Olympic champions France defeated the Netherlands by 26-24 (14-12) at the European Women’s Handball Championship to secure first place in Group C with a total of 6 points.
The French women started better and took a 4-1 lead against the 2019 world champions, and by the end of the match they were never behind in the result. The Dutch women came close on several occasions, the last of which at 22-22 in the 51st minute, but with three goals in a row, the gold medalists from Tokyo 2020 Olympics pulled ahead with 25-22 and kept their lead until the end.
The Netherlands also progress to the next phase as the second team from the group with 4 points.
In the other match from the group, Cristina Neagu scored 10 goals and helped Romania win against the Republic of North Macedonia with 31-23 (13-12). Thus, the Romanian women also advance, after finishing in third place with 2 points, while the representatives of the Republic of North Macedonia remained last without an asset and dropped out of the competition.
In Group D in Podgorica, Jovanka Radicevic scored 12 goals and Montenegro beat Poland 26-23 (12-12) and finished as winners with a total of 6 points.
Spain won over Germany by 23-21 (11-10) and with its first victory in the tournament took second place in the group. The German team also finished with 2 points and move forward as the third team, while Poland dropped 2 points due to worse direct performances from their opponents.
