On April 21, former Telstar chairman Anton van Kooten passed away in South Africa. Van Kooten was chairman of Telstar from 1999 to 2002. “A passionate and high-quality chairman. A man with knowledge and skills,” responds Chris van der Zwan, then board member of technical affairs.
In the late 1990s, Van der Zwan met the former chairman on the golf course. That was the beginning of Van Kooten’s chairmanship at Telstar. There, the board member threw out a fish whether Van Kooten was interested in the chairmanship.
Under Van Kooten, the merger between amateur club Stormvogels and Telstar came about in 2001. This met with resistance, especially among fans of both clubs. The idea was that more youth would flow through to the first, but that did not happen. In 2008 Stormvogels Telstar came to an end and the club continued as the current Telstar.
Special guy
In the reports about Van Kooten you can read a lot about the personality of the former Telstar chairman. That was not always positive, but Van der Zwan cannot agree with that. “He could come across as oversimplified in negotiations. I didn’t mind that, because sometimes you have to stand up for yourself. I learned a lot from him,” says Van der Zwan.