This is me: Camilla Herrem

This is me: Camilla Herrem

I have never been happier than at home.

That could be a good resume of my career. 

In this day and age, professional players have the opportunity to change clubs often — to go abroad to experience something new.

I respect that, but I decided to go down another path from very early on. Because, in my perspective, everything was within reach in Sola, so I did not have to move. My family was there. My surroundings also. And I always felt like I could improve as a player while staying in Norway.

Yes, I do love handball. It has played a major role in my life. And yes, I always aimed for the highest that I could go. But I always put my wellbeing first, since the first days I started playing with the ball.

I actually started quite early. Both my parents, my brother Carl-Åge and my sister Cathrine played handball when I was a kid, and it only made sense to me to go to the arena and play with the ball. 

It came naturally for me to play sports, but as a child and a teenager, I was quite not able to make my mind up between football and handball. I played for, in total, five teams, split between the two sports, so you can tell that I was a busy child.

But I had a fantastic childhood, surrounded by the most amazing parents you could wish for, and by amazing siblings. 

My parents — Aslaug and Carl-Otto are their names — were always supportive of me. They came to every training, to every game, and I had the habit to look for them before any game would start. Once I would spot them, I would in my comfort zone and I could relax.

Even when I would only play for five minutes, they would try to take the positive side out of it and try to push me in the right direction.

I really could not wish for any better parents. My dad, who passed away six years ago, and my mum were the ones who inspired me and who I looked up to.

My parents did not push me in any direction, and they did not judge me when I told them I wanted to be a national team player. In which sport? Football or handball? I did not know, but I wanted to be part of something big. That was my dream, actually.

I guess this fascination with high-level sports came partly from a surprise from my dad. 

He picked me up at school after class one day and took me to a furniture store. Anja Andersen and Cecilie Leganger were doing some kind of promotional event there, as they were in town with their then club Bækkelagets, to play against Sola.

I was 11 back then, and I was completely looking up to these players. So we went, and we had a nice talk, and both were amazingly caring to me. We went back to the hotel together, took a taxi to the game they were going to play here, and I remember they asked me on our way there whether I preferred football or handball.

I replied “football”. But little did I know what my career would become later.

I made the decision when I was about 16, because I just could not keep up with the rhythm anymore. 

And on it went, playing in the Norwegian first division at 16, then the junior national team and the national team when I was not even 20.

I was living the perfect life then, at home with my parents, going to training, and going back home in the evening. Honestly, it could not be much better than that at the time.

But then the call from Byasen came. They needed a left wing as theirs had just been injured. And they wanted me to come now.

I was hesitant at first. I did not want to move out that young, I had everything to be happy in Sola and I did not want to leave the club in the middle of the season. 

So I sent a message to my mum, the best person I would turn to for advice. She was at the restaurant so she only texted me back: “We will talk about it when I get home.”

My parents definitely did not push me to accept Byasen’s offer, but they made me understand that if I wanted to pursue my dreams, then maybe this was not an opportunity to let go of. Byasen were fighting with Larvik for the national title, they were playing the Champions League, and moving there could be a step forward in my career.

And, after all, if things did not work, I could still come back to Sola. Little did I know that I would come back, but 11 years later.

I always say that my handball career owes a lot to my family and my parents. If it was not for them, then I probably would not have made it this far and this high. They taught me from the youngest age to trust myself and to trust my choices. They always told me that they would be there for me no matter what, and this is exactly what you need as a kid.

My dad might have passed away six years ago, but he remains the male role model of my life. He was the man no one would have a negative thing to say about. He was that ever-smiling, ever-nice man. In a few words: The best dad I could ever wish for.

After my move at 20, I stayed in Byasen for eight years, and when I finally decided to move abroad, it felt like I was ready for it.

I know that these days players move out of their country early and I do respect it, but I never felt like playing outside of Norway would give me more than I had at home.

More money? Maybe. Titles? Not even sure. But the balance between the sports side and the family side often made the choice land on the Norway side.

Romania was good. That year in Skopje when we played the EHF Champions League final was great, with a great team. But I guess nothing ever beats the feeling of being home, which is why I decided to move back in 2017. 

I missed the Sunday lunches at my parents’ house. I missed the feeling of being in Norway. And I felt like I was looking long-term already.

I have been in a relationship with Steffen, my now-husband, since I was 19 and we always envisioned building a family together. To me, it was hard to do it while living a thousand kilometres away from home.

I decided to move back in the summer of 2017 and a few months after, I was pregnant with our first child. Somehow, everything was falling into place.

I knew everything would be ready for me to give birth to Theo in good conditions. That my parents and Steffen’s parents would be there to support us. That our first son would be able to grow up with a loving family around him.

I made a promise to myself: To raise my kids with the same values that my parents raised me in. Trust, self-belief, support — those are not empty words to me.

Our family, I have said it many times, is a very loving one. I tell my mother and my siblings how much I love them every time we speak on the phone. My mom always tells me how proud of me she is, and I do the same to my kids. I want Theo and Noah to feel that their mother will be behind them no matter what life brings to them.

As a mother, things were not that easy in the past few years. While I enjoy playing handball so much, it was tough for me to go away, especially with the national team. I remember leaving in 2019 for the World Championship in Japan, and it would be like my heart was being ripped out of my chest. It was so far away that Steffen and Theo could not come, and it was just hard.

My boys are part of the reason I have just stopped playing in the national team. As a player, you have to go away for a month in December and even more during the season, and of course as a parent, you miss things. And I know that you cannot catch time back. 

Once things are gone, they are gone. And I think that time is flying already, so I do not want to miss my children growing up.

I am proud that they were able to see me play with the national team, and they will still have opportunities to see me with Sola. Many of them.

Both Theo and Noah come to every home game with my mum. They sit in the same place every time, and it just fills my heart to see them up there. My oldest one is very into it, making goalkeeper gestures and everything, while Noah is still a little bit young to understand.

But when I see myself on the court, Steffen on the bench and them in the stands, it seems like my life has been following the pattern I would have wanted it to. 

Steffen is the most amazing husband ever. He was empowering to me as a woman, making everything so I could play in the perfect conditions. Never, ever, did he complain about the lack of sleep or how he would have liked me to be there. Never. And that was important, as I was able to play with Norway and to win titles without any guilt of leaving home. 

It is amazing to see how our relationship evolved from a teenager one to building a family and being married. It seems like we grew up together, each keeping our own identity but being able to move on together as well.

Would it have been possible outside of Sola? Who knows. But I know that I am proud to have helped put this club on the map, and that I am proud of the work Steffen did to do it.

We are a small club, with a small budget and no big names. We have a lot of up and coming players and I am impressed with what Steffen does with a such a team.

As a player, now, I always remember what happened when I was 11 and I met some of my handball idols. I always try to give time to the young girls who come and see us play.

An autograph, a photo and a nice word does not cost you anything and it can make some kid’s day. While I struggle to cope with the fact that some kids might look up to me and say “I want to be the next Camilla Herrem”, I still try to give them my time. That is the least I can do.

Because this is what handball — and life in general — is made of: Dreams. Every top-level player dreamed one day of playing the Champions League or the Olympics, and you sometimes need people to keep these dreams alive. 

Little Camilla dreamed of playing in the national team. 

Life has exceeded my expectations.

February 2025

Photos: kolektiff images / Camilla Herrem