Triton gets three World Championship medals

The World Rowing Championships took place last week at Bosbaan in Amsterdam, while the World Hockey Championships were partly held in Amstelveen. Several current and former students from Utrecht University participated in both tournaments.

At Bosbaan, Pieter van Veen, rowing with the Holland Eight, beat the British boat by the narrowest of margins. It even took a world record to do so. The UU Law graduate only realised he had become world champion for the second year in a row after the picture of the finish line was analysed, much to the delight of the Triton delegation cheering him on from the sidelines.

His Triton colleague Eli Brouwer was also part of last year’s team, but the Life Sciences graduate competed in the coxless four this year. They won a silver medal, losing to the American team.

Lisanne van der Lelij, a member of Utrecht's other student rowing club, Orca, was also a world champion last year with the Women’s Eight. This year, the History graduate’s boat finished in a disappointing fourth place.

The lightweight single sculler Femke van Vliet, from Triton, secured a bronze medal. A graduate of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, she told the NOS she hoped for more in the non-Olympic event.

Drama
On Saturday, about three kilometres away from the Bosbaan, in the Wagnerstadion in Amstelveen, a hockey drama unfolded. The heavily favoured Dutch team were defeated by Argentina in the World Cup final after a penalty shoot-out.

UU students Luna Fokke (Information Science), Eline Jansen (Pharmacy) and Frédérique Matla (Psychology) were part of the squad, alongside alumni Marijn Veen (Psychology) and Josine Koning (Law).

The Dutch men’s hockey team failed to secure a place on the podium. The Dutch squad, which included UMC PhD student Tjep Hoedemakers and Law alumnus Thierry Brinkman, finished in fourth place.

European Champion
Earlier this month, UU Liberal Arts & Sciences graduate Jorinde van Klinken achieved major athletic success. She became European Champion in the discus throw in Birmingham. In the shot put, she won silver behind her compatriot Jessica Schilder.

For mountain biker Anne Terpstra, this weekend marked the end of her elite sporting career. Terpstra dropped out of her Medicine degree at Utrecht University in 2013 to focus entirely on the sport. She was a top athlete for fifteen years. Due to physical discomfort, she did not line up at the start of the World Championships in Italy.