Kurt Heggestad

Kurt Heggestad (born 19 August 1982) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a left winger or left-back. He represented Norway at the under-16 and under-17 level, and played 53 matches for Sogndal in Tippeligaen. Heggestad played for Sogndal for ten consecutive seasons, before he retired at the age of 26 to become a goat farmer.

Kurt Heggestad
Personal information
Full name Kurt Heggestad
Date of birth (1982-08-19) 19 August 1982
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Position(s) Left winger, left-back
Youth career
0000–1998 Sogndal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1999–2007 Sogndal 112 (6)
2006 → Årdal (loan)
2008–2014 Veitastrond
International career
1998 Norway U16 14 (3)
1999 Norway U17 4 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

Heggestad hails from Veitastrond in Luster, and joined Sogndal at young age. He was regarded as one of the club most talented footballers,[2] and was a contributor to the youth-team's regional championship in 1996.[3] Heggestad was also called up for Norwegian youth teams and played 14 matches, scoring 3 goals for the under-16 team in 1998, and played four matches scoring one goal for the under-17 team the following year.[4] Aged 16, he was taken up into Sogndal's first-team squad in 1999,[2] and made his debut in the First Division the same year. Heggestad made two appearances as a substitute in the First Division in 2000, and he played the last 15 minutes of the play-off against Vålerenga when Sogndal won promotion to Tippeligaen.[5]

Heggestad made his debut in Tippeligaen on 16 April 2001,[1] when he replaced Julian Johnsson at half time in the match against Odd Grenland.[6] Heggestad started his first match for Sogndal on 28 October 2001, and scored the team's second goal after an assist from Alexander Ødegaard when Bodø/Glimt was beaten 3–2.[7] Heggestad played a total of six matches and scored one goal in his first season in Tippeligaen,[8] and ahead of the next season, Sogndal rejected offers from Førde and Åsane to get Heggestad on loan.[9]

In Heggestad's first four years at Sogndal, Tommy Øren was mostly chosen as the left winger in the starting line-up, while Heggestad was on the bench. Before the summer break of the 2003 season, Heggestad had only played 60 minutes, but when Øren was ruled out for the rest of the season with an injury, Heggestad was playing regularly.[10] As Sogndal already had the wingers Øren, Ødegaard, Kim Tangedal and Kim Rune Hellesund, head coach Jan Halvor Halvorsen persuaded Heggestad to be retrained as a left-back ahead of the 2004 season.[11] Sogndal was however relegated after the season, and during the four seasons in Tippeligaen Heggestad played a total of 53 matches.[12] Heggestad joined the Second Division side Årdal on loan for the second half of the 2006 season.[13] He returned to Sogndal in 2007,[14] and played every match for the team in the First Division. Sogndal wanted to sign a new contract with Heggestad after the season, but he rejected the offer and stepped down from professional football at the age of 26.[2] Instead he moved home to Veitastrond and became a goat farmer and played football for Veitastrond IL in the Fifth Division.[15]

References
  1. "Kurt Heggestad". altomfotball.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  2. Tomasgard, Jørn-Arne (17 November 2008). "Valde geitene framfor fotballen". Bergens Tidende (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 18 October 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  3. Navarsete, Jon (26 October 2011). "Tabbekvotar og slikt" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  4. "Kurt Heggestad's profil". fotball.no (in Norwegian). Football Association of Norway. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  5. "Vålerenga rykker ned" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 30 October 2000. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  6. "Odd – Sogndal". altomfotball.no (in Norwegian). 16 April 2001. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  7. "RBK knuste Brann i Bergen" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 28 October 2001. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  8. "Kurt Heggestad". playerhistory.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  9. "Heggestad blir i Sogndal" (in Norwegian). Bergens Tidende. 27 November 2001. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  10. Nord, Bjørn Asle (11 July 2003). "Kurt vil overta for idolet" (in Norwegian). Bergens Tidende. Archived from the original on 23 February 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  11. "Omskolert back-friskus" (in Norwegian). Bergens Tidende. 9 March 2004. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  12. 100% Fotball player statistics (in Norwegian)
  13. "Vrakede sogndøler til Årdal". fotballmagasinet.no (in Norwegian). 19 June 2006. Archived from the original on 22 December 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  14. "Ny trener i Sogndal". fotballmagasinet.no (in Norwegian). 19 June 2006. Archived from the original on 22 December 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  15. Fossum, Rune (17 February 2008). "No scorar Kurt for Veitastrond". Firda (in Norwegian). Retrieved 7 September 2008.
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