Herning (Denmark) (AFP)
The Croatian handball players, novices in the last four of a major championship, beat Denmark 25 to 19 and took 3rd place in Euro-2020, Sunday in Herning (Denmark).
Croatian hubs Katarina Jezic and Ana Debelic, scoring five and four respectively, made the difference at the end of the second half, while goalkeeper Tea Pijevic once again pulled off a great game with 15 saves (44%).
Neither team will compete in a qualifying tournament for the Olympics, but have secured their presence at the World Championship in December 2021 in Spain.
For the Danes, the only host country of the competition after Norway's withdrawal at the last moment due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this is a big disappointment.
The national team, dominating in the 1990s, has not climbed on an international podium since the bronze medal at the World-2013.
For Croatia, on the other hand, the Danish adventure with fairy tale airs ended in the most beautiful way: a real surprise of the competition, the players of Nenad Sostaric beat several strong nations of the continent, starting with the Netherlands, reigning world champions (2019).
They ultimately only gave in to Norway (36-25) in the main round and France (30-19) in the semi-final.
© 2020 AFP