Men : Croatia edges Germany to take gold medal
ATHENS, 29 August - Croatia is Olympic Men's Handball champion after beating Germany 26-24 in a fiercely contested gold medal match in front of 10,750 boisterous fans today.
The Croatians had to come back from a 12-11 half time deficit at to add the Olympic crown to their World Championship win last year.
Excellent performances from both goalkeepers - Croatia's Vlado SOLA and Germany's Henning FRITZ - ensured both teams had to work hard for their goals during a match in which the lead changed from one moment to the next.
After 37 minutes, with Germany surging to a 16-13 lead, it appeared the European champions might be taking control. Croatia steadied, however, and the gold medal still hung in the balance entering the final eight minutes.
The turning point came in the 52nd minute. With scores tied at 20-20, Germany's Markus BAUR was expelled for two minutes, during which Croatia scored twice.
It was a lead the Croatians never relinquished.
Mirza DZOMBA (CRO) proved his team's key player, scoring nine goals from 10 attempts to fire an Croatian attack denied the usual contribution of star Ivano BALIC (CRO), well held on this occasion by the German defence.
For Germany, missing the injured Pascal HENS, Stefan KRETZSCHMAR (GER) was a constant threat with nine goals.
:Spin:
ATHENS, 29 August - Croatia is Olympic Men's Handball champion after beating Germany 26-24 in a fiercely contested gold medal match in front of 10,750 boisterous fans today.
The Croatians had to come back from a 12-11 half time deficit at to add the Olympic crown to their World Championship win last year.
Excellent performances from both goalkeepers - Croatia's Vlado SOLA and Germany's Henning FRITZ - ensured both teams had to work hard for their goals during a match in which the lead changed from one moment to the next.
After 37 minutes, with Germany surging to a 16-13 lead, it appeared the European champions might be taking control. Croatia steadied, however, and the gold medal still hung in the balance entering the final eight minutes.
The turning point came in the 52nd minute. With scores tied at 20-20, Germany's Markus BAUR was expelled for two minutes, during which Croatia scored twice.
It was a lead the Croatians never relinquished.
Mirza DZOMBA (CRO) proved his team's key player, scoring nine goals from 10 attempts to fire an Croatian attack denied the usual contribution of star Ivano BALIC (CRO), well held on this occasion by the German defence.
For Germany, missing the injured Pascal HENS, Stefan KRETZSCHMAR (GER) was a constant threat with nine goals.
:Spin:
Even though the Koreans dominated most of the match
