Month: June 2018

As temperatures soared at the Bosbaan, spectators were able to watch some high quality rowing from the comfort of the shade. Among the highlights of the day were the preliminary heats of the main events: the Holland Beker (M1x) and the Ladies’s Trophy (W1x).

 

In the battle for the Holland Beker, favourites Mahé Drysdale of New Zealand and Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic secured their spot in the semi-finals by winning their heats. Among the others joining them are Julius Peschel from RC Hannover, Peter Tufte from Norske Studenters Roklub, and Dogus Koker from the Tilburg-based club Vidar.

 

In the Ladies’ Trophy, German international Annekatrin Thiele, Mette Petersen from Danske Studenters Roklub, and Euros’ Minke Holleboom all finished first in their heats, earning themselves a direct spot for the semi-finals, as well as second finishers Janneke van der Meulen, Cara Grzeskowiak, and Baukje Zaaijer.

 

In the final of the LM4-, Indonesia proved to have a quick boat as they held off the crew from Hong Kong right from the start. A few minutes later, the M4x were dominated by the Amsterdam crew from Skøll. The Dutch men blasted off in front of the Indonesian quad to take a convincing win. The crowd were in for an exciting finish in the M8+, with the Dutch men’s junior eight falling just short of beating a composite of US rowers.

 

In most other races, members of the Dutch national team were a cut above the rest, providing the spectators a textbook example of elite rowing. However, not only the senior Dutch crews proved to be the best, also the Dutch Under 23 M2x crew were untouchable in their race, finishing in front of the Czech Republic.

 

As the afternoon progressed, it was time for the grand finals of the national Development competition, an event which encompasses multiple regattas. The winners are decided by a point-based system, based on regatta results. At the Aegon Koninklijke – Holland Beker, the final points were up for grabs, and for some crews this meant the final chance to battle for the end victory against the leaders of the competition. In the WDev2x the crew from Aegir managed to do just that, winning by just 0,4 seconds ahead of Proteus-Eretes. Another close race in the LWDev2x, where Triton finished just shy of second in front of Euros, who both had an equal amount of points prior to the finals at this regatta.

 

The first day of the Aegon Koninklijke – Holland Beker was closed off with the repechages for the Holland Beker and Ladies’ Trophy, and under 23 and lightweight single sculls finals, where rowers from Hong Kong, Willem III from Amsterdam, and Njord from Leiden took home the medals. Tomorrow will feature even more hotly contested races, as the battles for the Holland Beker and Ladies’ Trophy will reach their exciting conclusion. We hope to see you all tomorrow at the Bosbaan!

As the temperatures soar towards 30 degrees Celsius in Amsterdam this afternoon, the weather won’t be the only thing heating up today: on the Bosbaan rowing course, rowers from all corners of the world will race for the many cups, trophies, and medals of the regatta. We’ve made a selection of exciting races to watch this afternoon at the Aegon Koninklijke – Holland Beker.

 

The first final of the day is the LM4- at 13:24h, promising to be a fierce contest between two Asian powerhouses, Hong Kong and Indonesia. Both national teams have entered two crews, so not only will they be looking to beat the other nation, but also their compatriots. A crew from Indonesia will also be in the hunt for medals in the M4x at 13:36h. They will face the national quad from Thailand, as well as Henley-bound quads from home favourites Skøll, and the French INSA Lyon.

 

More national teams, including Dutch crews, will contest in de W4- and M4- at 14:15h and 14:22h respectively. In the Women’s four, a selection of the Dutch squad will race crews from Indonesia, Denmark, and Germany, as well as a Dutch four bound for the FISU World Championships in China later this year. The men’s four will put their new line up to the test in preparation for the Lucerne World Cup, facing experienced crews from Proteus-Eretes, University of London, and a Dutch combination including the two Rienks brothers, Rik and Ralf.

 

Anyone looking for a textbook example of elite sculling should take a ride on the moving grandstand for the LW2x at 14:30h: The Belgrade World Cup winners Ilse Paulis and Marieke Keijser will probably be in a league of their own, given that they were close to beating the World’s Best Time in Belgrade earlier this year. At 14:52h, the M2x final will be the stage of an interesting battle between the Dutch Under 23 men’s heavyweight (Gyas/Aegir), and lightweight (Skøll/Leythe) crews. Spicing up the fight are national crews from the Czech Republic and Thailand.

 

For those who want to scout a future Olympic champion, make sure you turn your attention to the water from 15:40h, when talents will get the opportunity to show their speed. We start with the finals of the Development competition, which is the culmination of a number of races for points throughout the Dutch national season for promising sophomores and juniors. We then continue with the finals of the hotly contested under 23 single sculls. The day will finish with the repechages of the Holland Beker and Ladies’ Trophy to determine who will advance to tomorrow’s semi-finals.

