As we learnt last month, there is a young Norwegian badminton player who is aiming to push Norway up the European badminton pecking order. We speak to Carl Christian Mork how he plans to achieve this.
Before you can take on a continent, you must first conquer your own country. Evaluating his chances of being Norway’s number one doubles player, Mork says.
- I think the chances for Norway creating a top player is increasing all the time. Our national team is very young so the level will probably go up in the next few years. Several Norwegian junior players are doing well too, so if they join the centre in Oslo our training group will become better. Then we have an even higher chance of getting someone to achieve big things.
Read: Carl Christian Mork: a small badminton country aiming big
That is what we are working on
Norway, of course, is a dominant force in winter sports that is followed by many fans, so how do people react when Mork tells them he plays badminton?
- Many people in Norway do not view badminton as a serious sport, it is something they do in the garden in summer, although there are of course exceptions. It is different when I talk to other Norwegian sportsmen though. They are usually more understandable that it is tough to be a professional athlete in badminton, maybe especially if their sport is not that popular here either.
In a previous interview, Mork stated that he views Denmark as an inspiration and a model to follow for badminton in Norway. Adding to this, he comments.
- Playing badminton in Denmark is a bit like skiing in Norway. It is really difficult to get to the top in your own country, but if you make that, you are most likely to be the top in the world as well. Playing badminton in Norway is pretty much the opposite, it isn’t that difficult to get good at a national level, but from there it is still a long way to go internationally, but that is what we are working on.