The Dutch 580 kg team won the first-ever gold for their country in the Mixed class at the World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Letterkenny, Ireland, last week. Interestingly, in the gold-winning team of 8 pullers – four women and four men – there are three couples. The Dutch Mixed 580 kg Team is our Team of February 2020!
The Dutch Mixed team has trained hard throughout the past months with the World Championships in mind. In the first matches the team already showed its strength: they won all the pulls in the series except against Chinese Taipei, their biggest rival. That pull ended 1-1.
As could be expected, the final between Netherlands and Chinese Taipei was a real battle between two almost equally good teams. At the end, the Dutchmen were able to win both pulls, and therefore the gold medal, for the first time ever.
Pullers: Brenda van Zanten, Anne Vrolijk, Lars Schouten, Tim de Haan, Jose Verbeek, Kim Boogaard, Remon Wolfswinkel and Ferdi v/d Lagemaat. Coach: Peter Bark.
The team will receive The World Games Athlete of the Month diploma as well as a branded gift from the Official Sponsor of Athlete of the Month, Protective Life.
The World Games 2021 in Birmingham, Alabama, will introduce a Mixed discipline in Tug of War competitions for the first time: Mixed Outdoor Pulling. In Tug of War, some competitors compete both indoors and outdoors, whilst others specialise. Therefore, we may see the Dutch team, or part of it, in Birmingham in 2021 too!
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The World Games is a multi-sport event staged every four years by the International World Games Association under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee. The 11th edition of The World Games will be held in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, 15-25 July 2021. 3,600 athletes from over 30 sports and 100 countries will take part in the Games.