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Olympic Handball Recaps: 2 August (Day 14)

Men's Handball / Fifth-Place Match

RUS vs. EGY

Russia Gets Disappointing Fifth-Place Finish

As two-time Olympic champion, the Russian Federation expected to be competing for the gold medal this weekend, but instead finished in a disappointing fifth after disposing Egypt, 29-26, on Friday evening at the Georgia World Congress Center.

One of the top contenders for the gold, Russia lost two crucial contests to fall out of the medal race. Yet, they came out and overpowered Egypt, ending the first half with a 15-11 lead. Centerback Lev VORONIN tallied four goals to lead the victors in a first half that featured 11 total turnovers and only one, 2-minute penalty.

The second half was no different as the taller, stronger Russians continued to play tough out-muscling the Egyptians who, with the loss, mirrored their sixth-place finish at the 1995 world championships.

Egypt made a charge to get back into the contest and sat only two goals behind Russia with 11:22 remaining in the match. They were able maintain a two-goal differential but could not close any further.

Russia was led in the contest by centerback Valeri GOPIN who went 6-for-7. Centerback Vassili KOUDINOV and VORONIN each finished 5-for-6, as Russia shot 65.9 percent for the match. Leftback Ahmed EL ATTAR scored 10 times to pace Egypt, which only finished with six turnovers. Mohamed BAKIR notched 10 saves in goal for Egypt.

Final Score: RUS 29, EGY 26.


Men's Handball / Semifinal Match

FRA vs. CRO

Upstart Croatia Knocks Off World Champion

The final match of the day featured two of the premier teams in the world, and in a reversal of the 1995 World Championship result, Croatia, behind the play of centerback Patrik CAVAR and goalie Valter MATOSEVIC, advanced to the gold medal match by upsetting France, 24-20, in front of the electricity-filled Hall G of the Georgia World Congress Center on Friday night.

Croatia and Sweden will now meet in Sunday's gold medal match. In a rematch of Wednesday's final round-robin contest in which Sweden won, 27-18, the two will play the final on Sunday at 13:00 in the Georgia Dome, the largest venue to ever host an Olympic handball competition. In the bronze medal match at 11:00, France, the 1992 Barcelona bronze medalist, will face Spain, which has never won an Olympic handball competition.

Croatia, which finished runner-up to France at the 1995 worlds, pulled out of the gate quickly establishing an early lead. The reigning world champions fell behind by as many as five goals in a defensive-oriented first half, but had climbed back to within two and were only down 12-8 at the intermission. Highlighting the first stanza, both goalies France's Christian GAUDIN and MATOSEVIC had seven saves, including many athletic, rally-killing stops.

Yet, France came out on fire in the second stanza and stormed back to within one goal, and eventually tied it 15-15 at 16:25. Croatia rebuked the attack and took command of the lead shortly thereafter at 17-16 and never looked back. In a last-minute effort to stave off defeat, France turned to a half-court defensive press, hoping to force a turnover.

CAVAR, whose 4-of-5 performance in the first half helped lead Croatia to a 54.5 shooting percentage and a 51.1 efficiency for the match, finished 8-of-12 with two steals. Another key to the victory was Croatia's strong defense, which was able to shut down France's superstars, centerback Jackson RICHARDSON and pivot Frederic VOLLE, holding them to a total of five goals and two assists. MATOSEVIC also was key in the defensive stance with 12 saves. Croatia also did a good job of holding onto the ball, as they only had two second-half turnovers and seven total for the match.

France also shot well, posting a 50.0 percent efficiency for the match. Centerback Stephane STOECKLIN led the attack with eight goals and two assists. Additionally, GAUDIN was solid in the net collecting 15 saves.

After the horn had sounded ending the match, the entire Croatian team joined together to form a line and crawled out to half court with head coach Velimir KLJAIC riding on the back of the front member of the line.

Final Score: FRA 24, CRO 20.

