Everyday life has changed a lot for the two girls, but they have not received any culture shock.
FORNEBU (Nettavisen): Previously, both Nora Mørk, Marit Malm Frafjord and Amanda Kurtovic have done it and this year we find a Norwegian trio in the stable of the Romanian club CSM Bucharest.
In addition to goalkeeper Marie Davidsen, the Vipers duo Emilie Hegh Arntzen and Malin Aune also decided that the time was ripe for new adventures after last season.
The latter two players have known each other for many years and played together in Vipers for a number of years, but had little idea that they would end up traveling abroad together.
Individually and completely independently of each other, they gradually began to think that it could be exciting to try something new and coincidences would have it so that CSM Bucharest took an interest in both the two Norwegian national team players.
– We were very happy
Suddenly they discovered that both were in negotiations with the same club.
– We did not know that we both talked to Bucharest in the beginning. We talked to them each for us, but then I knew she might be thinking about it and she knew I might be thinking about it, so we talked together and found out we both talked to the same club. It is of course only positive, says Hegh Arntzen to Nettavisen.
Aune says it was good news to find out her friend was in the same boat.
– We had both negotiated a little for each other and I did not have complete control over her and mine’s contract in Vipers. I just knew I was negotiating a bit, but we eventually found out. Then we were very happy. I now notice that I am very happy that she is with. It is always good to have one more there, says Aune to Nettavisen.
According to Hegh Arntzen, however, it was not decisive for her choice.
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– It is a security to have Malin there, but I would probably have chosen CSM regardless of what she had done. But when we first got down there, it was an extra security that we were two who traveled together, two who know each other so well, says the 27-year-old.
– It’s a bit risky
In addition to playing together in the Vipers, both are experienced national team players.
– Emilie is a great security for me. We know each other very well. We have played on the national team together since we were 14 years old and have each other no matter what. Even though it is very nice in Romania, it is always nice to have someone to be with, says Aune.
Aune says that the time was ripe for an environmental change and something new, although she also thrived very well in Vipers – the reigning Champions League champions.
– I wanted to try a new league, I have been in the Norwegian for quite a few years now. You develop as a human being by changing a little environment and it was “driven”, she says.
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– It is a bit risky when you thrive so well. I could have stayed in Vipers forever and had a great time, but I wanted to try something new, try this part of international handball and play outside Norway. I have experienced that it may be wise to change the environment a bit when it feels right, it felt like I was ready for it now and then you almost have to take the chance when the opportunity arises, the winger continues.
– More like a regular job
The 26-year-old has previously combined handball with nursing studies, but now she is a full-time handball player, which is a little different, she must admit.
– It’s a little more work. But this is what I want to do. It feels more like a job, but I just want to do this and nothing else, so I’m glad it’s my job.
Hegh Arntzen has a bit of the same feeling after the transition.
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– It’s a bit more like a regular job. We meet for training, go home and then we meet again the next day. In Vipers, we were more of a group of friends who did things together all the time, but it’s good to have it as a job, too, says the 27-year-old.
– Then it is extra safe that we are more Norwegians. We speak the same language and we are several who are new at the same time. Then we can fix the things we need to fix together.
– Not big differences
The ski girl enjoys the new everyday life very much.
– It has been very good so far. It is a new experience, new and different. This is what I wanted. I thrive with the girls on the team and those around, but then it takes time. The handball piece takes time. Not everything works 100 percent yet, but I did not expect that either. They do things in a slightly different way and play a little differently, but it’s really just a part of everything you want to experience, says Hegh Arntzen.
There has not been a big culture shock for either of the two girls.
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– There is a difference, but I am positively surprised that everyone is so helpful, that things are in English and that it was nice to get into it, says Aune.
– There are not such big differences, really. It is a team with many nationalities, where several have lived abroad for many years. It also does not feel far home, even though it is not the best flight connections now due to the pandemic, but there are direct flights to Norway. Facetime is also used, it will be, says Hegh Arntzen.
Thorir: – Really a challenge
National team coach Thorir Hergeirsson chose to exclude both Aune and Hegh Arntzen from his Olympic squad that went to Tokyo this summer. The Icelander both believes and hopes that his stay in Bucharest can take the two players a step further in their careers.
– When it comes to Malin and Emilie, they have come to a slightly different culture now and it is really a challenge, says the national team coach to Nettavisen.
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– But I think it can help them develop, if they stay healthy and get to be part of everything. It can push them in development, the coach continues.
Both Aune and Hegh Arntzen are highly relevant for Hergeirsson’s squad for the World Cup in December on Spanish soil. The squad will probably be announced during November.
Both the experienced players were in the squad when Norway played two matches against Slovenia in October and are thus seen in the binoculars of the national team coach.
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