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Victor Bolorunduro
Doha
Defending champions Fuchse Berlin staged a dramatic comeback to retain the IHF Super Globe Championship crown, edging out Paris Saint-Germain 29-28, as the curtains were drawn on the five-day tournament at the ultra-modern Duhail Complex on Thursday.
Velux EHF Champions League winners Vive Tauron Kielce of Poland defeated Qatar's Al Sadd by 11 goals (36-25) for the bronze medal, while the hosts' other representative, Lekhwiya, finished in sixth place as they were beaten by Esperance Sportive de Tunis of Tunisia 27-28 in the eight-team tournament.
Berlin's Bjarki Mar Elisson and Petar Nenadic, the scorer of the winning goal, struck five each against the French champions, while the trio of Fabian Wiede, Mattias Zachrisson and Steffen Faeth beat goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer four times each for 'The Foxes', as the Berliners are called.
The champions started the match on a strong note with two goals scored in the opening minutes through Nenadic and Wiede before Mikkel Hansen was able to pull one back for the French in the fifth minute to make it 2-1.
Hansen, the reigning World Handball Player of the Year, thereafter levelled for the French side to make the score 2-2 in the sixth minute.
By the ninth minute, the score stood at 3-3 before Drago Vukovic was sent off for two minutes in what turned out to be a dangerous moment for The Foxes. During the suspension, Nikola Karabatic took PSG in front 4-3 before Luka Stepancic increased the lead to 5-3, and those two goals proved crucial as the first half progressed.
After 10 minutes of play with the score still the same, Berlin coach Erlingur Richardsson requested his first time-out, and his team were next on target, courtesy of a ground shot from Wiede (4-5, 11th). Berlin right wing Hans Lindberg picked up an injury and had to return to the bench. After his exit, PSG pulled 8-5 clear midway through the half.
At the 20-minute mark, PSG held a comfortable four-goal advantage, but from that point they could not pull further and the 2015 champions reduced the margin to two goals with Steffen Fath finding the net 11-13 in the 28th. Sedarusic tested Omeyer and the latter saved the first shot against him, keeping the score the same as the half-time whistle sounded.
On resumption, PSG hit the net first through left wing Uwe Gensheimer who restored the four-goal advantage to make the score 16:12.
The situation quickly turned worse for Berlin as the French side went six goals ahead (19-13) by the 37th minute before Edouard Kempf received a two-minute suspension. That was the turning point and Fuchse Berlin slowly closed the gap to 19-23 in the 44th.
Only a minute later, Berlin further cut down the deficit to two. With time running out, PSG kept The Foxes at bay, maintaining their advantage to two to three goals. In the last 10 minutes, Berlin showed they were not finished yet. Left wing Bjarki Elisson took the German side within one at 25-26 in the 53rd.
An outstanding ground shot from Nenadic brought the German outfit within one goal as the last five minutes began (27-26). The left back drilled the crucial equaliser with three minutes to go. It took two more minutes to get the next goal and it came from Berlin's Steffan Fath. Then The Foxes stopped two PSG attacks in a row before Nenadic scored the last goal of the match (29-28).
PSG lost their final opportunity to level the score, and Berlin moved into attack with less than 30 seconds left.
Goalkeeper Skof made a great save on the final shot, but even as he ran for the rebound, it was too late the final buzzer sounded, triggering a big celebration from the German team.
RESULTS
Final
Fuchse Berlin (Germany) beat PSG (France) 29-28
Third-place
Vive Tauron Kielce (Poland) beat Al Sadd (Qatar) 36-25
Fifth place
Esperance Sportive de Tunis (Tunisia) beat Lekhwiya (Qatar) 27:28
Seventh place
Handebol Taubate (Brazil) beat Sydney University Handball (Australia) 35:23
Doha
Defending champions Fuchse Berlin staged a dramatic comeback to retain the IHF Super Globe Championship crown, edging out Paris Saint-Germain 29-28, as the curtains were drawn on the five-day tournament at the ultra-modern Duhail Complex on Thursday.
Velux EHF Champions League winners Vive Tauron Kielce of Poland defeated Qatar's Al Sadd by 11 goals (36-25) for the bronze medal, while the hosts' other representative, Lekhwiya, finished in sixth place as they were beaten by Esperance Sportive de Tunis of Tunisia 27-28 in the eight-team tournament.
Berlin's Bjarki Mar Elisson and Petar Nenadic, the scorer of the winning goal, struck five each against the French champions, while the trio of Fabian Wiede, Mattias Zachrisson and Steffen Faeth beat goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer four times each for 'The Foxes', as the Berliners are called.
The champions started the match on a strong note with two goals scored in the opening minutes through Nenadic and Wiede before Mikkel Hansen was able to pull one back for the French in the fifth minute to make it 2-1.
Hansen, the reigning World Handball Player of the Year, thereafter levelled for the French side to make the score 2-2 in the sixth minute.
By the ninth minute, the score stood at 3-3 before Drago Vukovic was sent off for two minutes in what turned out to be a dangerous moment for The Foxes. During the suspension, Nikola Karabatic took PSG in front 4-3 before Luka Stepancic increased the lead to 5-3, and those two goals proved crucial as the first half progressed.
After 10 minutes of play with the score still the same, Berlin coach Erlingur Richardsson requested his first time-out, and his team were next on target, courtesy of a ground shot from Wiede (4-5, 11th). Berlin right wing Hans Lindberg picked up an injury and had to return to the bench. After his exit, PSG pulled 8-5 clear midway through the half.
At the 20-minute mark, PSG held a comfortable four-goal advantage, but from that point they could not pull further and the 2015 champions reduced the margin to two goals with Steffen Fath finding the net 11-13 in the 28th. Sedarusic tested Omeyer and the latter saved the first shot against him, keeping the score the same as the half-time whistle sounded.
On resumption, PSG hit the net first through left wing Uwe Gensheimer who restored the four-goal advantage to make the score 16:12.
The situation quickly turned worse for Berlin as the French side went six goals ahead (19-13) by the 37th minute before Edouard Kempf received a two-minute suspension. That was the turning point and Fuchse Berlin slowly closed the gap to 19-23 in the 44th.
Only a minute later, Berlin further cut down the deficit to two. With time running out, PSG kept The Foxes at bay, maintaining their advantage to two to three goals. In the last 10 minutes, Berlin showed they were not finished yet. Left wing Bjarki Elisson took the German side within one at 25-26 in the 53rd.
An outstanding ground shot from Nenadic brought the German outfit within one goal as the last five minutes began (27-26). The left back drilled the crucial equaliser with three minutes to go. It took two more minutes to get the next goal and it came from Berlin's Steffan Fath. Then The Foxes stopped two PSG attacks in a row before Nenadic scored the last goal of the match (29-28).
PSG lost their final opportunity to level the score, and Berlin moved into attack with less than 30 seconds left.
Goalkeeper Skof made a great save on the final shot, but even as he ran for the rebound, it was too late the final buzzer sounded, triggering a big celebration from the German team.
RESULTS
Final
Fuchse Berlin (Germany) beat PSG (France) 29-28
Third-place
Vive Tauron Kielce (Poland) beat Al Sadd (Qatar) 36-25
Fifth place
Esperance Sportive de Tunis (Tunisia) beat Lekhwiya (Qatar) 27:28
Seventh place
Handebol Taubate (Brazil) beat Sydney University Handball (Australia) 35:23
