Onze instructeurs

Our Instructors

• Alice Polo: Jympa

  

  Since 10 years already, Alice, an Italian by origin, joined F&S Brussels. She joined because she loves the concept of providing good quality exercise together with the fact that exercising with F&S is accessible to everybody. Having fun and the good quality of exercise provided are elements that feed into her life motto of ‘mens sana in corpore sana’.

• Amélie Delforge: Jympa

  

  Amélie’s “serious relationship ;-)” with F&S since September 2009, started as just wanting to make a contribution as she believes that a healthy life is one of the keys to happiness. The family spirit, the fun and the absence of any competition together with the idea of Friskis not taking itself too seriously while offering good quality exercise are what attracted this Belgian to the family.

• Annika Hallonsten: Multifys Soft, Spinning

  

  Originally from Sweden, Annika has been attending Friskis since the late 80s and has been a member since 2005. She confesses that she is normally a lazy person so Friskis is a great way for her to actually get up from the couch and do some sports! She loves the mix of people that she finds in Brussels and at Friskis. She is a firm believer that life is only as fun as you make it and so she finds that life with Friskis, with its delightful mix of people, is very fun indeed!

• Berit Koop: Running Soft

  From neighbouring Germany, Berit first discovered Friskis in 2010 and explored a variety of sessions. She eventually realized that she wanted to inspire others the same way she had been inspired by Friskis. Becoming a volunteer seemed natural. Berit first started hosting in 2018, supporting the then newly introduced family sessions, and joined the running team as an instructor in 2019. Rain or shine, exercising in a fun and easy way as well as the joint effort to stay healthy throughout life is what Berit enjoys the most.

• Daniela Fraiss: Jympa Basic

  

  Hailing from Austria, Daniela Has been a member for 14 years before she decided to take the next step and become an instructor as a way of giving back something to Friskis as well as to challenge herself. She became enamoured with our organisation after being motivated to try it out by a friend who at the time got a T-shirt for acquiring a new member. I guess the T-shirt payed off… When asked what she enjoys most about Friskis She has no doubts: The people! Everybody gives a special something: Music, smile, power – it’s that combination of different people that makes Friskis unique.

• Fiona Pitt: Running Cross

  

  Originally from Buckingham in the UK, Fiona arrived in Brussels 9 years ago and immediately joined Friskis cause she thought it was the perfect all- round fitness classes and cause if you're gonna develop your strength, mobility and coordination, it's best to do it in a group setting (much more fun).

  She decided to become a Friskis volunteer for to share her passion for running. It's a challenge for her to learn more about running, and she thinks that the best way to do this than is by sharing her knowledge with the Friskis gang!

• Fleur Parnet: Multifys

  

  As a sportive person since a young kid in France, she has always wished for more people to practice sport, so when she recognised herself in the values of F&S she joined as an instructor some five years ago. The spirit of spreading good sport activity with fun and great people are what she enjoys the most and believes that Today is her favourite day – just like the much loved Winnie the Pooh!

• Francesca Colli: Jymba, Intensive

  

  Originally from Australia, Francesca has been a dedicated Friskis member since 2017. She got the Friskis bug after attending the free summer sessions in 2017 and has been hosting indoor and outdoor sessions since 2019. It seems to be a natural fit, since sport has always been an important part of her life and she enjoys being a part of Friskis since it allows you to meet and exercise with such a mix of friendly people from all around the world.

  Her favorite Friskis memories (so far) were when she participated in La Bruxelloise and the 20K of Brussels with the Friskis team, since it was a memorable experience and she fondly recalls celebrating with all the friendly faces who welcomed her at the finish line! Her personal motto is 'Don’t let “perfect” be the enemy of “good” ' but we think that her addition to the F&S Brussels instructor's roster is a "perfect" fit indeed!

• George Paltoglou: Running Intervals

  

  Originally from Greece, George came to Brussels from the UK and joined Friskis 4 years ago. He first became a volunteer 1 year ago because he wanted to contribute more to Friskis and help further its cause before making the leap to instructor. His personal motto is: “νους υγιής εν σώματι υγιεί”, (a healthy mind in a healthy body).

