A moment with ... Joachim Boldsen

I love meeting Joachim Boldsen. He makes me smile and laugh. His personality is as big as the man himself and a moment with him isn’t enough.

He is gregarious and affable. You get the sense that he has no regrets for anything that has happened in his long and illustrious career, especially when you hear him wax lyrical about the time at AG Copenhagen. Star centre for the Danish national team turned defender, father, dancer and pundit; he is "Mister Rock ‘n’ Roll".

“I’m not little and I’m not a prince”

Named after a prince of Denmark with a name that is unpronounceable for me, he learned handball at the foot of his parents. From the age of 5 he attended every handball game his top level playing parents played. He thinks his father played 5 games for Denmark, so really he had no other choice.

“I played football too, but I was no good”

Football’s loss is handball’s gain. He was bought by Barcelona as a top, top centre, but with Rutenka and Romero in the attack, and, “neither of them could defend”, he was asked to become a specialist defender.

His outlook on being a defender is hilarious. He admits it just comes naturally and that he cannot pass on the knowledge he has gleaned from playing there over many years.

“Barcelona is the biggest”

He talks fondly of that time in Spain, of how it felt to pull that jersey over his head. They were in his words “two of the best years of my life”.

We touch upon the subject of how difficult it is for families to travel with handball players.

“It’s difficult for them to adapt”

For him it was learning the language first, but he had the benefit of a team and trainings whereas his wife needed to uproot and begin all over again.

He is sensitive to that fact and realises that to be a spouse of a professional handballer is not easy.

He is a big believer in team and teammates and he admits that although losing in 2010 at the VELUX EHF FINAL4 was difficult, saying goodbye to his teammates was the hardest part.

“It had to be rock ‘n’ roll”

The project of AG Copenhagen was thrilling for him. It had to be something that separated them from all other handball. It was inspired by the NBA and Peter Schmeichel courtside at a CL game was a highlight.

“We were the bold boys of handball”

In the end he says the brand was the biggest in Denmark. The reaction to the sleeveless shirts amazed even him. He talks about how the “brand” failed and the effect that had on so many players. He is a little sad as he states that they were supposed to have the greatest handball team in the history of Denmark.

“We weren’t ready to go abroad”

The players were getting older. Hvidt started the talks that led to the creation of KIF Kolding Kobenhavn. Even with the disparity of 200 km between the cities they asked “Why Not”. “It’s more or less like before” in that handball is played in front of full houses in Broendby Hallen, but that it’s impossible to be AG again. On the news that AG might be reforming well you’ll just have to listen to hear what he says.

From handballer to dancer on the biggest dancing show on Danish TV. Joachim is honest in his assessment of all things. He wants to make the sport interesting. He needs people to feel that handball players would give the answer that sports fans want to hear. A TV pundit himself for Danish handball, it is a career change that might interest him. His education is handball all the way, but coaching is not an option. He wants his weekends free to spend time with his wife and two daughters.

“Its 3 v 1 at home he says”

I think he’ll be ok. He’s a great defender.

Listen to the entire interview with Joachim here.