Picture this: A group of Norwegian soccer fans, adorned in Viking helmets, sit side by side on a moving escalator in Boston's South Station.They rock back and forth, pulling imaginary oars as they chant in unison.That was the scene captured by member station reporter GBH's Jeremy Siegel, whose video went viral and sparked the trend quickly dubbed the "Viking Row.""I was standing near the top of one of the station's escalators when I suddenly heard a chorus of deep voices shouting, 'Row! Row! Row!'" he recalls.
"As the voices got closer, I realized they were coming up the escalator in true Viking style.My first thought was, 'Well, that's something I've never seen before and never will again.' But I was wrong because my video ended up kicking off a viral trend."Along with Scotland's adoring supporters — known as the Tartan Army and equipped with bellowing bagpipes — the Norwegians had descended on the city in droves, soaking up the atmosphere.
"Bostonians, you're nice, you're cool," said Norwegian fan Gorm Finne Engelson before making an apt observation: "You have a lot of beer."That beer didn't last long.Several bar owners later noted that between the Scots and the Norwegians, they had run dry.
Potentially a catalyst for the rowing scene that unfolded on the ascending escalator.For Norway, this World Cup marks a return to the world stage after 28 years of failing to qualify.The squad cruised to a 4-1 victory over Iraq in its opening game in Boston - boosted by thousands of Norwegian supporters dressed in red and rowing in unison inside the stadium.The Viking row and chant became the nation's World Cup rallying cry — inspiring Norway's faithful — and it quickly started making waves back home.The speaker of Norway's parliament, Masud Gharahkhani, reached out to the organizers of the row to discuss the meaning behind it.Gharahkhani said the message was clear: "We are doing it for peace.
We are doing it for love and to show our support for the football team, ...