Angola lifted their third consecutive Handball Championship trophy last week Friday in Yaounde, after defeating hosts Cameroon 25-15.
At the Multipurpose Sports Complex, the defending champions had to work for their victory, trailing 14-7 at halftime.
Bernardo Natalia Maria was outstanding for the southern Africans, but Cameroon’s Ekoh Karismah made life difficult for the champions’ defense.
The victory boosts Angola’s confidence ahead of next month’s Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where they will compete in the women’s competition as the continent’s only participant.
In the group stage, Angola will face Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Montenegro, and South Korea.
Tunisia, a North African country, finished third after defeating Congo 22-17 to claim bronze.
Cameroonian players blamed their loss on a lack of concentration.
“We lacked lucidity I can say, we gave many balls to the opponent and that affected us,” said Maffo Kamga, a Cameroonian middle back.
Africa will be represented in the World Handball Championship in Spain in December by Angola, Cameroon, Tunisia, and Senegal, who placed fourth.
