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France's women's handball team added the European crown to their World title in front of their home fans, booked their place at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 - and avenged their defeat in the final of the 2016 Olympics.

A year after winning the World title, France's handball stars beat Olympic champions Russia 24-21 in a tense final in front of a full house at the Accor Hotel Arena in Paris Bercy at the weekend.

The Russians had been the only one of the game's big-players that France have not beaten in recent years. And they had lost 26-23 to the same opponents in the opening match of the championships a fortnight earlier.