The 48th Hel van het Noorden is set to take place this Sunday, and once again, the organising committee seems to have arranged the weather perfectly to make conditions unbearable. After last year’s event was cancelled at the last minute due to high winds, anticipation is now high as crews return to Groningen in the north of the Netherlands for the first time since 2023.
The course is expected to face a strong headwind, with temperatures below freezing, and of course, the first snow of the year is expected to hit around lunchtime. So it’s all coming together to make six km down a straight, bumpy course feel even worse.
Okeanos
Cornelius Palsma from Okeanos has extensive international experience from World Rowing Cups and U23 World Rowing Championships. This season, the 23-year-old has already demonstrated his skills at the Tromp Boat Race and in larger boats at the November Fours Head, where he finished third. His lightweight status aside, he will be hitting hard against the heavy players.
Nereus
Willem Stoop will be representing Nereus. After winning in the eight at the Amstelbeker, Willem has spent the rest of the season sculling. Although he performed worse than expected at the Tromp, he has gained more experience since, finishing only a second behind a very capable Skøll quad in November and also racing the Silver Skiff in Turin, Italy. He is definitely prepared for a longer race, and I think the headwind will favour him.
Gyas
Lightweight Jordy de Boer is local to the area. Although Gyas doesn’t train on this stretch, he will at least be able to sleep in his own bed. At Tromp, he finished seventh. He was considerably down on Cornelus, who will be racing in the lightweight category; even so, there’s ground to make up, and challenging conditions can upset these smaller boats. I think it will come down to who can push through the wind.
G.S.R. Aegir
U23 athlete Gunnar van den Hoogen was born and raised in the north. Now racing for G.S.R. Aegir, he already has a lot of experience at the Hel. With these conditions, it’s all about preparation, and Gunnar’s experience and maturity will put him ahead of his competitors. He was sick during the preseason, so he hasn’t yet had a race he’s happy with. This will add pressure on the day, and I think it will ultimately be that pressure which decides whether he makes it or breaks it.
Prediction
The Hel is famous for adding so many elements to one race that it becomes completely unpredictable, which makes this prediction difficult. On a calm day, I would put it to Cornelus, with the most sculling success, but I think the wind will favour the sculler from Nereus, Willem Stoop, who focused his preseason on training for a longer race.
