“It was great to finally be able to play in front of a full stage again, in the radiant sun. To win for the second time in a row is unique and makes the victory extra special,” said Jasper Brinkman, who yesterday afternoon with the men’s team of HC Bloemendaal became European champion again.
Bloemendaal won the Euro Hockey League for the second year in a row. The defending champion defeated the German Rot Weiss Köln in the final 4-0 in the Wagener stadium in the Amsterdamse Bos. For Brinkman, who has played for the club since he was ten, it was the third time that he became European champion. “It says enough how we performed as a team last year, extending our title is an extra reward,” said the defender.
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But the enthusiasm of the supporters was also impressive, according to Brinkman. “When we left for the final, we were already waved goodbye by a lot of people and when we returned, the entire municipality had come out to cheer us. That gives us an extra good feeling.”
Text continues below the video. Created by Laurine Bout, HC Bloemendaal.
“It was an incredible party yesterday afternoon, more than 400 people came to the hockey club to celebrate the win together”, says Els van Mierlo, chairman of the hockey club. Not only because of the profit of ‘her men’, but also the fact that it could be celebrated together again. “They also won last year, but because of the corona bubble we were in the middle of at the time, we could only celebrate with a small number of people,” said Van Mierlo.
This year, much to the delight of everyone, the victory was once again fully celebrated. Not only a great experience for the hundreds of hockey fans present, it also makes the victory extra special for the club. “It’s great to win, but it’s really great to be able to celebrate it together,” says Van Mierlo.
A class of its own
The mayor of Bloemendaal, Elbert Roest, was also on stage in the sun-drenched Wagener stadium in the Amsterdamse Bos yesterday afternoon and witnessed the victory live. “It was a magnificent match. They played very compact, powerful and very disciplined. They are definitely in a class of their own,” said a very proud mayor.
That Bloemendaal is in a class of its own, confirms yesterday’s performance. The men’s team is only the first team to extend its title in the Euro Hockey League, which has existed in the men since 2007. Bloemendaal, also leader of the Dutch big league, won the tournament earlier in 2009, 2013, 2018, last year and thus yesterday afternoon for the fifth time.
‘Great enjoyment’
The ceremony afterwards on the balcony of the clubhouse was accompanied by fireworks, loud applause and much cheering. Mayor Roest addressed both the players and the crowd on the balcony. “Besides the fact that it was a tremendous performance and a completely deserved victory, the frenzied crowd at the ceremony showed the essence. The club lives in the community and there is enormous commitment to the club from all the villages within our municipality,” says Roest. “A day like yesterday is ‘great enjoyment’ for me as mayor.”
And everyone enjoyed themselves, according to Roest the party at the hockey club went on until the small hours. Today the players will most likely use it to recover and enjoy themselves for a while, but then they have to get back to work. The competitions for that other coveted title, becoming national champion, will start from May 15.