CAIRO — Two years after securing the silver medal at the IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship, hosts Egypt delivered a perfect performance and finally was crowned world champions, with a 2:0 (6:1; 12:6) win over the United States of America.
Two years ago, at the maiden edition of the IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship, Egypt went to the final, on their home court, in the Dr Hassan Moustafa Hall in 6 of October, but dramatically conceded a shoot-out loss against Brazil, in one of the most exciting matches in the history of wheelchair handball.
The competition was back in the same arena, with Egypt having a newfound ambition to secure the title, after they were denied last time by Brazil.
But ahead of them was a hefty challenge, with the United States of America, a debutant on the biggest of stages, but a team which was coming with a four-match winning streak into the final.
The question was if USA’s defence was going to hold against Egypt or the African side just had enough in their tank to secure the win, after a competition where they had some close calls, but eventually made it to the final.
And sure enough, the answer came fast, with Egypt dominating the start of the match, as USA’s issues were on finishing, as their first nine shots did not go in, with costly misses piling up and enabling Egypt to create an unassailable gap, which was their second largest in a set in this competition.
Egypt’s top scorer, Magdy Talaat Abdo Abbas, was unstoppable for his side in the first set, scoring four points, two via a converted spin shot, which helped the African powerhouse to create a 4:0 lead.
When USA first scored their point, via Chayse Wolf, it was too little, too late, with Egypt eventually sealing a 6:1 win in the first set.
USA, which constantly emphasised the need for a good defence, had to dig deep and find a solution in attack, wherein lied the problem in the first set, scoring a single goal.
However, in the first five minutes of the second set, it was both the defence and the attack which were left lacking, as Egypt constantly dominated on both sides of the ball.
And when Magdy Talaat Abdo Abbas really took the level up, it was game over.
Two converted spin shots, which took his overall tally in the match to 15 points and handed him the top scorer of the competition, with 72 points, helped widen the gap, as Egypt were unstoppable in the last minutes of the match.
Once again, the team which won four sets by a single point and two more by only two points throughout the competition had an outstanding performance, delivering their best outing exactly when it mattered the most, as the second set also went Egypt’s way, 12:6.
A fantastic display, on both sides of the ball, lifted Egypt to their maiden world championship crown, after securing their fifth win in six matches, with the only loss coming in the preliminary round against Portugal.
USA had to settle for silver, with the podium completed by Brazil, after another successful edition of the competition, which underlined the growth of wheelchair handball over the last years.
Reigning champions Brazil, meanwhile, bounced back after their semi-finals loss against the United States of America, dominating the bronze medal match at the 3rd IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship against France, 2:0, to secure a place on the podium.
Brazil were left reeling after the semi-final against the United States of America, conceding their maiden loss in 12 matches at the IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship.
Still, the South American side had to bounce back if they were to save something from this edition of the competition and the bronze medal match against France was the perfect setting.
For that, the reigning champions needed to pay attention to what France did, as the European debutants first eliminated unbeaten Portugal in the quarter-finals and then took the game to Egypt in the semi-finals, conceding a loss only with a golden goal scored by the African side in the extra-time of the second set.
But Brazil, which were underwhelming in attack throughout the whole competition, delivered one of their best performances, dominating France from start to finish, in a superb attacking display, the first match in which they scored at least 10 points in each set throughout the 3rd IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship.
Understanding that they need to kick up a gear, Brazil were virtually unstoppable at times, both in the first set and in the second set, as their top players, Guilherme Lourenco and Anderson Ferreira combined for 15 points in the match.
