France end Icelandic dream to claim handball gold
Sunday, 24 Aug 2008 11:14
Iceland nearly wrote some Olympic history but fell just short
Iceland's quest to win their first ever Olympic gold medal was dashed on the last day of the Beijing Games after France defeated them in the final of the men's handball.
The closest Iceland have come to a gold was in 1956 when they took silver in the triple jump.
However, they could not eclipse that effort after France beat them 28-23 in Beijing.
France had been favourites to win in Athens four years ago but fell at the quarter-final stage and they were extremely motivated to atone for that disappointment.
Thierry Omeyer, France's star player, helped his side ease to a 28-23 win as Iceland's attack was not string enough to threaten the French defence.
Spain claimed the bronze medal with an excellent 35-29 win over defending champions Croatia.