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Breda | May 29, 2024

Björn Koreman: ‘Sporten is meedoen, vrienden maken en je ontwikkelen!’

Björn Koreman is a professional runner. He wants to inspire and motivate children, and show them that with the right attitude, anything is possible! Björn played handball for 15 years as a child. Sports were very important in his youth, especially for the friendships he built through it. His friends and handball were inextricably linked, both during and after sports. When he thinks back on his childhood, he mainly remembers the people he played with and the fun. At 21, he started running. A sporting challenge that led him to become a professional runner. He wants to inspire children with this: you can start a sport at any age. Running gives him a sense of freedom. It clears your head, because you're enjoying your sport. The relaxation, making friends, and sharing your passion with others—that's what he wants for every child!

Social skills

Developing (social) skills through sports, especially when played as a team, is incredibly helpful for children's further development and their social or athletic careers. In elite sports, he sees children who are isolated from the age of 12 onwards because they lack certain social skills. Björn's motivation for his sport is very clear: I never want to lose. A true winning mentality. Sometimes that was difficult in the past, because when you play in a team, you do it together. If someone else didn't play well, he would be very frustrated. He learned a lot from that.

Awareness

Björn believes it's important for children to spend less time in front of screens from a young age and to start exercising and moving more. He wants them to go outside instead of spending time on social media. On the other hand, he also realizes he needs social media to reach children. Through TikTok, he tries to inspire children and get them moving. Parents are crucial for getting children involved in sports. Parents need to be more involved and aware of the necessity and importance of sports for their child's physical health and development. To raise this awareness among young people, Björn gives lectures at secondary schools.

Participation in sports should be very accessible. Because the Youth Sports & Culture Fund covers the membership fees and supplies, a significant barrier has already been removed. This way, every child can participate! By taking advantage of this opportunity as a parent, you're helping your child now and in their later years.

Every child should be able to play sports, participate, make friends and develop!

Sports are part of it!

Finally, he wants to share how important sport can be in your life. Sport continues to play a role. It becomes a kind of identity. For everyone around him, sport is a recurring theme in life. Because it brings everyone beautiful things and goals. For each individual: a record, feeling like a child (again), health. Sport is part of it!
Every child should be able to play sports, participate, make friends and develop!

Facts about Björn

How old are you? 33 years old.
What is your favorite sport? Running. I enjoy watching all sports, such as darts, handball, and tennis.
What's your favorite song? I'm going for Callifornication by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, because I went to a concert of theirs with my handball team a while back and this song has been on my mind ever since.
What are you most proud of? Winning the Vienna Marathon with a time of 2:11.07. With this, I met the Olympic qualifying time and won the marathon!
What would you do if you won a million in the lottery? Doing fun things with my family, like going on vacation. Creating beautiful memories together.
What do you want for children in Breda? That sports are accessible to everyone.