Fierljeppen - the Dutch sport of canal jumping
The unusual sport of canal jumping comes from The Netherlands (Holland), where it is called Fierljeppen.
In Fierljeppen, the contestants run and jump onto a pole, then do a shimmy to the top of the pole (some with the aid of bicycle inner tubes strapped to their feet), and then vault off to try and land on the opposite bank. The long aluminum poles are between 3 and 5 m long and have a flat round plate at the bottom to prevent it from sinking into the muddy canal bottom of the canal.
A fierljeppen event in Haarlem in 1988A National Canal Jumping Contest is held on August 22nd each year. There is no prize except the honor of being the Dutch Champion Canal Jumper!
You can see this sport in action, in these videos of canal jumping.
Similar Sports
- Pole Climbing — involves climbing very high wooden poles as fast a possible.
- Pole Vault (Track and Field) — an athletics event in which a competitor leaps over a bar uing a flexible pole.
- Pole Dancing Sport — participants perform various types of acrobatic moves like spins, climbs, twists and body inversions around a pole.
- Greasey Pole Climbing — attempting to climb a slippery pole for a prize at the end. [unusual]
Related Pages
- Sport in the Netherlands
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
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