Egypt will face European heavyweights in the last-16 at the Handball World Championship in Qatar after losing to Iceland 28-25 on Saturday to finish fourth in Group C. Iceland and Egypt finished level on five points but the former go through as the third-placed side in the group virtue of their better head-to-head record. Egypt had the better of the early exchanges but eased off after the first 10 minutes, with Iceland storming back to go 15-10 ahead at halftime. Iceland looked on cruise for a comfortable win after extending their lead in the second period but Egypt battled bravely and narrowed the gap in the dying minutes but that was as good as it got for the Pharaohs. Egypt's superb displays at the World Championship, which included a surprise draw against Sweden, prompted the usually football-mad fans in the country to enthusiastically follow their national handball team. Egypt's best achievement was a fourth-place finish at the 2001 edition in France. They will face Germany in the knockout phase after the latter ensured they would finish on top of Group D. (For more sports news andupdates, followAhramOnlineSports on Twitter at@AO_Sportsand onFacebookatAhramOnlineSports.) http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/121207.aspx
