Budapest, January 30, LETA. The Swedish men’s team won the 2022 European Championships in Budapest on Sunday, securing the title at the end of the match with a free throw.
The Swedish handball players defeated Spain in the final with a score of 27:26 (12:13) and became the European champions for the fifth time in history.
In the second half of the second half, the result ranged from a draw to a plus two goals for the Swedish national team, but in the penultimate minute, Joan Canignas scored 26:26. In the last attack by the Swedes, Canignas put in a penalty for Niklas Ekberg, who had the opportunity to take a free kick and beat Gonsalo Moreno in 60 minutes.
Ekberg and Oscar Bergendal were the top scorers with five goals, but Adrian Treho and Alice Gomes scored six goals in the Spanish national team. Swedish goalkeeper Andreas Palika was named the best player of the match, repelling 11 shots and scoring one goal.
The Swedish handball players have returned to the championship throne after a 20-year hiatus and are the richest team in the European championships with five gold medals.
The Spanish handball players played in their fourth final in a row, but they failed to repeat the previous two championships when the Spaniards won their first titles.
The two teams met for the third time in the finals. In 1998, the Swedes were superior with 25:23, but 20 years later the Spaniards revived with 29:23.
In the bronze medal match, Denmark defeated France with a 35:32 (13:14) overtime.
Jacob Tandrup Homs scored ten goals for the Danes and Kenten Mae for the French eight times.
24 teams participated in the competition, which were divided into six groups. The two best teams in each group won the second group tournament, with six teams in each of the two groups. The winners of the first two places reached the semi-finals, but the winners of the third place met in the fight for the fifth place.