Dutch F1 Director praises sailing’s need for speed

In the second episode of ‘Get Ready for the Best’, looking ahead to this August’s Allianz Sailing World Championships in The Hague, Watersportverbond director Arno van Gerven and Dutch GP director Jan Lammers talk about the parallels between motorsport and sailing, as well as both major sporting events.

The podcast ‘Get Ready for the Best’, powered by Allianz, looks ahead to the biggest sailing event ever held in the Netherlands, the Allianz Sailing World Championships in the Hague, from 10-20 August 2023.

Moderator and sports journalist Chris Wobben invites special guests to his table as the sailing world prepares to ‘Get Ready for the Best’.

In the second episode, he talks to Arno van Gerven, director of the Dutch Watersportverbond, and Jan Lammers, former Formula 1 driver and director of Dutch Grand Prix Formula 1 at Zandvoort.

And Lammers sees some similarities between the F1.

He says, “Whether it is the participant or the spectator on the spot or from a distance, proponents or opponents, the most important thing for an organisation is to show empathy. Try to understand each other before you want to be understood.”

In The Hague, there are certainly big challenges in this respect, says Van Gerven.

“Scheveningen has a popular harbour one of the most popular beach spots, which are freely accessible to the public,” he says. “That already makes it a challenge. But on the other hand, it is also the perfect place for such an event like this.”

The sports themselves also have parallels, Lammers believes.

“It’s all about who is the fastest and it requires participants to make quite an investment,” he says. “For both sports, it takes a lot of effort to get people into the sport.”

Besides talking to interesting guests from the sailing world, former Olympic Finn sailor, 2014 ILCA7 world champion and Ocean Race participant Nicholas Heiner also provides his insights on sailing and shares funny anecdotes.

The four-episode series can be listened to on Audiohuis’ Spotify channel and on the social media channels of the Allianz Sailing World Championships, World Sailing and the Dutch Water Sports Association.

The first episode, featuring Olympic champion Kiran Badloe and Paralympian Alexandra Rickham as guests, was published on 5 July. The next episodes will be available on 19 and 26 July.

In them, World Champion Odile van Aanholt, Alderman Hilbert Bredemeijer of The Hague, British 49er sailor James Peters, Olympic swimming champion and Chef de Mission TeamNL Pieter van den Hoogenband and multiple World and Olympic champion Marit Bouwmeester, among others, will be featured.