“I’ve always been a big sports fan. I remember 88 in Seoul, 92 in Barcelona, which are the first two Games that I really followed. I was 12 and 16. I have memories. I remember Thierry Rey in judo, who won the gold medal. I have a lot of memories of judo. Probably because I had done a bit of it myself. Afterwards, as soon as there is a gold medal for the French team, it marks me. At the time, there were not as many handball matches on TV. Obviously, the journey of the French team, of the Bronzés at the time, was fabulous. This medal won in 1992 remains a strong moment also because we finally saw handball on TV. It also corresponds, in 1992, to the NBA Dream Team with Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson. I really loved these Games there.”
When you started your handball career at the highest level, did you have a source of inspiration?
“I was inspired by the greatest goalkeepers in history to create my own identity. At the time, in the 1990s, there was the Swede Tomas Svensson, the Russian Andrei Lavrov and the Croatian Mirko Basic. They were goalkeepers with completely different styles. As soon as I could watch their matches, I tried to reproduce their gestures in training, to do a bit of a mix to create my own technique.”
Which active athlete impresses you the most?
“It’s hard to say. I think there are a lot of great athletes. I really liked Roger Federer. When you saw him pushing himself up with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, it was exciting. That’s what I like. Competition, great athletes and great confrontations, that’s what we like most in sport.”
What memories do you have of the Olympic village?
“I loved being among all these athletes. The Olympic Village allows you to meet athletes from different backgrounds, different sports, different cultures. You are among people like you, who have the same goals of surpassing themselves and getting the best possible result. What I also liked was the fact that we were with all the other athletes from the French delegation. We were grouped together. We really felt this state of mind of doing everything for your country. You want to be part of this medal table where everyone wants to do their bit and make sure the French team shines.”
Today, Omeyer is the director of PSG handball. ©DR
What sport would you not have been able to play?
“I don’t know. For me, all sports are hard. You have to work hard, train a lot. Sometimes, you’re more predisposed to do one sport than another. Right now, I don’t have a sport in mind. On the other hand, there are other sports that I would have liked to try. Besides, today, now that I’ve stopped playing at the highest level, I love discovering them. I’ve always loved playing football, basketball and tennis. Today, I play golf. I love trying to discover all these other sports where you start from lower down. That’s what’s great. Always this desire to be able to progress, to improve.”
Which Belgian athlete do you know or like?
“I really like some footballers. There’s Kevin De Bruyne who is a very good player. And then, Thibaut Courtois. He’s one of a kind.”
What makes you attracted to the goalkeeper position when you love handball? Did you like being shot at all the time?
“Good question. I got into it when I was very young. I started playing handball when I was 6. And then when I was 12, I went into goal. We had a little competition that I won because I think I already had this competitive side when I was very young. And in that position, it’s true that we are lucky to have a big responsibility on the influence we can have on the match.”
Don’t you have to be a bit of a masochist to be a handball goalkeeper and get hit by balls at such speeds?
“That’s what I’m often told. Seen from the outside, it’s very impressive. But when I found myself in my goal, in my zone, I felt good. Normally, the shooter has more chance of scoring than the goalie of making a save. I loved reversing that trend.”
