Inimene
Well-Known Member
spoiler alert: long-read full of imho's and personal observations, proceed with a cup of coffee/tea
While the discussion about friendships in the skating world is relevant, I feel like jumping in because oh boy, the social part of speed skating is no less fascinating to me personally than its technical/athletic part and I tend to feel emotionally attached to skaters who resonate with my personal feelings/who I sympathize with on a personal level. This is just all just a part of being a human but I digress. Now straight to the point.
I'm pretty sure every member of this forum who is actively involved in the sport as an athlete and is a member of any kind of skating group/club/team (underline the most relevant term applicable to yourself) is familiar with the dynamics within the group. Let's not delve too deep into the national and commercial teams. Tallinn speed skating club. Feels like a family. Great dynamics. Everyone is very friendly and supportive of each other. Yet it is evident for the attentive observer that some 'siblings' within this family tend to hang out with very certain team members outside of the training sessions. It is true that being a part of the team has been the greatest social experience in my life and I appreciate my teamies. Yet we don't see each other much outside of training. At the same time, it was this very team that brought me close with two very precious people. We became friends, in a true sense of the word. I'm pretty sure someone out there has had an experience similar to mine and a story just like this one.
So it is understandable that some pro skaters may and may not find themselves tied by the bonds of friendship as the members come and go. Some of these bonds indeed do form and survive rivalry and hardships of life as a pro. Of course, it is more likely that these bonds are more likely to form with someone from your own team -- you spend more time together, you speak the same language, you attend the same training sessions, your coach screaming at you is the great common point of discussion. You see each other regularly and share the same, or similar, experiences. And this point has been raised here, the great example is the skaters of the ending era, like Olde Heuvel and Kramer, Wüst and van Deutekom.
And still, some of the most interesting and remarkable friendships that I witnessed in speed skating are, in my opinion (or perception) those that formed between the skaters from different countries. I remember being absolutely taken aback and somewhat charmed by the (hopefully?) special bond between Sven Kramer and Håvard Bøkko. Oh the countless articles and blogposts I read in my glory days of early skating obsession trying to understand the friendship between Sven and the "guy skating in his shadow". Apparently, they were close, both spoke of each other with a degree of personal admiration and - of course - shameless punning. I don't know if they still keep in touch after Håvard's retirement. There is obviosly no objective way of knowing that and personally, I'll cherish my memories of witnessing their friendship bloom and leave the rest for them to deal with personally.
Another example is the friendship between (oh how unexpected, Inimene) Patrick Roest and Nils vd Poel. It has been obvious from the start. No shit, both have talked about each other and their special relationship more than once. Nils has once mentioned it sixteen times during just one interview, actually
Besides having a close relationship with the Norwegians, Nils constantly refers to Patrick alone as his actual friend in the skating world and it seems mutual. Partick admits Nils has a place in his head and Nils, unsurprisingly, admits Roest "has a place in his heart". Their story reminds me of Sven and Håvard in a sense although with one apparent difference: they don't skate in each other's shadow and have been and are still for the most part, two equals. I really appreciate how the two talk about each other and the small hints of a special bond they leave here and there. Seeking this warms my skating heart, really.
There are plenty of other examples. Kristiine Kalev of Estonia and Erika Lindgren of Sweden. Samuli Suomalainen of Finland and Seong Hyeon Park of S. Korea. But I'll just stop for now as this post is slowly turning into a novel and this is not the right website to post skating-inspired pieces of art to thanks for coming to my schaatsforum talk!
While the discussion about friendships in the skating world is relevant, I feel like jumping in because oh boy, the social part of speed skating is no less fascinating to me personally than its technical/athletic part and I tend to feel emotionally attached to skaters who resonate with my personal feelings/who I sympathize with on a personal level. This is just all just a part of being a human but I digress. Now straight to the point.
I'm pretty sure every member of this forum who is actively involved in the sport as an athlete and is a member of any kind of skating group/club/team (underline the most relevant term applicable to yourself) is familiar with the dynamics within the group. Let's not delve too deep into the national and commercial teams. Tallinn speed skating club. Feels like a family. Great dynamics. Everyone is very friendly and supportive of each other. Yet it is evident for the attentive observer that some 'siblings' within this family tend to hang out with very certain team members outside of the training sessions. It is true that being a part of the team has been the greatest social experience in my life and I appreciate my teamies. Yet we don't see each other much outside of training. At the same time, it was this very team that brought me close with two very precious people. We became friends, in a true sense of the word. I'm pretty sure someone out there has had an experience similar to mine and a story just like this one.
So it is understandable that some pro skaters may and may not find themselves tied by the bonds of friendship as the members come and go. Some of these bonds indeed do form and survive rivalry and hardships of life as a pro. Of course, it is more likely that these bonds are more likely to form with someone from your own team -- you spend more time together, you speak the same language, you attend the same training sessions, your coach screaming at you is the great common point of discussion. You see each other regularly and share the same, or similar, experiences. And this point has been raised here, the great example is the skaters of the ending era, like Olde Heuvel and Kramer, Wüst and van Deutekom.
And still, some of the most interesting and remarkable friendships that I witnessed in speed skating are, in my opinion (or perception) those that formed between the skaters from different countries. I remember being absolutely taken aback and somewhat charmed by the (hopefully?) special bond between Sven Kramer and Håvard Bøkko. Oh the countless articles and blogposts I read in my glory days of early skating obsession trying to understand the friendship between Sven and the "guy skating in his shadow". Apparently, they were close, both spoke of each other with a degree of personal admiration and - of course - shameless punning. I don't know if they still keep in touch after Håvard's retirement. There is obviosly no objective way of knowing that and personally, I'll cherish my memories of witnessing their friendship bloom and leave the rest for them to deal with personally.
Another example is the friendship between (oh how unexpected, Inimene) Patrick Roest and Nils vd Poel. It has been obvious from the start. No shit, both have talked about each other and their special relationship more than once. Nils has once mentioned it sixteen times during just one interview, actually
Besides having a close relationship with the Norwegians, Nils constantly refers to Patrick alone as his actual friend in the skating world and it seems mutual. Partick admits Nils has a place in his head and Nils, unsurprisingly, admits Roest "has a place in his heart". Their story reminds me of Sven and Håvard in a sense although with one apparent difference: they don't skate in each other's shadow and have been and are still for the most part, two equals. I really appreciate how the two talk about each other and the small hints of a special bond they leave here and there. Seeking this warms my skating heart, really.There are plenty of other examples. Kristiine Kalev of Estonia and Erika Lindgren of Sweden. Samuli Suomalainen of Finland and Seong Hyeon Park of S. Korea. But I'll just stop for now as this post is slowly turning into a novel and this is not the right website to post skating-inspired pieces of art to
thanks for coming to my schaatsforum talk!
