Two Dutch figure skaters will also be participating in the World Junior Figure Skating Championships. The Royal Dutch Skating Association (KNSB) appointed Dutch men’s and women’s champions, Boyito Mulder and Manouk Gijsman, to represent the Netherlands at this event.

This will be 18-year-old Boyito’s fifth major international tournament. It is the third time that the Netherlands will be represented among the men at the World Championships for juniors and an enormous challenge for Boyito therefore. The talented skater who was Dutch champion in the debs in 2004 and 2005, in the novices in 2006 and 2007, in the juniors in 2008 and 2009 en 2010 in the seniors, is originally from Groningen and lives and trains in The Hague, the city where the World Championships for juniors is taking place now. An extra boost for him therefore!

Manouk Gijsman, who just turned 17, has had a whirlwind career over the past few years: after becoming Dutch champion in the novices at the age of 14, she received a national title in the juniors the following year, and her first title in the seniors in the year following that. She was only 16 at the time! Last December she managed to hold on to her title and was sent to the European Championships in Talinn. Manouk still attends school (a special school where young athletes can develop both their sport and academics) in her hometown of Alphen aan den Rijn, where she combines senior general secondary education (HAVO) with her many hours of training and competition. She is very happy to be participating in the World Championships for juniors. ‘Especially since it is being held in the Netherlands,’ she wrote on her website.

You can find more news about Manouk at www.manoukgijsman.nl.