The Beijing 2008 and London 2012 winners claimed a 23-21 success to finish Group D with three victories from three at Helsingborg Arena.

Nora Mork and Veronica Kristiansen both scored five goals each for Norway, who were dethroned as Olympic champions at Rio 2016 and had to settle for bronze.

Russia still crept through to the main round, where all points from the opening stage are carried over, by finishing third in the group.

That was assured when Romania beat Croatia 31-26 in Helsingborg today to qualify in second place.

In Group C, Denmark’s 33-29 win over the Czech Republic saw them top the pile with a perfect record.

The Czechs are also through in second place, with Hungary claiming the third spot at the expense of Montenegro thanks to a 21-14 win.

Both games were played at the Malmo Isstadion.

The main round will start tomorrow at the Scandinavium venue in Gothenburg, with three Group I matches.

Germany will take on Serbia before hosts Sweden collide with The Netherlands.

Spain will play France in the last game of the day.