– Many players are terribly nervous about interviews. I always try to relax my teammates by telling them that no one can look at the faces of players talking in Poker. You can usually get out of any uncomfortable situations by laughing.
Laughter and positivity are the two things that come to mind first when by Michaela Madsen29, is chatting with.
The speaking style is loud and laughter can be heard far away, despite the strong autumn wind in Hämeenlinna’s Linnanpuisto.
Just over ten years ago, Madsen might have needed his own tips in interviews. He stayed in his shell and enjoyed himself.
When Madsen wasn’t at school or at sports practice, he spent time in his room drawing.
– Sometimes my mother had to call into my room and ask: “Is anyone alive there?” Madsen recalls.
People change. It is not unusual for a quiet 15-year-old to become talkative in ten years. In Madsen’s case, it is still very hard to believe.
Madsen talks a lot and likes to. He is always loud even on the volleyball court. The center defender is best known for that quality when talking to people who have followed volleyball for a long time.
– Usually I always answer from the side and say a long answer. After that I ask if I answered the question, Madsen smiles.
Michaela Madsen is currently playing probably the last season of her professional volleyball career.
He has had no less than five knee surgeries during his more than ten years of professional career.
In his career, Madsen has achieved four championship golds, the French league championship and played in the national team.
This season’s goal is to make last year’s silver medal the Finnish championship.
“Michaela was much, much more shy when she was little”
First, it’s good to get the basics straight.
Yes, Madsen comes from a sports family: the little sister Yasmine also plays volleyball as a profession and has a younger brother Alexander is a familiar sight from the Finnish men’s national basketball team.
The parents of the family that grew up in Valkeala, in the region of today’s Kouvola, are also former athletes. The name Madsen comes from a Danish father.
You can get an exhaustive answer from those close to you: Michaela was really different when she was young than she is today.
– Misu was much, much more shy when she was little. She was a petite girl who didn’t open her mouth much. Misu is a completely different person today. He goes and does whatever he wants. I follow in his footsteps, says Yasmine, who is six years younger.
Role model. It’s been Michaela. Yasmine followed her older sister to play abroad. He wanted to be a similar person.
– We are both loud, we ventilate and make noise on the field and we help the team by talking, Yasmine underlines.
Madsen’s cousin, racing rower Joel Naukkarinen has also noticed a change in Madsen. They were born in the same year, 1993, and spent a lot of time together in childhood.
– I recognize that spiritual growth. He doesn’t give up when he’s small, Naukkarinen says.
Vuokko Naukkarinen was worried. The eldest child, Michaela, had decided to move away from home. A volleyball career flashed in the 15-year-old’s mind.
Timid and quiet Madsen packed his things and left Valkeala for Tampere to Varala sports college, 200 kilometers away from home.
It was the first place of growth, mother recalls.
– It was a bold bet. I was a little anxious when he stayed there.
At the sports college, Madsen found a long-time friend, who later gained fame in LP Viest Noora Kosonen. Kosonen recalls that Madsen was timid and observant at the beginning of high school.
– In Tampere, a different person emerged from him. In high school, Michaela started to take on a role and she started leading us in dance practices.
Kosonen and Madsen played together in the national team after their high school years. Back then, Michaela was already completely different.
– In the national team, he had a “secret handshake” with all the players. That is, different slapping sets for everyone.
In Hämeenlinna Volleyball Club’s training, the hazlink is on. The volleyball net has been placed on the wrong court. Madsen is at the center of the problem when the right field is being clarified with the keeper.
Madsen’s sharp instructions are heard in the hall: the net is taken out and moved to another field. Who is the team captain is already clear before the balls are taken from the carts onto the field.
How did such a big change in personality happen?
Madsen says that his tenderness as a child was largely due to being bullied at school and being left out of the group.
For example, it was difficult for him to find a pair in training in Valkeala. Madsen’s new stretching movements, which he had brought from the youth national team camps, were laughed at.
– It really affected me. I was careful what I said. I just tried to stay out of everyone’s way and avoid the people who made me feel like I couldn’t be myself. I still see that around me. Sad to know what it’s like.
Changing the location from Valkeala to Tampere to the Sports College was the first step to change. The openness of the new playmates surprised me.
– Suddenly I was liked. I could no longer spend my energy thinking about what others think of me. That’s really exhausting.
Madsen has a specific moment in mind.
– I remember the sentence: “Why do I admire that person, he is outgoing, happy and gives air”. Why can’t I be that guy? Then I’ve just decided that I’m like that. I don’t want to be shy, I want to be a role model.
“At least one Madsen must be in the team”
The idealization of role models pushed Madsen forward.
– I can be exactly the way I want, I thought. That way I was able to let myself go, Madsen describes.
Due to five knee injuries, the current season is probably the volleyball player’s last. When Madsen looks back on his career, he believes that the reason for his long and successful career has been due to his role in the locker room and on the field.
– Many have told me that at least one Madsen must be in the team. One type of manager who makes noise on the field. It has helped me far and many places.
Madsen now has a lot of tips for people who want to come out of their shell.
Madsen believes that loudness and brashness have been the key to his success on professional courts and even abroad.
He says that when making a player contract, it is important if the player is known as a social person who includes everyone and encourages others.
And the change didn’t happen in an instant.
According to Vuokko’s mother, Madsen’s personality found its place at the beginning of his professional career even in his twenties. The blooming has happened slowly. Madsen still enjoys himself by drawing and doing handicrafts.
Madsen wants to encourage people to be who they want to be.
– Not everyone has to be loud. There must be different people. But if someone doesn’t dare to be loud, even if they want to be, you can change. At first it’s forced, then it comes naturally.
Madsen says that he sometimes tries to get younger players to speak out in training.
– Some players don’t dare to say “I” when chasing the ball. And even though talking in the dressing room seems pointless at first, someone always joins in.
There is no doubt who that person is in the Hämeenlinna Volleyball Club.