Kaare wants to win medals in Paris
Date: 29/01/2024
Author: Anders Græsbøll Buch, Communications Consultant, JYSK
Category: Sustainability
With seven months until the Paralympic Games in Paris, GOJYSK has spoken to one of the many para-athletes that JYSK sponsors. Despite an underdog role, the ambition is to win a medal for Danish wheelchair rugby player Kaare Momme Nielsen.
Lots of scores, hard clashes and overturned wheelchairs.
Wheelchair rugby is one of the most action-packed sports in the Paralympic programme, and preparations for the Paralympics in Paris are in full swing for Kaare Momme Nielsen and the rest of the Danish national wheelchair rugby team, who have already qualified.
In addition to the individual training and club training, monthly gatherings with the national team are planned, offering either training camps or tournaments abroad.
"I think we are on an upward curve since the European championships. We are not going to Paris to enjoy the great food, but hopefully to bring home some medals. We might be underdogs, but I think we can beat anyone," says Kaare.
JYSK and parasport
JYSK is main sponsor of Parasport associations in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Romania while also supporting the National Paralympic Committees in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Sweden. In Denmark, JYSK has been the main sponsor since 1989.
Wants to be the world’s best
In wheelchair rugby, each player is rated between 0.5 and 3.5 points – 0.5 for the one with the most severe disability and 3.5 for the least severe. Each team has four players on the field at a time, and together, the four players should not total more than 8 points.
Kaare is a 1.5-point player and his competitive gene has led him to set an ambitious goal. He wants to be the world's best 1.5-point player.
"There are probably four of us in the world fighting for it, and we are each good at different things. I have a relatively good throw, while others have a better acceleration. I hope that at the Paralympics I can show that I am the best," says Kaare.
First "real" Paralympics
Kaare Momme Nielsen
In 2010, a boat rack fell on Kaare, which caused a permanent neck injury.
His first participation at the Paralympics was in Tokyo in 2021, but due to coronavirus and restrictions on spectators and the general mobility in the city, Kaare is now looking forward to the full experience in Paris.
"I'm looking forward to the feeling of being part of the Paralympics, and I'd really like to be at the opening ceremony. But the most important thing is to perform, and then the experience comes second," says Kaare.
In autumn, JYSK produced an international video with para-athletes from several countries, where Kaare also starred.
