In a competition between champs of Europe and Africa, Norway trounced Angola 31-17 to clinch their second win at the Beijing Olympic women's handball tournament here on Monday.

Isabel Fernandes scored the first goal in the first minute to give Angola the lead. However, the Angolans had to wait for 10 minutes for the second goal after the opponent grabbed eight points in a row. The Angola side seemed nail-biting in front of Norway's solid defence, only scored six points in the first half.

"Norway's defence was much more aggressive. We simply could not attack properly, and they got a lot of fast breaks," said Luisa Kiala, center back of Angola.

Leading 14-6 at the interval, the European champ continued to extend their advantage when the game resumed. All players except the two goalies signed their names in the scoring list, with Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth's six points to lead the Norwegian team.

"Norway is a strong team, but we could have played better. We lost Bombo Calandula. She was one of the best players in our squad," said Angolan coach Vivaldo Eduardo after the match.

Calandula twisted her knee in the beginning of the first game and never managed to return to the court again. In today's match, the 25-year-old pivot was also sidelined.

"We have lost two games, We must beat China in the next match," said Luisa Kiala.

Source:Xinhua