Bergen Storm

field in Bergen.

Facts

Founded: 1992 (as Bergen Blackhawks)

Team colors: Cardinal red and white

President: Christian Nødset.

Noted rivalries: Nidaros Domers (Bergen Vs Trondheim), VIF Trolls (junior championship games)

Teams

Senior Players of age 18 and up. Have participated every official season since 1993 with the exception of 1998. The team pulled out of league play midway through the season in 1995 and 1997. Best standing is currently 3rd place 1st division (1993) and winner 2nd division (1996).

U-19Players in the age group 16-19. Participated in the Norwegian U-19 championship since 1995, with the exception of 1998. Best standing is Norwegian vice-champions in 1999, 2000 and 2001, each year losing the championship final to the VIF Trolls.

U-16Players in the age group 14-16. Participated in the Norwegian U-16 championship since 2003. Best standing is Norwegian Champions in 2005 when the Bergen team beat VIF Trolls 8-7.

U-13A try-out project in 2003 under the leadership of Sondre Riisøen. The program got canceled after the season. The team played no games but conducted practices throughout the season.

Storm CheerleadersActive in 2003-2004. Participated in the Norwegian Championship for Cheerleaders in 2004 finishing last. Program got canceled after this season.

Bergen Storm ThunderOne of the Bergen Storm teams during the 'split' in 2005 as an effort to create local league play in Norwegian 2nd division versus Bergen Storm Blizzard and Åsane Seahawks. Thunder became the first and only winner of the Bergen Bowl by beating Bergen Storm Blizzard in the final. The team was officially coached by Eirik Talhaug.

Bergen Storm BlizzardOne of the Bergen Storm teams during the 'split' in 2005 as an effort to create Bergen league play in the Norwegian 2nd division versus Bergen Storm Thunder and Åsane Seahawks. Blizzards were runner-ups in the first and only Bergen Bowl final. The team was coached by Bård Strøm, Thomas Midtun and Arild Hauge.

History line

* pre 1992: A merge between Bergen Bulldogs and Bergen Flyers in 1992. The team became Bergen Blackhawks and performed well landing the team as nr.3 in Norwegian 1st division.
* 1992 - 1994: Coach Joe Spinella Took over the team as a head coach. The team had their so far best record in this era. Jon Bakken was president of the club.
* 1995-1998: Bergen Storm failed to perform very well and was tormented by instability and changes of presidents and coaches. With the exception of 1996, Bergen Storm did not manage to complete a single season. On the brighter side, the era saw the birth of Storm U-19 and the 2nd division championship winner for seniors.
* 1999 - 2001: Kaj Hopland, Rolf Endresen and Atle Mølholm created stability for the club as coaches and an efficient board. Bergen Storm competed in the 2nd division in 1999 - 2001. During this time Bergen Storm U-19 noted their best records as vice-champions three years in a row.
* 2002-2004: Bergen Storm senior made a three-year run into the 1st division but was clearly seen to small to compete against the better Norwegian teams Eidsvoll 1814's, Oslo Vikings, and VIF Trolls. Bergen Storm launched their first U-16 program and Bergen Storm Cheerleading became active.
* 2005 - present: Bergen Storm decided to move back into the 2nd division for the 2005 season. An experiment was made to split the Bergen team into two teams: Blizzard and Thunder, to compete in a 3-team conference along with Åsane Seahawks. Only one formal game got played and a joint Storm team traveled to Hamar Ruins to take on the 2nd division championship game, which the Ruins won. 2006 saw the first paid coach for Bergen Storm when Timo Sorri was brought in to help out Bergen Storm. 2007 and 2008 has been played in 2nd division with local coaching and personnel. Bergen Storm won their first Championship on any level when Storm won the U-16 championship in '05.

Notable People

* Atle Mølholm - Club president 2002-2005. coach and player. NoAF All-star team safety. Bergen Storm All Star '93-'03 WR.
* Eskild Risnes - Head Coach '96, NoAF All-Star team DE, Bergen Storm All-Star '93-'03 DE. Retired Jersey #99.
* Kaj Hopland - Club President '98-'00, Head Coach sr '98-'02, Head Coach U-19 '03, Bergen Storm All-Star '93-'03 QB. Bergen Storm Honor Award '03 for longest playing record.
* Bård Strøm - Club President '05, Head Coach sr '03-'05, Head Coach U-19 '99-'00 and '02, Norway U-19 Offensive Coordinator '00 and '02. Cal Poly Mustangs football assistant coach '01.
* Thomas Midtun - Club President '01 and '06. Head Coach Sr '06-'08, Head Coach U-19 '01, Norway U-19 offensive coordinator '04
* Stig Schjerpen - Bergen Storm All-Star '93-'03 Tight End, Head Coach U-16 '04-'06
* Joseph Spinella - Head Coach Sr '92-'94.
* Jon T. Bakken - Club president '93 - '95, Head Coach U-19 '96
* Tor-Arne Torsvik - Bergen Storm All-Star '93-'03 LB, MVP Defense Nordic Championship '02
* Timo Sorri - Head Coach Sr '06
* Ronny Nilsen - Bergen Storm All-Star '93 - '03 DT, Bergen Storm Honor Award '03 for longest playing record.

External links

* [http://www.bergenstorm.com/ Bergen Storm Official Website]
* [http://www.noaff.org/ NoAFF Official Website]