Lasse Øster has played his last match in Skælskør Badminton Klub (SBK) and has moved on to the eternal badminton halls.
The echo of your always fresh remarks still hangs in the air above the blue floors in the badminton hall in Skælskør. Every single time you were in the hall, the average mood of the hall was just higher. No one around you could avoid being infected by your mood and that meant that you were always happy to go to the hall. It was obvious that you loved being in the hall. Loved the game, the matches, the drills – even the legwork and interval training – but most of all you loved the people in the hall – us. You were genuinely interested in the people who make up SBK and you were one of the forces that make a badminton club more than just a badminton club – a community. You were at eye level with everyone and walked into people wearing clogs – or rather badminton shoes. You were the one who thought there should be more seniors on the senior team and of course you went ahead and started the Tuesday and Thursday training sessions. That got the rest of us involved and we now have the broadest team for many years. Thanks.
Thank you for always giving that gas in training and matches and always being a great sportsman and teammate. Thank you for never cheating on the scale, but insisting that it is more important to behave properly towards both teammates and opponents than to win. Thank you for always checking in on the rest of us, always bothering to fight with us carefully when we were not quite fit for a fight, but could only fight a little. This meant that we went to the hall instead of sitting at home. Thank you for always having the energy to play with the little ones and in that way creating lots of wonderful experiences for the youngest in the club. Thank you for always leading the way in hauling counter chairs with a smile on your face. Thank you for always supporting and always cheering on everyone from SBK – from the very youngest to the super veterans.
You have been an important part of the culture in SBK – in particular in the senior team / senior training, which has developed a lot in recent years. There are smiles on the face, sweat on the forehead, everyone helps everyone and there is cake for the team matches.
On the 25th of December you moved on and although we knew very well which way it was going, it has become quiet in the hall. You are no longer the first in the hall and can no longer be the one to welcome the next ones. You can no longer lift the mood in the hall as you have done for so many years, so now we have to lift and carry the good mood and helpfulness on. We must give the gas to training and welcome everyone who enters the hall. We must insist on creating more good experiences in SBK – just as you have done so many times with us.
That is why we are now establishing a prize – a Lasse Øster Prize. An award that encourages the values you have lived by – the values that are so important to our badminton club. A walking trophy which is awarded at the end of the season to a player who always meets in a good mood, always gives it gas for training and matches, is always fair and orderly on the pitch, always helps others and is always a good teammate.
Dear Lasse,
Thanks for the fight and thanks for you
.jpg "Morelos Sub-15 Badminton Stars Santiago Paul Ramírez and Kiara Yunuen Manzón")