The handball players from record winners Norway have successfully defended their European Championship title and won gold for the ninth time.
The world champion beat Denmark in the final in Ljubljana/Slovenia thanks to a strong final phase with 27:25 (12:15), Norway has triumphed eight times in the last ten European Championship tournaments.
The three-time Olympic champion Denmark, semi-final winner against co-hosts Montenegro (27:23), got off to a better start in the Stozice Arena and opened up a gap of five goals in the first round (9:4/19th minute).
Norway, who eliminated Tokyo Olympic champions France (28:20) on their way to the final, were trailing behind for a long time.
Superstar Mork top scorer
Norway managed to equalize late with top thrower Nora Mörk (8 goals) (22:22/51) and take the first lead (25:24/57). The old and new European champion did not give them up anymore.
Among the Danes, who inflicted the only tournament defeat on their final opponent at the end of the main round, Louise Vinter Burgaard was the most successful (6).
In the afternoon Montenegro secured its second European Championship medal. In the thrilling small final, the 2012 European champions beat France 27:25 (22:22, 13:12) after extra time and won bronze. The German team was eliminated after the second group stage and also missed the match for fifth place.