Paris 2024 | Denmark tie best-ever start at Olympics with win over Hungary

Denmark, which had already qualified for the quarter-final, claimed their fourth straight win in the competition, this time against Hungary, and stayed on top of Group B with the maximum of eight points. In turn, the Hungarians remained fourth with two points, so their last group encounter against France on Sunday will now be crucial for them. 

PARIS 2024 OLYMPIC GAMES – PRELIMINARY ROUND
GROUP В
Hungary vs Denmark 25:28 (14:16)

Denmark had scored 105 goals in their three previous encounters, 35 per game on average, and they started to show their fire power since the start of the match on Friday. While the Hungarian right back Gabor Ancsin opened the score, the high-speed Nordic team quickly took the game under their control and opened up a 6:2 lead in the 10th minute.

However, Hungary had no intentions of giving up, so their physically strong players started to play more aggressively in defence and hit back by their own successful run. Their goalkeeper Roland Mikler did a good job, and at some point in the first half, he boasted a 50% saving efficiency which allowed his team to draw level at 8:8. 

The Hungarians now felt confident, and propelled by a couple of goals from right back Zoran Ilic, they pulled in front at 12:10. For the first time in Paris 2024, Denmark risked losing the first half of a match, yet they accelerated before the break and turned the tide thanks to a couple of Mathias Gidsel goals, creating a two-goal lead after 30 minutes. Throughout the match, Gidsel scored eight times, to improve his overall tally to 40 goals in the competition.

After the restart, Hungary continued to put pressure on the reigning world champions, but Denmark learned their lesson and did not allow the rivals to hit back. By minute 42, Nikolai Jacobsen's team pulled clear by four goals, 21:17, and they continued to rely on a solid defence as well as some Niklas Landin's saves. 

In attack, Denmark were overall less prolific than in their previous encounters, as they had a 61% shooting efficiency and failed to reach the 30-goal mark this time. In fact, they were often denied by Mikler, who ended the match with 14 saves and a 40% saving efficiency. However, the competition's top scorer Gidsel stood out once again, netting eight times and increasing his tally in the tournament to 40 goals.

The Danes led by four or five goals during almost the entire second half, and while Hungary hoped for a comeback for a long time, they lost too many balls, which resulted in Denmark's counterattacks. So they only managed to cut the deficit to three goals in the end, and now the Hungarians will be looking to win a do-or-die encounter against France.