"This is the brightest moment in my career," said CAVAR, the top scorer in Atlanta. "The Olympics is the dream of every athlete. If we win the gold, I don't mind if it is the last of my career."


Men's Handball / Seventh-Place Match

GER vs. SUI

Germany Cruises Past Switzerland Into Seventh

A tough, defensive struggle between Germany and Switzerland in the seventh-place match, resulted in a 23-16 win for Germany on Friday afternoon at the Georgia World Congress Center.

It was a 1-point match throughout the bulk of the first half, with each team trading goals. The score ended, 12-10, at the break as pivot Christian SCHWARZER scored with :01 to tie Germany's biggest advantage of the half. The lead was keyed by several acrobatic saves from the German goalkeeper, Andreas THIEL, who ended the half with seven. Offensively, leftwing Christian SCHEFFLER scored on each of his four attempts.

Switzerland was able to close within one goal (14-13) at 16:54, but Germany allowed them to get no closer as they distanced themselves after a 9-3 run throughout the rest of the match.

The final sequence provided excitement as THIEL started two fastbreaks in the contest's last minute. On his first effort, THIEL attempted an unsuccessful shot which was rebounded the Swiss, setting up a long-distance toss toward the goal dramaticaly stopped by diving German centerback Daniel STEPHAN.

Both teams shot more than 50 percent for the first half, but Germany upped the mark to 60.5 for the match as SCHEFFLER finished perfect for the day at 5-for-5 as the team's leading scorer in a balanced German effort. Leftwing Stefan SCHARER led the Swiss at 6-for-7. THIEL finished as the match's top keeper, notching 15 saves and a 41.7 save percentage.

Final Score: GER 23, SUI 16.


Men's Handball / Semifinal Match

SWE vs. ESP

Sweden Moves Into Gold-Medal Match

Sweden took its final step toward bringing home its first-ever Olympic gold medal when it defeated Spain, 25-20, in a come-from-behind victory on Friday afternoon at the Georgia World Congress Center.

Sweden will play the winner of this evening's other semifinal between Croatia and France. The gold medal match will take place on Sunday afternoon at 13:00 at the Georgia Dome. Spain will play the semifinal loser at 11:00.

Spain put up a valiant effort to keep the match tight throughout, but Sweden's experience and goaltending, led by Mats OLSSON who had 16 saves on the day, won out in the end.

The scrappy and determined Spanish team fought for every point, and actually led 12-10 with 3:33 remaining in the first half, eventually controlling a 12-11 half-time advantage. Sweden hit on 57.9 percent of its shots, while Spain was successful 46.2 percent of the time, as both teams featured a spread-out scoring effort. OLSSON had 10 saves and a 40.0 percent shooting efficiency to lead all goaltenders.

Sweden scored first in the second half and retook the lead at the 25:04 mark, 14-13. Spain ran out of gas and could not keep up with the 1992 Barcelona silver medalists as Sweden extended its advantage to as high as 6 points on three different occassions. The Spainish were able to move to 22-18 with 6:00 left on the clock, but could come no closer.

Another strong shooting performance for Sweden provided the winners with a 58.1 scoring percentage. Rightwing Pierre THORSSON finished 7-for-8 to tally the team's most points, while centerback Staffan OLSSON collected five assists. Leftwing Rafael GUIJOSA tallied five goals in six attempts to lead Spain.

Final Score: SWE 25, ESP 20.

"We have been waiting for this for four years," Sweden's head coach Bengt JOHANSSON stated after his team advanced to the finals. "We want a gold, we don't want to be number two. We know how that feels like."


Men's Handball / 11th-Place Match

BRA vs. KUW

Brazil Runs Away With Match in First Victory

Brazil captured 11th place at the men's handball tournament on Friday morning at the Georgia World Congress Center with a 31-25 win over Kuwait, to claim its first victory in Atlanta. Kuwait remained as the only team in Olympic competition without a win or tie.

