Dirk VAN DEN brande - "Falling and getting up" / sabrina plas - "Great atmosphere" / patrick houssière - "No bogeyman"

DIRK VAN DEN BRANDE "Falling and getting up" Police inspector Dirk Van den Brande from the tenth division in Haren will escort the roller parades during the summer as a police officer on skates. Van den Brande: "Combining sports with your job as a police officer is a dream. It's the first time I've been on skates, and I had to practice a lot. I still fall occasionally, but I haven't suffered any serious injuries yet. A fellow police officer, on the other hand, is out of action after a fall." SABRINA PLAS "Great atmosphere" For Sabrina Plas, who has been working for the Brussels police for nine years, the police roller unit is a dream job. "You're being active, and the atmosphere in the team is good. Those skates mean that all of us police officers in the team have something in common, and that boosts team spirit. People also look at us differently while we do our job at the roller parade. They think we're 'cool'," concludes Sabrina Plas. PATRICK HOUSSIÈRE "No bogeyman" Patrick Houssière has been working for the Brussels police for nineteen years and is a non-commissioned officer in the guard service of the first district. Patrick: "It's the first time I've been on rollers, and it's going quite well. Learning to skate was pretty easy. We get good training, and falling is part of it. As a police officer on rollers, people no longer view us as a 'bogeyman'. We also help skaters who fall during the parade."