AC Milan defender Stine Hovland recently gave an interview to the Norwegian site VG, discussing what she had been doing to occupy herself during Italy’s nine-week lockdown.
More importantly, she expressed relief over the country’s lockdown being lifted.
The interview was also done shortly before Berglind Björg Thorvaldsdóttir announced that she would be returning home to Iceland.
Special thanks to Arne Huse for translating this.
Here she is! Cheering for a jogging session two months after ‘lockdown’:
2 mnd i lockdown er over!🥳 pic.twitter.com/oAXOljBK6E
— Stine Hovland (@StineHov) May 4, 2020
‘[I’ve] never felt such joy from being able to walk outside.’
In a period of just over two months, the Norwegian player Stine Hovland (29), has been in “lockdown” in Milan. The night before Monday, she eagerly looked forward to being able to jog outside. So much so that she could barely sleep.
“We have had a countdown for quite a while now, and we had to get out early to do the jogging session,” Hovland says on the telephone to VG from Milan.
On Monday, May 4th, Italy started a gradual reopening of the country and lifted some of the restrictions imposed during the coronavirus crisis.
This implies, among other things, that people can play sports and train outside, though they can only do so close to their homes.
– “I really haven’t slept much tonight!” Hovland says, about the joy of finally being allowed to exercise outdoors.
Up at the crack of dawn
The 29-year-old and her teammate and roommate, Berglind Björg Thorvaldsdóttir, were up at the crack of dawn early Monday morning. They shot videos of themselves running and cheering in the streets of Milan at 05:51am.
“I am going for a walk again afterward. I have never felt such joy from being able to walk outside as I have felt today,” the AC Milan player says.
Italy closed down the country and imposed a curfew on March 10th. Hovland and her teammates were advised by Milan to stay indoors before the lockdown had been imposed.
For more than two months, she has more or less been sitting inside her flat and has been looking out of her window, staring at a ghost town.
Now Hovland tells us that they have received the message that jogging outdoors is permitted. They can finally go for walks in the reopened parks in the city.
“The most important thing for me at the moment is not playing football. Just being able to go outside and jog was just fantastic,” she says.
That 5:50am running feeling 🤓#9weeks #freedom pic.twitter.com/eNfB3juInZ
— Berglind Bjorg Thorvaldsdottir (@berglindbjorg10) May 4, 2020
Milan have not reopened for training, according to Hovland
When she and her teammates can play football again is still uncertain.
“The last message we got from the club is that we will get an update as to when we can start training [again],” she tells us.
The lifting of the restrictions on Monday also affected professional football players. The players are now allowed to train individually at the club’s training facilities.
“The club has not yet opened up for individual training here, so we’ll see. Right now, we don’t know when we can start [training] again,” she tells us.
Addendum: Milanello has reopened for training, but only for the men. The women will have to wait until June. They will have to wait until they get approval from the Italian government to do so. A meeting will be held on May 25th to determine whether the Serie A Femminile season should resume play.
