Everyone in Norway is rowing.
But Emil Anners Lappen, 24, sits calmly in the boat.
– I thought the rowing was a stupid idea from the beginning, he says to VG.
Norway’s World Cup rhyme is starting to go viral. Those dressed in red sit down and make movements as if they are sitting in a rowing boat, while chanting “ro” in time.
The supporters row, the players row, the commentators row. Even the politicians in the Storting are rowing.
But now one is singled out as refusing. In pictures from the Norwegian victory match against Senegal, a lone Norwegian can be seen demonstratively sitting quietly with his arms crossed while those around him are rowing.
– I have never liked it, says Emil Anners Lappen to VG.
Even when the Norwegian team sat down on the grass after the match and rowed with the supporters, the 24-year-old didn’t hang on. In social media, he has been hailed by Swedes as a “hero”.
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Partly it is a matter of principle, he says. Ramsan is far too similar to Iceland’s “volcano”, from the soccer European Championship 2016. In addition, he thinks the rowing is a factual error.
– The rowing should actually have been sailing, he says to the Norwegian newspaper and continues:
– I sit demonstratively still when people start rowing.
Norway has secured its place in the World Cup round of 16. Emil Anners Lappen has no plans to start rowing during the playoffs, but points out that he still cheers for the Norwegian national team.
– Apart from the rowing, I’m in.
