the biggest victory of the hosts, the most drastic failure in the history of the national team!
Article by Adrian Jitea – Published Thursday, January 15, 2026 23:00 / Updated Thursday, January 15, 2026 23:20
Norway made their European Men's Handball Championship debut on schedule with a 39-22 win over Ukraine. For left winger Sander Sagosen (30 years old) it was a historic match. And the proportion of the score amazed.
Norway is one of the three host countries of the final tournament. In the Unity Arena in Baerum, on the outskirts of the capital Oslo, nearly 15,000 spectators gathered. A lively atmosphere, also maintained by the offensive performance of the favourites.
Sander Sagosen wrote history in Norway – Ukraine
Ukraine couldn't keep up in the first half, one that ended 19-11. Three successes came from the arm of Sander Sagosen. The left winger reached the 200-goal mark in European finals and entered a select gallery. Only the Danish Mikkel Hansen (296), the French Nikola Karabatic (295), the Icelander Gudjon Valur Sigurdsson (288) and the Swede Stefan Lovgren (203) can still boast of such a performance.
At the beginning of the second part, the most inspired Ukrainian handball player was Gennadiy Komok. In the 35th minute, the goalkeeper from Buzău had 6 “parades”.
Romania's neighbors in the North have given way from a physical point of view. Balls easily lost on construction, clumsy folding. The Nordics speculated on the counterattack, the most active being Patrick Anderson, 7 goals from 8 throws.
The gap continued to grow and reached historic proportions. It ended 39-22. It is the most drastic failure in the history of Ukraine's participation in a European Championship. At the same time, Norway ticked off the clearest victory in a continental final tournament.
3.43 kmran Andrii Akimenko, more than any player from Norway – Ukraine. It is also the first in the speed reached (28.59 km/h). He scored 3 goals from 4 throws
Patrick Anderson and Alexandre Blonz were Norway's top scorers with 7 goals each. The latter played only in the second half!
I think we prepared very well, all our attention turned to the debut match. We knew we could make the difference on the counter attack. I don't have the stats yet, but I'm sure I scored a lot on quick attacks. For me it doesn't matter how many more I score, the important thing is to win. But, yes, it's fantastic to be with such names in the history of handball
– Sander Sagosen, inter Norway
I started very well, I practiced a good handball for 15 minutes. But Norway is one of the strongest teams in the world. They defended well, we lost a lot of balls. This is how this result was reached
– Taras Minotskyi, the interior of Ukraine
The results of the first day at the European Handball Championship:
Group A:
- Spain – Serbia 29-27
- Germany – Austria 30-27
Group C:
- France – Czech Republic 42-28
- Norway – Ukraine 39-22
