Adventures on the Canals of France ,Netherlands and Germany: Fierljeppen Contest Winsum

We had heard from two sources of the sport Fierljeppen. Oliver told us of a fellow he met on a train carrying a large pole who told him it was used for a sport which developed from the days when farmers pole vaulted across the small channels on their farms as they went about their daily jobs.

Boat owners Carol and Terry who we met in Joure told us of the interesting outing they had watching the Fierljeppen contests in a small town they visited near Sneek.

We were in Dokkum when we asked the tourist bureau if they knew anything about the sport and found out that the Championships were being held in Winsum not far from Leeuwarden the next week.

What luck, we were going that way to pick up Diana and Arthur who were coming to visit us.

The next Saturday found the four of us on a bus to Winsum wondering what we would see. What great fun it was.

THE ARENA consists of a grandstand opposite a sand patch and a channel of water. There is a 50 metre run up onto a small jetty against which a 13 metre long pole standing in the water rests. The contestant measures where he will grasp the pole,
runs, then jumps as high up on the pole as they can reach.
As the momentum sends the pole heading across the water they climb as high as possible so they get a longer distance when they jump into the sand.