Brazil pulled out to a 3-0 lead and a 16-13 half-time advantage, and took control throughout the duration of the contest. The score was close at 20-18 late in the match when Brazil went on a 8-1 run to pull ahead 28-19. Kuwait immediately countered with a 5-1 run of its own to close back within five.

Kuwait owned a 12-9 lead with 10:46 remaining in the first stanza, but Brazil was able to recover and retake the lead with 4:40 left. Kuwait shot 72.2 percent from the floor, while Brazil hit on 55.2 percent of its shots. Abdulrazak ALBLOUSHI was outstanding in goal for Kuwait as he saved 12 first-half shots and posted a 41.4 save percentage.

Kuwait continued to shoot well throughout the match, finishing with a 58.1 scoring efficiency. Pivot Ismaeel SH ZADAH and centerback Abbas AL-HARBI (who left the match with a head injury with 10:00 remaining) led the Kuwaiti attack, each with five goals, while rightwing's Jose NASCIMENTO and Daniel ANDRADE led the way for Brazil with seven and six goals apiece. ALBLOUSHI ended an incredible day with 22 saves and a 43.1 save percentage.

The win was the first for Brazil against an opponent which is located outside of the Americas, and surpassed its best-ever finish (12th in Barcelona) in only its second appearance at the Olympic Games.

Final Score: BRA 31, KUW 25.

"This is a big experience for us, especially with all the changes (in players and coaches) three weeks before the Games," said Kuwaiti head coach Ilija PULJEVIC. "We fought hard and the players gave their best effort. All the European countries had four years to prepare for the Olympics, we had only three to four weeks."


Men's Handball / Ninth-Place Match

USA vs. ALG

USA Claims Historic Victory in Dramatic Fashion

Pivot Dave DEGRAAF scored with no time remaining on the clock in the second overtime to give the United States a 27-26 win over Algeria and tie its best Olympic finish (ninth) in men's handball history on Friday morning at the Georgia World Congress Center.

A penalty with 1 second left set up the dramatic finish. DEGRAAF, positioned himself behind a wall of Algerian defenders and blasted the winning shot over the right shoulder of goalie Amar DAOUD to send the pro-American crowd and the U.S. team into exuberant exultation. It was the first overtime period played in Atlanta.

The score was tied by American pivot Michael THORNBERRY with :19 remaining on the clock, while U.S. goalie Cliff MANNON turned away the final Algerian attempt as the regulation period expired at 22-22. Both teams scored twice apiece in the opening 5-minute overtime and twice more in the second, before DEGRAFF's winner settled the outcome.

Algeria led at half-time, 12-10, behind 57.1 percent shooting and only five turnovers. They finished the match shooting 51.0 percent with only 14 turnovers and were led offensively by the play of rightwing Redouane SAIDI with six goals and three assists.

The U.S. shot 66.7 percent at half-time, finishing the match at 62.8 percent. The U.S. goal scoring was led by rightwing Derek BROWN and his seven goals, while pivot Matt RYAN notched four goals and four assists and centerback Joseph FITZGERALD tallied three goals and four assists. MANNON stopped 14 balls in goal for the U.S.

Final Score: USA 27, ALG 26.

"We've practiced that shot a number of times and only once has it worked for us," said American head coach Richard OLEKSYK on DEGRAAF's winning goal. "In 14 months we've moved up 32 places. We work hard four-and-a-half hours a day, we're the best conditioned team in the world. That hard work and conditioning paid off today in the double overtime, both physically and mentally...It was incredibly unbelievable. Sweat, tears and emotions all surfaced today."


This is an official publication of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department.


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Olympic Factoid
The Mother Nature was kind to Olympic athletes and spectators. The average high temperature during the Games was 89 degrees with an average low of 72 degrees. Highest temperature registered (20 July) - 99 degrees. Lowest high temperature registered is 79 degrees (28 July).