Denmark win Euro 2012, qualify for Olympics

BELGRADE: Denmark won the European Handball Championship final by beating hosts Serbia 21-19 on Sunday to clinch the only automatic berth for the 2012 London Olympics.

Serbia, who won their first handball medal as an independent nation, will join fifth-placed Macedonia in a qualifying tournament in April to decide additional places at the Games.

Bronze medal winners Croatia and fourth-placed Spain had earlier sealed spots in the Olympic qualifying tournament, on the basis of their placements in last year's world championship.

Having lost two of their opening three games at Euro 2012, Denmark, who also won the title in 2008, stormed back with five wins in a row and always controlled a physical and low-scoring final in front of 20,000 passionate fans in the Belgrade Arena.

Their top performer Mikkel Hansen, who had struggled in the early stages of the 16-nation event, was unstoppable with nine goals from 13 shots and buried any hopes of a Serbian comeback in the dying seconds after a fast break.

It was sweet revenge for Denmark, who lost to Serbia in the preliminary group stage of the competition and stood only a slim chance of progressing to the medal rounds after carrying zero points to the second phase of the two-week tournament. (Reuters)