 

Follow all races on the livestream!

 

While this duo hasn’t raced together on their home soil yet, para-rowers Corné de Koning and Annika van der Meer remain unbeaten since the two were brought together little over one year ago. After defeating the reigning British paralympic champions in the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls category in a world best time, they went on to claim the title at the World Championships of 2017 held in Sarasota in dominating fashion. We asked them about their road to Tokyo 2020, and the prospect of competing on Dutch water at the Aegon Koninklijke – Holland Beker.

For De Koning, who has competed at an international level since 2013, the first years in the paralympic rowing world were tough:”I had to combine a full-time job with training, since I didn’t receive any financial support in my first years. It took a lot of my energy away from training, but it was also a great challenge to combine my two careers and to excel at both”. Asking about the combination of Van der Meer and himself he replies: ”It’s fantastic that we’ve been able to set a new standard. Our goal is to remain undefeated in the coming years and ultimately win a gold medal at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo.” Van der Meer, who started rowing after suffering injuries related to skiing and track cycling, also isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, as she explains: ”the hardest part of rowing is getting all the details just right. The improvement of our performance since last year is very noticeable. A new world best time this year at the World Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, is definitely a possibility, and of course Paralympic gold lurks on the horizon as we approach 2020.”

The duo have planned to demonstrate their speed at this year’s Aegon Koninklijke – Holland Beker. Van der Meer: ”But we will only race if there are crews to compete against. Nationally there currently isn’t another PR2 double, and for foreign teams budget is often an issue when attending international races”. De Koning adds: “It would be a good thing if the number of countries that facilitate para-rowing grows. FISA has already implemented measures to achieve this, such as lengthening the racing distance from 1000 to 2000 meters, making it easier to organize para-rowing races on standard rowing courses.” The increased racing distance could also boost the competitiveness of the races themselves, De Koning says: ”In a 2000m race, there is more room to execute a race plan. Tactics now play a much larger role than before. Overall, it would be great to have a bigger, more competitive field, and more races, like the Aegon Koninklijke-Holland Beker.” Van der Meer also wishes that more people would discover para-rowing:”it’s not hard to facilitate para-rowing, every club can do it.”

If De Koning and Van der Meer remain this year’s only entrants, then they will likely make their first appearance on home water at the 2019 Aegon Koninklijke-Holland Beker, which will double as the last World Cup of the international season. The prospect of racing in Rotterdam excites both athletes: ”The opportunity to race in front of all my friends and family is very exciting”, says De Koning. Van der Meer: “Having a big event with so many international competitors being held here will hopefully boost the interest in para-rowing in the Netherlands.”. National interest is certain to get a boost from the great performance of these two rowers, as they strive to continue their unbeaten streak towards the Paralympics in 2020.

Dromen en ambities van talentvolle sporters waarmaken. Dit doet Topsport Amsterdam al meer dan twintig jaar. Topsport Amsterdam doet dit door middels haar Centrum voor Topsport & Onderwijs (CTO) voor sporters de optimale randvoorwaarden te creëren zodat zij het maximale uit hun topsportcarrière kunnen halen. Een goede combinatie met onderwijs, de beste huisvesting, de beste voeding en de beste fysieke- en mentale begeleiding zijn hierin de belangrijkste uitgangspunten. Daarnaast ondersteunt Topsport Amsterdam ook de Amsterdamse topsportverenigingen.

Daarnaast wil Topsport Amsterdam de Amsterdamse sporters een podium bieden in eigen stad en de stad Amsterdam als topsportstad op de kaart zetten. Daarom haalt Topsport Amsterdam grote, internationale topsportevenementen naar Amsterdam. De WK Roeien 2014, de WK Beachvolleybal 2015, de EK Atletiek 2016, De EK 3×3 Basketball en het EK Hockey in 2017 en de WK Allround in 2018 zijn daarvan de meest recente voorbeelden. Daarnaast faciliteert en adviseert Topsport Amsterdam ook kleinere en jaarlijks terugkerende topsportevenementen in de hoofdstad.

Topsport Amsterdam kan dit mede doen door samenwerking met het (Amsterdamse) bedrijfsleven. De op dit moment meer dan 70 zakelijke partners uit de Topsport Amsterdam BusinessClub dragen bij aan de dromen en ambities van de talentvolle Amsterdamse sporters en de promotie van Amsterdam als topsportstad. In ruil hiervoor krijgen deze bedrijven toegang tot het Amsterdamse topsportnetwerk, unieke ervaringen bij Amsterdame topsportevenementen en mogelijkheden tot inspiratiesessies van topsporters en coaches.

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