The photo of Sébastien Bellin, who for five years was captain of the Belgian national basketball team, went around the world after March 22, 2016. We see him lying on the ground in the Zaventem airport, his legs bloodied after the two terrorists detonated their bombs.
Seven years later, he is stronger than ever. “I stand before you not as a victim but as a survivor,” he proclaimed during his testimony from the assize court, before turning to the seven defendants: “I extend my hand to you with the power of forgiveness”.
With his tall silhouette and serene smile, Sébastien Bellin is a man who shines. He exudes an undeniable inner strength. He personifies resilience. “I no longer feel anything in my left leg. […] My high-level career is a thing of the past but I keep trying to push my limits mentally and physically.” he said after sitting down at the witness table.
On March 22, 2016, he was to take a flight to New York, to make a presentation of his company. After his basketball career, with two friends, he created “a little box” of Livestream of basket ball. After receiving his boarding pass, he hears “an incredible explosion behind me”, followed by a ceiling collapse and “terrible screams”. Rather than go to the main gate of the terminal, he chooses to run towards the passport control point because he knows that there are policemen. “Unfortunately, I ran towards the second bomb. This bomb that ripped both my legs off.
Close to death
He is “close to death”, “can’t hear anything”. He loses 50% of his blood. A soldier puts a tourniquet on his right chamber. People who could have escaped bring him a cart on which he climbs. “I received a lot of humanity. I saw incredible human strength. It is this positivity, this love of life that saved me”, he said.
In the hospital, he feels on his face a “incredible feeling of pain”. He asks for a mirror, thinking he is badly burned. He understands : “In the ambulance I had started to die and the rescuer hit me very hard to keep me awake”. He would like to pay tribute to the nursing staff: “I was lucky to be surrounded by extremely human people, with compassion, love. This love still lives in me. These bombs, these atrocities could not extinguish that in me”.
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The work of reconstruction is long: “Thirteen operations with anesthesia, not counting minor operations”. A photo, projected in front of the court, shows him from behind in a wheelchair in a hospital corridor. A little girl pushes the chair, which is taller than her. Another, older one is on the right. They are the two daughters – aged 3 and 7 during the attacks – of Sébastien Bellin.
“Love heals everything”
“How are they?”, asks the president of the court. There is a long silence. Sébastien Bellin is overwhelmed with emotion. He visibly holds back tears. He resumes himself:My two daughters are doing great,” he said under his breath. And to continue:It is thanks to them that I am still here with the will to move forward. Love heals everything”.
Today, he has accepted his handicap. It’s been a long road:On my hospital bed, I was going crazy. I had not accepted my handicap”. He still attends three physio sessions a week. In 2022, he completed a first challenge: the Ironman in Hawaii (4 km swim, 180 km bike and a marathon). It helps Belgian entrepreneurs to showcase technologies.
He made a point of addressing the defendants. “Today I have decided to forgive you. By forgiving, I detach myself from the atrocities of which you are accused. […] Instead of destroying me, you have created in me a man with an enormous energy of compassion, tolerance, open-mindedness, an even more powerful humanity, a humanity that two bombs could not reach in me.
For Sébastien Bellin, “forgiveness is the last step in my healing”. Doctors, he says, “fixed me”. We have the best healthcare system in the world. “On the other hand, healing is more complicated. Forgiving you is the last step in my healing. There is no place for revenge and hatred.”
And to conclude:I reach out to you with the power of forgiveness. Forgiveness for you may be the first long step to healing. I am ready to help you”.