All-European semis, EHF EURO champions out

Nikola Karabatic waved goodbye to the 27,000 fans in Lille, though he will not become the first person in handball to win four Olympic gold medals, after hosts France, the defending European and Olympic champions, lost surely the best match so far of the Olympic tournament at Paris 2024, 34:35 against Germany after overtime.

France seemed to be on the way to the win after a six-goal lead in the second half and later when 29:28 ahead with six seconds to play and the ball in hand. But Dika Mem conceded a turnover and on the buzzer, German U21 World Champion Renars Uscins netted to send the match to overtime.

Uscins was unstoppable, his 14^th and final goal secured the German victory, while goalkeeper David Späth saved the last French shot. After 11 years, Germany won a competitive match against France and made it to their first Olympic semi-final since Rio 2016. The only German Olympic gold medal dates back to 1980, when East Germany beat the Soviet Union in the final in Moscow.

“I really cannot believe what happened here”, said Uscins. “I would have liked to finish with a medal around my neck, but apparently I had won enough,” Karabatic said about his career coming to an end. His French team had already been shaken in the preliminary round, losing against Denmark and Norway. Finally a 24:20 success against Hungary provided the EHF EURO 2024 champions with a spot in the knockout stage.

Germany’s semi-final opponents Spain were also fortunate to reach the latter stages. Thanks to the 32:31 in the very last preliminary round match, the 2018 and 2020 EHF EURO champions made it to the quarter-finals. There, they seemed to be out against Egypt after not leading for a single second in 60 minutes. But 17 saves from goalkeeper Gonzalo Perez de Vargas mounted their comeback which was completed when Ian Tarrafeta netted to tie the match at 25:25 on the final buzzer. In extra-time, former EHF Champions League top scorer Aleix Gomez was the key factor for the Spaniards, scoring three times to help them to a 29:28 win – the right wing finished the match on nine goals.

Spain and Germany have already faced each other in some epic duels, including the EHF EURO 2016 final - won by the Germans - and two Olympic quarter-finals. The Spaniards made it to their fifth Olympic semi, but so far have never qualified for the gold medal match; in Atlanta, Sydney, Beijing and Tokyo, they had finished in bronze medal position. In the preliminary round in Paris, Germany won 33:31 against the team of head coach Jordi Ribera.

The second semi-final is composed of the 2016 Olympic champions and three-time world champions Denmark, and Olympic semi-final debutant Slovenia. EHF Champions league star Aleks Vlah was the hero for head coach Uros Zorman's team, netting 11 times in the never-endangered 33:28 win in the quarter-final against Norway.

Slovenia – EHF EURO semi-finalists in 2020 – had control from start to finish, while Sander Sagosen and co.'s time in Paris ended in the quarter-finals, just as it did in Tokyo. Slovenia had already surprised in the preliminary round with wins against Sweden and Croatia. “It's a dream come true. We've dreamed about this moment for the past three years. We wanted this win so much and put so much energy into this game. I don't think any player has any energy left in his body. We gave all and this is the result,” said Vlah, who is currently the second-highest scorer in the competition with 46 goals.

The first and third positions in the top scorer list are currently held by two Danish shooters: IHF World Player Mathias Gidsel (47 goals) and Simon Pytlick (44), winner of the 2023 EHF Excellence Award. Their team, which played an absolutely dominant preliminary stage with five clear wins in the same number of matches, were shaken in their quarter-final by arch-rivals Sweden, but finally secured a third consecutive semi-final spot under the rings after 2016 (gold) and 2021 (silver).

After an initial 6:10 deficit, Sweden turned the match to 15:14 – and from that moment on the lead went back and forth. Finally, Pytlick took the responsibility with nine goals, and when EHF Champions League winner Emil Nielsen saved the last Swedish shot by Oscar Bergendahl nine seconds before the end, the 32:31 win was sealed – and in contrast to that of Nikola Karabatic, the career of Mikkel Hansen was extended by two more matches. And Denmark is the only nation represented in both semi-finals – men and women – in Lille.

Quarter-final results of the men’s 2024 Olympic tournament:
Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Lille 

Spain vs Egypt 29:28 (8:12, 25:25) after overtime
Germany vs France 35:34 (15:17, 29:29) after overtime
Denmark vs Sweden 32:31 (16:16)
Slovenia vs Norway 33:28 (16:12)

Semi-finals, Friday, 9 August
Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Lille

16:30 CEST: Germany vs Spain
21:30 CEST: Slvenia vs Denmark

Final ranking of the positions 5 to 12:

5. Egypt, 6. Norway, 7. Sweden, 8. France, 9. Croatia, 10. Hungary, 11. Japan, 12. Argentina

© Sasa Pahic Szabo / kolektiff