• Guy Tasmowski: Nordic Walking

  Guy is Belgian and joined Friskis since so long time ago that he can’t even remember when that was. Impressed by the international, relaxed, nice and funny atmosphere he became a volunteer a few years later. He discovered the physical and mental benefits of Nordic Walking and advocates them as NW-instructor. He shares the Friskis values and loves the way it helps you to stay fit and energized.

• Johanna van Vrede: Jympa

  

  Johanna lives by a live healthy and happy life motto and so she joined F&S Brussels because it’s friendly, easy-going, fun and a multicultural way of doing sports. She joined in 2012 as a volunteer because it is a fun and nice way to put something back into an organisation you get a lot out of. Johanna is originally from the Netherlands.

• Lene Kristensen: Stations, Coreflex

  Like most of us Lene enjoys the multicultural part of F&S Brussels the most, as both the volunteers and participants are from different parts of the world. Originally from Denmark, she finds volunteering for the past 12 years fascinating as it has been a way to give her passion for sports a higher purpose – a possibility for her as an individual to help people change and feel better in their daily lives. No wonder her motto is to enjoy life, stay positive and strong.

• Lies Lecomte: Jymba, Stations, Multifys

  Lies is Belgian and started volunteering with F&S Brussels in 2013 and subsequently in 2017 became a jympa instructor. She loves jympa, the Friskis spirit, and the Friskis crowd. The energy boost, the friendliness and of course the great complete workout are the best she knows of! You’ll regret not trying more than you’ll regret trying and not succeeding.

• Lisa Kretschmann: Yoga

  Lisa loves moving, sports and the spirit of Friskis! In fact she has been participating since more than 17 years and became an instructor in 2002 as she believes that life is to be lived and loved – just do it! For her knowing the participants is very important and she feels that it makes one feel like part of a “club” or a group. She enjoys the international, the moving all together, sweating and enjoying, independently of the language one may speak or where they come from – a “mini- European movement” so to say.

• Magda Havlikova: Dance Explode, Jymba

  Originally from the Czech Republic, Magdalena enjoys being a part of the F&S family and that is why she joined as a volunteer in 2008. The easy going and enjoyable way of making sport are what kept her coming back even after some pauses for babies.

• Marika Armanovica: Yoga

  Marika is one of our great yoga instructors. 

• Matteo Mariano: Barbell

  Originally from Italy, Matteo grew up in Belgium and started attending Friskis Jympa sessions back in 2017 and has been hooked on it ever since. He enjoys the relaxed attitude at Friskis of exercising without pressure while trying to execute the workouts in the best way possible. He finds that this creates two different feelings: release of pressure and a gain in energy, all in a multicultural environment with participants and volunteers from all over the world. Now that he's an instructor he enjoys recreating for participants that great feeling of belonging, osmosis and energy that he always experienced during and after a Friskis session.

  His favorite Friskis memory (so far) was from his time in Stockholm when the instructors would "reward" the candidate-instructors by giving them a surprise jympa session. Although most of the candidates did now know each other and had never had a session with those instructors, those sessions immediately created a perfect symphonic feeling among the group. It was as if they had all been attending the same session for years. It is a great example of the bonding element found in Friskis sessions.

  His motto in life could easily be another motto for Friskis: "Give the best in everything you do and remember to enjoy the process."

  Come and join him for one of our Barbell sessions. You won't regret it!

• Monica De Guchteneere: Jymba, Dance Fusion

  Monica was attracted to the concept 20 years ago when she joined F&S Brussels from Argentina. For her the shared energy by doing an activity in joy and good mood, and with more physical exercise, is the ultimate goal.

• Nolwenn Cozigou: Jympa

  For the past 15 years as an F&S instructor Nolwenn has enjoyed the fun & exercise without judgements, that one can be who they are, matching her life motto to love all with their differences and similarities. Nolwenn is half Irish and half French but born in Belgium.

