team and made a significant progress as a goalkeeper.

One of his most notable moments as a goalkeeper was a penalty save in the last second of a match against Portugal, leading Macedonia into the playoffs of the 2009 World Championship in Croatia.

In a playoff match against Iceland, Ristovski scored another goal. One of the best performances in his career was when he made 25 saves against Serbia. he was part of the Macedonia national team in the 2012 European Men's Handball Championship and made up to 29th saves per game.

Honours

RK Vardar

RK Metalurg

Rhein-Neckar Löwen

FC Barcelona Handbol

S.L. Benfica

References

  1. ↑ Rebelo, Marco (20 June 2018). "Borko Ristovski: "Se não acreditasse no título, não vinha para o Benfica"" [Borko Ristovski: "If I did not believe in the [league] title, I would not come to Benfica"]. S.L. Benfica (in Portuguese). Retrieved 20 June 2018.
  2. ↑ EHF Profile
  3. ↑ 2018 European Championship roster
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