Introduction by Joram Nijs
Interview by Oli Nermerich
Photography by Anthony Finocchiaro
You recently signed a contract with the French brand Seba Skates. How did that come about?
Over the years I have always tried to promote the freedom of inline and its versatility by teaching people to skate. In the last 12 months I have started to expand my passion by trying new styles of skating. I was contacted by Seba who invited me to try a new style of event skatecross. I traveled to China to compete in the world skate cross series. During this trip I was asked to join the Seba team to create my own pro model of a new kind of aggressive skate. There was no hesitation with accepting the offer. As soon as I met the team I had a great connection with them. The company is just as passionate about skating as I am, as they are all skaters. From then on we have been working really well together designing and working on the skate.
What about the other skate manufacturers, didn’t they get in touch with you?
Yes I had proposals from different companies, but I was attracted to the idea of being able to work on something new. I was really impressed with how Seba works. They are very professional with what they do. They have also kept rolling alive in other styles of skating. I am so proud to be able to design new skates which will match my own view of what skating is. The time has come to be able to live my dream and promote skating the way I always wanted to, to continue my passion and begin a new chapter in my life.
What are your projects in the next few weeks?
I am currently in Paris living the dream chilling with the homies. I just got back from Moscow where I got to experience a whole new level of crazy and meet some amazing skaters. My next stop will be the ‘NYC invitational’ on September 22nd and then the ‘Blading Cup’ in Santa Ana on October 6th. Then I will finalize the project with the new skates, which should come out in 2013. I guess you could say that good things come to those who wait.
