The meeting was part of a broader initiative to create a nationwide body to oversee the regulation of martial arts events, something of a cross between a federation and an athletic commission, and was attended by people from all walks of the Dutch martial arts industry.
GLORY heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven was in attendance, along with four-time K-1 World Grand Prix winners Ernesto Hoost and Semmy Schilt and three-time winners Peter Aerts and Remy Bonjasky. Together they presented Van Der Laan with a championship title belt “in recognition of [his] champion efforts to clean up our sport”.
Far from criticizing Van Der Laan for his refusing licenses to stage events in Amsterdam in recent times, Hoost said the mayor deserved praise. For his part, Van Der Laan said he may have previously been “too focused” on negative incidents in kickboxing’s history and the stigma of underworld associations which had attached to some aspects of the sport.
Addressing the four champions representing kickboxing today, he described some of his previous condemnations of the sport as “stupid” and said “I have not been in the right [on this matter]… the sport could not wish for better ambassadors than yourselves”.
The change of temperature from the Amsterdam mayor is unexpected but welcome and raises the possibility that a major event could be in the pipeline for the Amsterdam Arena. Particularly notable is the fact that the belt Van Der Laan was presented with is a replica GLORY belt and carried the company branding.
GLORY has made several applications to the mayor’s office to stage an event in the past three years but has been rebuffed each time. However, dialogue has continued throughout that period and GLORY has possibly been able to convince Van Der Laan to give it a chance to stage an event and show what it can do.
It is undeniable that Dutch kickboxing history has featured some of the country’s most notorious criminal figures. Likewise, it is undeniable that at many events the ringside VIP tables have been purchased and occupied by champagne-drinking, designer-clothed groups of young men who are not necessarily able to explain how they can afford such luxury excess.
However, that same observation could also be made of many attendees of soccer games, large dance-music events and other big sports/social gatherings in the Netherlands (and around Europe). Kickboxing’s supporters in the Netherlands have always argued that their sport has received disproportionate attendance from the police.
In addition, of those criminal figures who did have some connection to the sport – whether as fighters, trainers or promoters – most are of what would be termed the “old school” variety and have either faded out or passed away. Dutch kickboxing advocates are now determined to show that the modern sport is a clean and honorable one; the mayor of Amsterdam seems inclined to listen.