DUBAI: Egypt agonizingly missed out on a bronze medal in the men’s handball competition at Tokyo 2020 after a 33-31 loss to Spain at Yoyogi National Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Pharaohs have been outstanding at Tokyo 2020 but will depart without reward despite a brave effort in their last match of the competition.
The fixture started evenly, and a penalty scored by the outstanding veteran Ahmed El-Ahmar saw the match finely balanced at 7-7 at the midway point of the first half.
The last third of the first half saw a flurry of goals with Spain leading 19-16 at the break.
Having tired towards the end of the first half, Egyptians started the second with renewed energy and within six minutes had tied the match at 21-21.
Egyptian Goalkeeper Mohamed El-Tayar was having a fine game, but a period of all-out attack saw them concede two quick-fire goals to fall 23-21 behind with just over two-thirds of the second period left.
Spain maintained their superiority for the rest of the match and led 30-28 with a minute left.
With 45 seconds remaining, Gedeon Guardiola was sent off, but Egypt failed to take full advantage of the 2-minute power play. Both teams exchanged attacks that left Spain hanging on to a 33-31 lead by the final whistle.
The Egyptian players collapsed in exhaustion and disappointment at the end of the fixture but can be proud of a campaign that has captured the hearts of fans back home as well as handball fans around the world.
