Bergen, Norway – Today at Åsane Arena, the Women’s National Basketball Team of Norway took center court at a special Girls’ Camp hosted by Meteva Sport og Helse’s NextGen Neighbor Network, in close partnership with the Norwegian Basketball Federation (NBBF). The event delivered a slam dunk experience for girls from 1st to 7th grade across Bergen, offering them the rare chance to meet, play with, and be coached by national team players who are both elite athletes, and top career professionals including doctors, engineers, psychologists, lawyers, and economists. It was a vibrant celebration of inclusion and possibility, and a clear demonstration of the impact strong female role models can have on young girls. The camp showcased the athleticism, academic excellence, and integrity that define this extraordinary national women’s team.

The Girls’ Camp was created by Meteva Sport og Helse in partnership with the Norwegian Basketball Federation (NBBF) with a single principle: that every girl deserves access to strong role models.

We are facilitating relationships between the top athletes and the youngest of girls across Bergen regardless of their background, financial situation, and the parents' involvement.

Whether a girl came from a basketball club or had never picked up a ball before, today at camp she was welcomed with food, a free t-shirt, coaching, laughter, and mentorship. This ignited belonging, togetherness and new bonds. The camp was completely free of charge.

As Louise Mohn the Founder of Meteva Sport og Helse put it:

"Belonging and inspiration begins face-to-face. It is about human connection, shared stories, and the opportunity to be seen by a true role model. This is what empowerment and inclusion looks like in action."

A Dignified Journey Shaped by Dedication and Self-Discipline

These elite female players arrived at the national level through passion, self-discipline, and dedication. They were shaped in arenas across Norway—from Oslo to Tromsø, Bergen to Bærum—where basketball was more than a sport. It was home.

After practice, they stayed late—not because anyone asked them to, but because they wanted to. They hung around shooting, laughing, stretching, and sharing stories. Teammates became best friends, and best friends became like family. Many even met their future spouses through basketball internationally—often while studying on scholarships abroad at top universities.  

In these gym halls, they learned how to play and how to live. Time management, responsibility, respect, and commitment were taught and fully absorbed both on and off the court. No parent had to push them, they all knew that training and homework from school was imperative to succeed. They were self-driven and motivated from the start as if they were born with a basketball in their hands, and fully supported by friends and family. This very essence is what the basketball environment in Norway offers: a lifestyle rooted in discipline, joy, and deep social connection with highly engaged families volunteering as if it were rooted in their DNA. 

A Sky-High Standard

Each player on the national team embodies a dual excellence—in sport and in life. From Eirin Holm and Sunniva Sørby, both studying medicine at the University of Bergen, to Stine Austgulen, who holds a Master of Science from Colorado State University and a master’s in clinical nutrition from UiB, these women are living proof that you don’t have to choose between brains and basketball.

Anna Linnea Hovig Wikstrøm is currently at Duke University. Kristine Lindholm is a civil engineer from NTNU. Siri Granheim holds dual degrees in informatics and economics. Others are studying law, business, sports science, nutrition, or accounting—some in Norway, some abroad. All of them stand as powerful reminders that excellence in one area can and should translate into others. The secret to the sauce is leaving their phones behind and staying off social media. 

At today’s Girls’ Camp, they interacted socially and athletically with the young girls as if they were all a big family.

A Sport That Belongs to Everyone

Many of the national team players come from basketball families where the sport is a way of life. Today, families like the Austgulens, Freys, and Sanfords showed up in full force to support and give back to the greater basketball community.

Ingvild Sofie Sanford works daily at the Inclusion Center at Landås. In her spare time, she’s a champion of inclusion, coordinator, manager for SFO (after-school program) basketball at four schools near Landåshallen, a coach with Ulriken Eagles, parent liaison, head of the girls' development program, a player herself—and much more within Ulriken Eagles. She drives other people’s children to/from practices, games, and tournaments, both domestically and abroad, to make sure everyone can participate. She also has four children of her own with Ulriken Eagles coach Durell Sanford, all of whom have been selected for Norwegian national teams. If inclusion had a face today, it might well have been hers.

Hege Eika Frey, is another example of a leader including being a counselor at five schools in Bergen, where she speaks about safe adults and the window of tolerance, in addition to being a basketball player, basketball mom, and married to Ståle Frey, the women’s national team assistant coach.

A Shared Vision, A Growing Movement

For Jan Hendrik Parmann, President of the NBBF, today was a milestone:

“Now we are truly beginning the journey of building up the women’s national team, and it is especially important that the close relationship we want between elite and grassroots is established from day one.”

With help from national team coaches Gunnar Nesbø and Ståle Frey, and team manager Jeanine Flaaten, the experience was a big success and organized while infused with heart. It  marked a significant step toward NBBF’s goal to double the number of active girl players in Norway by 2028.

The partnership with Meteva Sport og Helse was built on shared values: inclusion, presence, and the belief that sports can shape healthier futures—for athletes and entire communities.

“In our basketball family,” Parmann added, “it should feel natural that everyone can talk to everyone and take care of each other—regardless of whether you’re a national team player and pro abroad or an EasyBasket player in youth sports.”

Meteva Sport og Helse has a clear focus on developing girls’ basketball. As a non-profit organization, our mission is to highlight role models from the BLNO (Norwegian Basketball League) and national teams and make them easily accessible to ALL GIRLS across Bergen—regardless of background, club affiliation, financial situation, or parental involvement. 

“We would love for every basketball club in Norway to be able to use the NextGen Neighbor Network framework to implement what we are doing in Bergen within their own communities. It is a collective contribution of compassion, resources, and the willingness and drive to simply - care and contribute,” says Louise Mohn, Founder of Meteva Sport og Helse

Today’s Girls’ Camp at Åsane Arena was a shining example of that mission in action. It bridged the gap between grassroots and elite levels, giving young girls a chance to connect directly with women who represent athletic excellence, self-discipline, and character. These national team players aren’t just stars on the court—they’re leaders off it, too. When young girls meet role models they can see, talk to, and learn from—they begin to believe in their own potential, and that's the real victory.