A fairytale

Bart Swings, from Herent in Belgium, has always been a very talented inline skater. To emphasise that: 12 gold medals in World Championships and 16 gold in the European Championships over the years. But Bart had one problem, he had an Olympic dream, but inline skating is not an Olympic sport. And there are no plans of it becoming one soon. So, someone convinced him to try it on the ice. That is Olympic!

Learning a new sport

Even though ice skating and inline skating look quite like each other, ice skating demands a lot more technique, and one mistake and you’re gliding in the décor. It took him a few years to learn the basics in Holland. But he got better and better at it. But nowhere near the world top skaters that have been on the ice since their 5th birthday. He started at 21!

In PyeongChang 4 years ago, he already got the silver on the bunch start. But today he got the big one, the Olympic gold medal in a sport he had never done before he was 21!
Amazing achievement, especially for a Belgian, because there isn’t even a speed ice track in Belgium to train on. Only short track is available in Belgium. I would compare it with a rugby player transforming himself into an American football player in a country where nobody even knows shit about American football. That’s what this guy has done, all for the Olympic dream.

Congratulations Bart, you deserve it!