Belgium's quiet achiever, Bart Swings - a profile and interview

Name: Bart Swings
Born: February 12, 1991
Personality: Introvert
Lives: Herent, Belgium
Height: 1.77m
Weight: 65kg
Family: Brother Maarten Swings, and sisters Liesbeth & Anneleen
Studies: Mathematics, Sciences
Hobbies: Computer, Films, Sports in general
Music: Kanye West, John Legend, Li'l Wayne
Favorite Website: www.kanyeuniversecity.com/blog

Bart Swings, Belgium
...and now CadoMotus

What has been your favorite country to race in?

Colombia, and Italy

...and your favorite race?

The World Championships

What would you say were your best qualities as a speed skater?

Perseverance, and a good sprint at the end
(CadoMotus: Qualities that would serve any skater well!)

Any motto that you live and skate by?

It's good to love to win, but it's better to hate to lose.

A familiar sight of the past two World Junior Championships

So what kind of hours is the Junior World Champ putting into his training?

During the winter months, 12-13 hours, and in summer, 15-16.

Your best skating memory so far?

My first individual gold medal at the European Championships... as a Cadet Boy.

...and your worst?

Definitely giving up during a race.

You had a huge year in 2008, so what goes at the top of your CV right now?

2008:
3x Junior World Champion - Gijón, Spain
Winner World on Wheels A-race - Vorden, Netherlands
Multiple Junior European Champion

Bart Swings (17, BEL)
Jr. World Champion

How do you feel about racing with CadoMotus in 2009?

I’m very satisfied with my decision to work with CadoMotus in the next years. I think the CadoMotus equipment is of very good quality.

How is your racing schedule looking for 2009 as a team?

We will mainly race the bigger track tournaments, like Trois Pistes, Gross Gerau and the Skate-Off in Heerde. Next to that we’ll race the bigger marathons in France, Germany and Holland.

Quite a program, so how do you prepare for a season like that?

We are planning to go to Wouter Hebbrecht in the USA to train as hard as possible over there. With our skate club we go to Italy to prepare for the following tournaments Trois Pistes (France) and Gross Gerau (Germany).

The rest of the preparation will be together with my CadoMotus team mates Maarten and Ferre and our trainer Jelle Spruyt (older brother of Ferre Spruyt and former Belgian World Team member).

Flying the Belgian Flag
Bart Swings in the midst of a victory-lap

After such success in your final year as a Junior, what are your goals now as a first-year Senior going into 2009?

With this team, I think we should be capable of winning some big races. Personally, I want to win a big race, marathon or track and make it to the top 5 during the European championships in my home country.

What is most exciting for you about speed skating?

I think it is the finish sprint and the speed you get out of that and the team work which is necessary to get there.

CadoMotus is ‘Pure Skating’... what does that mean to you?

That they are fully dedicated to bring inline skating equipment to another level, as they are with skating in general.

Bart taking the European Junior Marathon title
Image: Vincent de Cleer (skatingsisters.web-log.nl/)