Gordel Festival mixes traditional focus with quirky activities
Walking and cycling remain an indispensable part of the Gordel Festival, but this year’s programme also includes activities like Highland games, demonstrations by firefighters and one animal circus
Thai boxing, anyone?
The original Gordel event was launched 34 years ago as a recognition of the Flemish identity of the municipalities around Brussels, which were fast becoming inhabited by French speakers who worked in the capital, not to mention English-speaking expats. It was transformed into the Gordel Festival three years ago, becoming more entertainment-based and more diverse.
The annual trek of thousands of people to the towns in de rand van Brussel (the Brussels belt) was often met with hostility from the other side of the language border: tacks thrown into the road to cause punctures for the cyclists, road signs turned around to confuse hikers and bikers.
Three years ago, the minister representing this Flemish periphery, Geert Bourgeois and sports minister Philippe Muyters, both members of the Flemish nationalist party N-VA, changed the defensive Gordel into the more tourism-oriented Gordel Festival, with events staged all summer, culminating in the “top day” next weekend.
This year’s festival includes plenty of innovation, but also looks back to the original Gordel, with an emphasis on the municipalities with special language facilities around Brussels: Sint-Genesius-Rode, Kraainem, Wezembeek-Oppem and Wemmel.
“I was born in the area and grew up with the Gordel,” commented current sports minister Ben Weyts, also N-VA, who was born in Leuven. “This is no run-of-the-mill sports event. We want to make sure the region remains Flemish and remains green. I’m pleased to see the facilities cities occupy a prominent place. It was after all for them that this event was set up in the first place.”
A display window
Activities take place on 6 September at the provincial park in Huizingen and the sports park at Hofstade. In the latter are theme villages built around a variety of sporting activities, as well as live music from VRT Radio 2.
Huizingen is turned into a display window for the province’s local products, with culinary and tasting routes for walking and cycling, as well as a market featuring Flemish Brabant’s streekproducten, or regional products.
This is no run-of-the-mill sports event
To emphasise the more tourism-inspired aspect of the Gordel Festival, this year’s featured municipality is Londerzeel, not a part of the belt but a bit further north. During the festival, events take place in and around Diepensteyn Castle, which is where you’ll find those Highland Games, Thai boxing demonstration and music by Bandits, Gene Thomas and up-and-coming band A12.
For the traditionalists, walking and cycling remain an indispensable part of the Gordel Festival, with routes for every level of competence and stamina, up to and including a 140-kilometre route around Brussels.
Outside of the three main sites, the top day also offers an indoor playground for toddlers at De Zandloper community centre in Wemmel and demonstrations aimed at children by first aid experts, police and firefighters at the Pivo training centre in Asse.
There’s also a Run & Bike through the Sonian Forest from Jezus-Eik to the Boesdaelhoeve community centre in Sint-Genesius-Rode, a distance of 32km, in addition to shorter loops of 11km and 22km. Finally, the Lijsterbes community centre in Kraainem will host an animal circus – of sorts. There are leopard and zebra stilts for children to try out and giraffes operated by puppeteers.
6 September, across Flemish Brabant
Photo courtesy Gordel Festival
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