Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Education in Denmark
When sports show the way For Kristian Madsen and Camilla Tange Nielsen, ISI Sports High School opened doors to more than just sports: it has given them valuable personal insight and has helped them discover their passions. By Jette Aaes also translated by Sanne Wass | Photos: Mingo and ISI Idrætshøjskole
Kristian Madsen loves golf. So after finishing high school, he wanted to reward himself: a full year dedicated to his favourite sport became the treat. Because of its strong golf environment, ISI Sports High School in Ikast in central Denmark came recommended. “I chose ISI because of the golf, but I had not predicted how much the stay would develop me as person in other ways,” he explains. Madsen, who is from the Danish island of Funen, was a student at ISI in the autumn of 2012 and spring of 2013. In addition to enjoying plenty of golf training, he be44 | Issue 82 | November 2015
nication or perceptions. I also found out what it means to contribute to a community, which was a very useful experience to bring with me to university. And I realised that my passion was something I could make into a career.”
came part of a group of about 60 sports high school students. “Beforehand, I hadn’t thought much about what it meant to be part of a community,” he reflects. “It was a big challenge to live so closely with people I didn’t already know, and it made me understand that when you give something, you get something back.” Madsen’s original plan was that he would go on to study structural engineering. “But at ISI,” he says, “I realised that I’m passionate about movement and sports. I discovered the value that sports can bring to people; it can be about commu-
Kristian Madsen