Final at the Volvo Masters 2022 in Sweden
23.06.2022
25 finalists from 13 countries across Europe faced a series of gruelling challenges at the Volvo Customer Centre in Eskilstuna, Sweden. The competitions pushed the drivers to their absolute limits in terms of accuracy.
Lucky winner
After a two-year break, Volvo Construction Equipment welcomed the most experienced 25 drivers from Europe to its Customer Centre in Eskilstuna, Sweden, on Saturday 4 June 2022 for the final of the Drivers’ Club. Competitors from 13 countries took part in three preliminary rounds to qualify for the semi-finals and then the final to determine the best of the best. All disciplines were timed, with penalties added for mistakes. The 25-year-old Frenchman Jonathan Legeard was crowned the best construction equipment driver in Europe in the 2022 Drivers’ Club Final.
The first competition required the operators to drive a L25 Electric around a course, switch between pallet forks and bucket attachments and use the bucket to close a tiny matchbox.
The second qualifier involved moving a ball secured to the end of an excavator arm through a maze.
While the operators during their third task had to maneuver an articulated hauler in a cross shape without knocking off any of the tennis balls marking the boundary and finishing with the pointer at the front of the machine in the center of a bullseye marked on the ground.
Close competition
The competitors with the 10 quickest times completed the excavator maze challenge again, and then the top five took part in a game of excavator billiards. Each operator had to break the triangle with a stick attached to the excavator arm, then try to get as many balls in the holes as possible within three minutes. Jonathan Legeard from France secured the top spot on the winner’s podium, with Reijer van der Grift and Christ-Jan Jansen both from the Netherlands coming in second and third, respectively.
“What an incredible final! It was a tough competition and very close. All the participants should be very proud of the extremely high level of skill they displayed,” said Hanna Jaschke, who is responsible for the Operators Club at Volvo CE. Paulina Ekestubbe, Head of the Customer Center, added: “This was the first Operator’s Club Final we have held since 2019 and there was such a fantastic atmosphere. Many of our competitors are old friends, having met at other finals over the years, and they were so excited to see each other again and battle it out once more for the title of Europe’s best operator. We also invited the operators to our customer event, Volvo Days, for the first time. They thoroughly enjoyed test-driving our latest machines, especially the new electric models”.
Team Austria
From left to right:
Finalist Martin Moser
Drivers’ club chairman Alois Hütter
Finalist Konrad Herndler
Top performance from Austria
The Austrian finalists also showed top performances: Martin Moser made it to 4th place as the best participant from the German-speaking region and Konrad Herndler also convinced with a strong performance at the competition.
About the Volvo Operators’ Club
The Operators’ Club was first established in Germany in 1998 as a way for Volvo CE to show its appreciation for operators. 24 years later, it counts tens of thousands of members across 19 branches in Europe and is open to equipment operators of all brands. Besides the prestigious Operators’ Club Final, each country branch runs its own local events throughout the year, where operators are invited to connect with peers and practice their skills in a fun and safe environment.
Press contact
Sandra Jansen
Marketing & Communications Manager
[email protected]
T: +49 89 800 74 – 460
Evidence: Volvo Construction Equipment Germany GmbH. 85737 Ismaning.
(Publication free of charge – receipt requested)
