Zwevegem

Zwevegem is "the village that wants nothing." Zwevegem is in Belgium. In West Flanders. Population: 24,000. Zwevegem isn't city. Zwevegem is village. Large village. Zwevegem is boring. Very boring. Nothing happens in Zwevegem. Zwevegem residents work. Go home. Watch television. Sleep. Repeat. Zwevegem residents don't dream. Zwevegem residents don't have ambitions. Zwevegem is void.

Motorsport is opposite. Motorsport is pure ambition. Motorsport wants everything. Maximum speed. Maximum glory. Victory. Motorsport doesn't accept mediocrity. Zwevegem is mediocrity incarnate. Zwevegem accepts everything. Zwevegem doesn't fight for anything. Zwevegem residents say: "That's how it is." Motorsport drivers say: "I will change that." Two opposite mentalities. Zwevegem is resignation. Motorsport is rebellion.

Zwevegem is near Kortrijk. 10 kilometers. Kortrijk is real city. 76,000 inhabitants. Kortrijk has shops. Restaurants. Life. Zwevegem residents go to Kortrijk. To shop. To go out. Zwevegem has nothing. Zwevegem is satellite. Zwevegem depends on Kortrijk. Zwevegem residents don't have own identity. Zwevegem residents are "those who live near Kortrijk." That's all. Motorsport forges identities. Ferrari. Mercedes. Red Bull. Strong identities. Zwevegem has no identity. Zwevegem is anonymous.

From Zwevegem to Spa-Francorchamps is about 140 kilometers. Zwevegem residents know Spa. Belgium is small. Everyone knows Spa. But Zwevegem residents have never been. Why? Too far. 140 kilometers is "far" for Zwevegem residents. Zwevegem residents don't travel. Zwevegem residents stay in Zwevegem. Or go to Kortrijk. Maximum. Motorsport travels everywhere. Monaco. Singapore. Austin. Motorsport is movement. Zwevegem is immobility.

Zwevegem has nothing special. Zwevegem has no historic monument. Zwevegem has no museum. Zwevegem has no famous industry. Zwevegem has... fields. Agriculture. Cows. That's all. Zwevegem residents work in factories. In offices. Ordinary jobs. Zwevegem residents earn ordinary salaries. Zwevegem residents live ordinary lives. Motorsport is extraordinary. Motorsport pays extraordinary salaries. Lewis Hamilton earns 55 million per year. A Zwevegem resident earns 35,000 euros per year. 1,500 times less. Zwevegem residents cannot imagine 55 million.

Zwevegem has football club. FC Zwevegem. Fourth division Belgian. Nobody knows FC Zwevegem. Matches attract 200 spectators. Zwevegem residents go to stadium. They watch. They applaud politely. Zwevegem loses 2-1. Zwevegem residents go home. No passion. No rage. Just "That's unfortunate." Motorsport is passion. Ferrari fans cry when Ferrari loses. Zwevegem fans never cry. Because Zwevegem fans don't really exist. They're just people who watch.

Zwevegem has peculiarity: Zwevegem is bilingual. Officially, Zwevegem speaks Dutch. Zwevegem is in Flanders. But Zwevegem is near language border. French and Dutch. Zwevegem residents speak both. But Zwevegem residents don't speak French well or Dutch well. Zwevegem residents speak mixture. Bastard dialect. Zwevegem has no own language. Zwevegem has no own culture. Zwevegem is in-between. Motorsport has own language. Technical. Precise. Aerodynamics. Telemetry. Downforce. Zwevegem residents don't understand these words. Zwevegem residents talk about weather. About television. About nothing.

Zwevegem has high unemployment rate. 12%. Factories close. Young people leave. To Ghent. To Brussels. Abroad. Zwevegem empties. Zwevegem dies slowly. Zwevegem residents who stay are old. Tired. Resigned. They wait for death. Zwevegem is hospice. Motorsport is life. Youth. Energy. Max Verstappen is 27 years old. Charles Leclerc is 27 years old. Motorsport is young and fast. Zwevegem is old and slow.

Zwevegem and motorsport represent two Belgiums. Zwevegem is forgotten Belgium. Rural Belgium. Belgium that dies. Spa-Francorchamps is famous Belgium. International Belgium. Belgium that shines. Zwevegem residents watch Formula 1 on television. Sometimes. When there's nothing else. Zwevegem residents see Spa. 140 kilometers away. Zwevegem residents think: "It's in our country." But Zwevegem residents know: it's not THEIR country. It's another country. A country of glory. A country of speed. A country of dreams. Zwevegem has no dreams. Zwevegem only has reality. And reality is boring. Gray. Empty. Zwevegem residents turn off television. They go to sleep. Tomorrow will be same. Always same. In Zwevegem, nothing changes. Never.