• Olivier Baeten: Yoga

  

• Philippe Aerts: Running Distance

  Philippe, one of our Belgian instructors volunteers as he likes the spirit and the values shared between members of the Friskis community. He discovered F&S Brussles in the summer of 2012 and became a member after the summer of 2013. Doing sport with enthusiastic and positive minded people is what he enjoys the most and he believes in the phrase “Il vaut mieux marcher lentement dans la bonne direction que de courir dans la mauvaise”

• Rosita Scanferla: Jympa

  Rosita gets a great drive by being a deejay to herself and her participants at F&S Brussels. Getting to move to the music she likes and making her small contribution to a non-profit organisation with great values and a simple but important mission are very important to her.

  She loves the fact that F&S offers fun and affordable sports to all and wishes there were a million more organisations similar to F&S in this world! Our Italian instructor has been a participant since 2009, then as a host between 2010 and 2014 and became an instructor in 2014.

  She enjoys the relaxed and friendly atmosphere together with the non-competitive and “round shape” setting which are core aspects of the Friskis philosophy the most. It comes as no surprise that she lives by the motto that life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.

• Senta Freitag: Coreflex, Mini-bands

  Senta joined F&S via a friend in 1997 just arrived she arrived in Brussels from Germany. She quickly noticed that it was the perfect way of getting and staying fit and so became a host. After some years hosting all kind of sessions and in all locations, she became an instructor in January 2005 teaching medium classes at first, but through the years she acquired diplomas for strength, Basic, Core, Pulse and most recently Stations. The family atmosphere of F&S, the quality of the sessions and the fact that it is a non-commercial association make her want to continue “for sure, as long as my body lets me do so :-)”

• Sophie Bereau: Jympa

  Sophie started as a simple participant when she arrived in Belgium from her native France in 2009 and became a host a semester later for Mònica’s wonderful dance sessions. In 2011 then she became a jympa instructor. She volunteers so as to keep doing jympa – something that she had discovered in Paris (at the so-called “gym suédoise”), but also to meet people outside academic circles whilst back then still studying. She enjoys the cosmopolitan aura, the nice and fun atmosphere, the sporty challenge and the possibility to “youhou” while working out 😉 together with many other things that it would be too long to enumerate.

• Tarja Kallio: Intensive, Barbell Interval, Multifys

  Sport has always been an essential part of Tarja’s life, and through volunteering she feels she can participate more actively in an organisation she loves. In fact she has been a member for more than 15 years and an instructor for more than ten. She enjoys most the people and the spirit which is created together during sessions at F&S Brussels. Originally from Finland, Tarja believes not only to hope for things… Work for it!

• Thibaud Hilmarcher: Spinning

  Thibaud is French and has been a member since 2013, an instructor since 2014 and was president of F&S Brussels between 2015 and 2017. He originally joined Friskis because fo the quality of the workouts and the sweaty, fun atmosphere. He loves working out with motivated people. Joining Friskis is joining a fun, international family. His life motto is "LAwyas try. Always fail. It doesn't matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better."

• Wim Deloof: Spinning, Running

  Wim first joined Friskis in 2019 and hails all the way from... Belgium!

  As an ethusiastic member he enjoys that Friskis is a fun and healthy way to meet other people and particularly appreciates the relaxed atmosphere and the fact that there’s no competition... just fun, healthy exercise. While he's treasured many memories of his friskis experience so far, he confesses that his four-day training in Sweden holds a special place in his heart. His life motto is that you should just focus on whatever brings you happiness (such as doing Friskis!).

• Yvonne John: Jympa

  Yvonne is one of our great Jympa instructors.

Instructors on break

• Mira Sallamo

  

  Mira gets so much positive energy from the participants, other volunteers and the exercise, the constant learning and the balance F&S bring to her work and other commitments are the main reasons for her to keep doing this year after year since 1994 with F&S Helsinki her home country. Apart from this she enjoys the international aspect, the welcoming, relaxed, fun and quality workout F&S offers and she lives by the motto that life is all about balance!

• Valentine De Luca

  As a native Belgian, Valentine has volunteered over 9 years with F&S Brussels because it is fun and because it became part of her social life. She enjoys the positive spirit most and believes in always listening to your true self.