Ferry lifted a 16-kilo ‘kettlebell’ 3358 times in the hall of Sint Joris College. Employee Ferry not only set a world record, but also raised a considerable amount of money for the fight against cancer.
Students on their break all come to watch Ferry lift the round weight in the middle of the school. Every time he does it, two assistants standing near him tap on a counter. Next to Ferry is a box with loud music blaring, which seems to motivate him. He occasionally lets out a tired groan as he lifts, but does not stop for a moment. After 2 hours, the number of “lifts” is 1619.
Kettlebell Champion
As well as being team captain at St.JorisCollege, Ferry is also a world kettlebell champion. “I have been doing this for six years now, so the basics are there. Sixteen kilos is easy for me, so the trick is to get the repetitions right,” he says. Next to him are two extra weights for students and teachers to test their own strength. “Come on, sir! Try it, too!” a student who has just picked up a kettlebell shouts to a teacher walking by. Another student says: “I think it’s really cool that our school is about to break a world record. I would love it if we could break more physical records like that here”.
Intiative to help
Students can buy biscuits and chocolate during the record attempt. The proceeds go to charity. It’s not even 11 a.m. and they’re all sold out. No wonder, as Joris College promotes the importance of charity among its students. Teacher Wouter van den Berg: ”As a school, we have signed up for the Alpe d’huZes, a charity bike ride to raise money for cancer research in which students can participate. We also recently went on a trip to Africa where we got involved in the local community. As a teacher, I hope that this inspires students to take the initiative to help their fellow human beings.
Fight for cancer funds
I know someone myself who has had to deal with cancer through Via,” says one of the students. So it’s really nice to see our school raising money for organisations that want to fight the disease. Ferry, like the rest of the school, wanted to raise money to fight cancer, but with a focus on children. We have done a lot of fundraising for the KWF and I wanted to do something for a lesser known charity. So today we are also raising money for KiKa, which funds research into childhood cancer.
A total of 1,500 euros was raised. Ferry is pleased with the result. Now I’m going to rest and make sure I’m ready for the Kettlebell World Cup in Mallorca next month.
Source: Studio040.nl
Translated by: Anitha Sevugan
