From 7 to 18 September 2016 inclusive, the Paralympic Games are being held in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. During these Summer Games, athletes will be competing across 22 sports.

Silver in para-cycling in Rio

Texel athlete Larissa Klaassen (1994) and her ‘pilot’ Haliegh Dolman (1995) are taking part in para-cycling, cycling for people with a disability. Larissa is almost completely blind and needs Haleigh to do the steering. Together, they are specialised in track cycling events.

On 9 September 2016, Larissa won the silver medal in Rio in the 1km time-trial. Together with her pilot, she posted the second fastest time, behind Great-Britain but ahead of Australia. The Texel athlete finished in 1.07.059, over half a second slower than the British duo. This spring, she has already won a gold medal at the Para-Cycling Track World Championships in Italy.
You can follow her adventures on Twitter

Sport on Texel

The woods, fields, cycle paths and beaches of Texel seem to provide the ideal conditions for a variety of athletes to go on and achieve great results in their sport.
Obviously, the whole of the Netherlands enjoyed Dorian van Rijsselberghe’s latest gold medal, but other Texel athletes have also achieved impressive results: Jasmijn van der Burg is the Dutch Champion in Olympic distance triathlon and as the Dutch golf champion in the age category of 12 and younger, Hugo Groothuis is a promising young talent. Imme Schraag and Astrid Boekhoudt are dressage champions of the region of North Holland and Denise Betsema was crowned cycling world champion in the amateur/masters category.

Do you want to join in the sporty fun on Texel? Choose from the many sports activities the island has to offer. And if you fancy staying a couple of nights, simply select one of our great accommodation options!