Niue's ongoing licensing arrangement with the New Zealand Mint has made the island's sovereign status essentially a vehicle for commemorative programs — this handball issue being one of dozens struck for the 2016 Rio Olympics under that arrangement. Niue itself has no handball tradition to speak of; the IOC licensing rights, not geography, explain the attribution.
Niue's ongoing licensing arrangement with the New Zealand Mint has made the island's sovereign status essentially a vehicle for commemorative programs — this handball issue being one of dozens struck for the 2016 Rio Olympics under that arrangement. Niue itself has no handball tradition to speak of; the IOC licensing rights, not geography, explain the attribution.