A camera crew from Netflix went to the Frisian hamlet of It Hiedenskip on Wednesday evening to record the Frisian sport Fierljeppen. The recordings are part of a documentary series about thirty unknown sports. That reports Dutch newspaper AD.
What is Fierljeppen?
But first: what is Fierljeppen? The game can be quite well summarized by breaking down its name: in Frisian, “fier” means “far”, and “ljeppen” means “leaping”. In essence, it is a bit like the Pole Vault, but instead of jumping over a bar and on to a large crash mat, you jump over waterways in Friesland. The goal is to make the biggest distance possible and not to get wet.
The Netflix crew followed Ysbrand Galama and Marrit van der Wal, who normally participate in the top of the standings in the sport of Fierljeppen. Netflix had turned out with a seven-man film crew. On Monday they filmed during a Fierljep training. On Tuesday they went into nature with Galama to look for eggs, another piece of Frisian folklore. Interviews have also been recorded with the founders of the Fierljepclub in It Heidenskip. On Wednesday, they recorded the eighth competition match of this season.
Magical 21 meter
The protagonists of the documentary did not participate in this competition for the podium prizes. The other participants also seemed a bit impressed by the film crew, as no one came close to the magical 21 meter.
Frisian Championship
The film crew will also be present at the peak of the fierljep season on 5 September. Then the Frisian Championship will take place in Winsum.
Read more about Fierljeppen here: https://northerntimes.nl/flying-frisians-the-curious-sport-of-fierljeppen/
