(15 Aug 1996; Day 15)
For the first time in Olympic men's handball competition, Russia, Yugoslavia or Germany will not be the gold medalist. A shift in the handball world has occurred and, on Sunday evening, a new champion will be crowned.
Sweden and Croatia won their respective semifinals on Friday and will play for the right to wear their first Olympic gold medals.
Battling it out for the bronze will be France, the reigning world champion, and Spain, who is looking for its first-ever Olympic handball medal. Both contests will be played at the Georgia Dome, with the bronze-medal match at 11:00 and the battle for the gold medal at 13:00.
Sweden got to the finals after winning its pool and then defeating Spain, 25-20 in the semifinals. Included on the route to the gold-medal match was a victory over Croatia, 27-18, in the final pool-play match. Meanwhile, after finishing second in its pool, Croatia got to the finals by upsetting France in the semifinals, 24-20.
The reigning Olympic silver medalist, Sweden has been led by the play of its two OLSSON's, goaltender Mats and centerback Staffan. Mats, the oldest player in the Olympic tournament had 16 saves in the semifinal victory over Spain, and posted a tournament match-high 24 against Croatia in their previous matchup.
On offense, the ball usually at some point will go through the hands of Staffan, who, although not the team's primary goal producer, is a potent threat to score. However, he is the squad's top passer, having led the round-robin portion of the tournament with 5.33 assists per match.
Typically a bridesmaid, coach Bengt JOHANSSON's ageless squad will be looking to capture its first international handball title since winning the 1990 World Championships. Prior to that, they had not been even a finalist since the 1964 World Championships, when they placed second. In the past two world championship tournaments, in 1993 and 1995, Sweden placed third.
Croatia enters the gold-medal match as a surprise finalist. After upsetting France in a reversal of the 1995 World Championship outcome, Croatia is poised to earn its first Olympic handball medal of any color. Although a relative newcomer to the international scene, Croatia has been very impressive in Atlanta with a victory over reigning Olympic champion, Russia, and its only loss coming against Sweden.
Yet, during the pool-play matchup, coach Velimir KLJAIC did not play four of his starters, including the Olympic tournament's top scorer, centerback Patrik CAVAR. In his first four matches, CAVAR was averaging eight goals per outing while converting on 76.2 percent of his shots. CAVAR led the scoring against France with an 8-for-12 performance.
Another weapon in the Croatian arsenal is goalkeeper Valter MATOSEVIC, who turned away 12 balls against France and posted seven saves against Sweden. If Croatia is to be successful, MATOSEVIC will have to play a key role as the last line of defense.
The first matchup between the two was a low-scoring affair, reflected in Sweden's 10-7 halftime lead. Yet this time around, with both teams playing with its full complement of athletes, the key to who will be the newly crowned Olympic champion will be determined by whether Sweden's defense or Croatia's offense will prevail.
This is an official publication of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department. Written by Brad Laux.
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| Pin trading was one of the most popular Olympic sports, with more than 1.2 million pins changing hands during the Games in the Coca Cola Pin Trading Center at Centennial Olympic Park. |