When he decided to settle in France in 1995, Anders Lindqvist did not know that his life would be lasting there.
Twenty-one years later, the Swede is one of the emblematic figures of the famous Grosbois training center, in Boissy-Saint-Léger (Val-de-Marne).
The 69-year-old professional talks about his successes in France, the chances of his resident,
Wild Love
(n ° 3), in the quinté this Thursday at the Vincennes racecourse, but also the serious health problems he has known.
You present
Wild Love
in Thursday's quinté.
Why are you less present in the column of coaches than before?
ANDERS LINDQVIST.
I had blood cancer about 15 years ago.
The treatments and chemotherapy weakened me a lot so I had to reduce my activity.
It took a long time to get over it, and when I thought it was behind me, I was diagnosed five years ago with bladder cancer.
As I am always watched by the doctors, I content myself with a dozen trotters in training.
After two cancers, I have come a long way.
To have defeated them are my two greatest successes!
Can
Wild Love get
you one on the track tomorrow?
I'm convinced !
As a present, she arrived at the stable at Christmas.
It was not unworthy for its first race in a more difficult field.
With a hidden course, she would have to fight for victory.
I will be able to count on Franck Nivard to lead it as well as possible.
Did you think you were still in France today when you arrived in 1995?
Absolutely not!
I tried the adventure, and the results were there.
That year, I won the Prix du Luxembourg (Gr. III) as Helen Johanson became the first woman to win the Prix d'Amérique.
It was a bit like the year of the Swedes!
Then, the good results continued to be met with in particular a fifth place in the Prix d'Amérique in 2000. I quickly became attached to France, its culture, its gastronomy, but also to Grosbois, the best training center I have ever been to.
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Precisely, your compatriots do not hesitate to call on you to accommodate their horses ...
It's a real pleasure!
Some entrust them to me for training.
Others, like Robert Bergh or the Kolgjini family, ask me to host them.
They are not in the sun during the winter meeting but it is always less cold than in Sweden (laughs) ...
You are also active on social networks ...
It's true that I really enjoy discussing the latest racing news.
This allows the French to have news on Swedish races and vice versa.
As I am less active than in the past, it keeps me busy.
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