“Goosebumps” for Kevin Vanneste
The Horseball exhibition tournament winds down tonight at the Centre for the Promotion of Horse Breeding in Saint-Lô. The crowd will be treated to a showdown between Europe’s two top teams, France and Spain, in both the women’s and mixed competitions. Belgium and Italy will be vying for third place. Kevin Vanneste, the captain of the Belgian team, discusses the team’s goals and shares his perspective on the exhibition held as part of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy.
3 questions for Kevin Vanneste, captain of the Belgian horseball team:
How has the team fared so far?
“It’s been tough but we’re not disappointed. We came here as a young team, with five new players. We lost a match that we were supposed to win against Italy. But with the little experience we have, we shouldn’t really get down on ourselves. At the start of the match against France, we managed to keep them scoreless for a few minutes. Several times, we were able to disrupt their game and even get a few chances. The pace was a bit quick, however.”
What does this demonstration event mean to you?
“Personally, I’m delighted. We are very pleased to be here. We had a few troubles picking the team. In spite of it all, we tried to do our best. We’re still upbeat. We tried to show the world that in Belgium we can play horseball, despite our lack of experience. We also really want to introduce the world to horsebal and show that this discipline is an integral part of the World Equestrian Games.”
The public in Saint-Lô is very enthusiastic. What kind of feeling do you get when entering the arena?”
I try to stay calm, to block out what is going on around me. It must be said, however, that the atmosphere is fantastic. It’s great to see so many people. I get goosebumps when I enter the arena. Some players get a bit emotional and it affects their game.”
Tonight’s Horseball finals in Saint-Lô:
Women
- 6:30pm: Italy/Belgium
- 8:05pm: Spain/France (final)
Mixed
- 7:10pm: Italy/Belgium
- 8:50pm: Spain/France (final)