My name is . and 38 years old currently living in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Following is my essay to become a CrossFit recognized affiliate. From the age of five onwards, I loved sports and dreamt being a professional MX2 athlete. I am a factory driver for SUZUKI NIMAG in The Netherlands and was able to drive International MX2 grand-prix races across many different racing tracks in Europe. I competed at the highest level (KNMV) and won several national and EU championships in the MX1 (80 cc) and MX2 (125 cc) classes.
After my professional career in MX2, I continued to compete in many different sports such as BMX, Indoor Soccer, and Snowboarding, etc. Not being able to compete at the highest level was a big disappointment personally because of my competitive attitude. The discontent nagged most the time.
After meeting my future wife in 1996, I got settled with a career in eCommerce and IT architecture Consultancy and raised a beautiful family with three children. I was introduced to CrossFit in 2010 through a YouTube video. After the first video, I started performing the WOD’s and I was hooked. The discipline, determination, performance, and dedication necessary to complete a WOD were a true revelation for me. The more I understood the sport of CrossFit, the more I started feeling like a true Athlete again.
Up until 2014, there was no CrossFit box in the Rotterdam area and it was a good reason for me to get a better understanding about the business behind CrossFit. Combining my experience as a former athlete with a career in a day job as a coach/trainer has always been a dream of me. Therefore, I started drawing up a business plan in 2012. I developed contacts to the CF community by visiting and WOD’ing at boxes across The Netherlands. I also slowly started to look for potential accommodation sites. That last part was the hardest part, as the regulations in The Netherlands for fitness in general are hard to comprehend and comply.
In the last 4 years, I have been able to further expand my knowledge of CrossFit and get my Level 1 Trainer as well as Level 1+2 Gymnastics Certificates. In coming January, I will travel to Nuremberg for my CrossFit for Kids Certificate. I know almost all the boxes in The Netherlands and got a good grasp on the most important aspects of how to build a better box through coaching and building a community.
In my view, CrossFit is about changing lives within your community through knowledge, training, and guidance/coaching. My philosophy is Train Hard, Get Strong, and Make History. The opportunity to become a coach and box owner means teaching others on how to improve the quality of their everyday lives by becoming better athletes, better sons and daughters, dedicated fathers and mothers, loyal soul mates and active contributors to making this world a better place.
In conclusion,
In conclusion, I have excellent motivation and reasons for wanting to start a CrossFit box in Rotterdam. It can make life better for average as well as athletic people. CrossFit has done much for me and I want to spread the word about the CrossFit community by being an active participant and coach. I want to connect people to all the good that CrossFit has brought me and make them a part of “CrossFit Connection Rotterdam” or just "CrossFit Rotterdam”.
