Newsletter

50th anniversary Ricochet Wijk bij Duurstede; badminton is a fun sport | Neighborhood News

NEIGHBORHOOD AT DURATION A beautiful association that would like to continue to exist for many years to come. At the Ricochet badminton club, people play with great enthusiasm. The atmosphere is cozy and sporty. However, this association is also struggling with a declining number of members. Caused by corona, but also because young people leave Wijk.

by Ali van Vemde

The big advantage of playing badminton is that it is possible into old age. Treasurer Gerard de Groot is now 75 years old, but still enthusiastically participates. And he will continue to do so, is the intention. On this Friday evening, a limited number of players will play in the sports hall. “That is sometimes different,” say De Groot and Agnes van de Water. “Certainly on Wednesday evening, all jobs are used.” Competition is played on weekends. It is a sport that is not always taken for granted. “Most people know the sport of playing at the campsite, but this is really different. At the campsite you try to keep the shuttle in the air as long as possible, here we try to get it to the ground on the other side of the net as quickly as possible. It is about speed and concentration, it is an intensive sport.” To bring more attention to the sport, try badminton. In ten lessons the basic skills are taught, the rules are explained and the first matches are played. In the months of November and 1 December, a group of 24 school children aged 7 to 8 years old will play. “We hope that we can make these children enthusiastic about the sport, because they are the members of the future.”

ANNIVERSARY On June 21, Ricochet celebrated its 50th anniversary, but unfortunately that could not be celebrated at the time. On September 4, that was possible and there was a reception for members and former members. A number of jubilees were also put in the spotlight. This was followed by a cozy barbecue and a pub quiz in which alderman Hans Buijtelaar participated enthusiastically. In 1971, the badminton department was founded from the Scandecor omni association. Eight years later the name was changed to Ricochet-Rabo, later this became Ricochet.

COZY ASSOCIATION “We can play competition again, but it remains difficult with the corona measures,” says De Groot. Players have to test and often don’t get the results until the next day. Badminton is not very popular in our country and therefore the interest is less. “We would like to change that. We have a nice association. Everyone knows each other and helps where possible. We are also happy with our younger players. On December 3, we will play our gingerbread tournament. The nice thing about badminton is that it can be played at any age. Ten years ago I wrote down that I wanted to play for another ten years and I’m still saying that.” If you are interested in taking a look at the association, check out the website bc-ricochet.nl or drop by on Wednesday or Friday evening at Sportpark Mariënhoeve.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending