posted Sep 1st, 2005 - Mike Pennock, organizer of the Dutch Handicap Cup, which is a part of the European Skydiving League, provided the NSL News with the scores of the national championship in the Netherlands. The event took place earlier during the week of the NSL Playoffs 2005 in August and was shortened to eight rounds due to bad weather.

Several of the ten team names sound familiar to the NSL News regulars and have already appeared earlier this year on different NSL and ESL scoreboards, including Punky Fish, the all-female team Infinity and some of the A Class teams.

Punky Fish had bad luck when one of the team members, Alex Egberink, experienced a similar accident that recently knocked out Dan BC from 4-way competition. Both 4-way players ruptured their Achilles tendons, Dan BC was playing tennis, while Alex Egberink played feather ball and needed surgery after the accident on the second official day of the championship.

Marc Hoornweg, alternate Dutch Delegate to the IPC and Advisor to the IPC Formation Skydiving Committee, was available as the alternate and filled in for the eight rounds of the Dutch National 2005. Marc Hoornweg is a Dutch veteran Formation Skydiving competitor who has competed for many years in the national 4-way and 8-way teams of the Netherlands. Punky Fish won the 4-way event with a 15.3 average. Alternate Marc Hoornweg will also fill in for Punky Fish at the European Skydiving League Championship 2005 this weekend.

The competition in the Netherlands was much more exciting in the Dutch A Class, which is identical with the A Class of the National Skydiving League. All five teams in this class finished the competition within a difference of four points between first and last place. Each of the five A Class teams had or tied the highest score at least for one round. Two teams were tied in second place, and two other teams shared the fourth place. The scoreboard of the Dutch A Class competition after eight rounds could be a mirror of the AAA/Open Class competition at the USPA Nationals next week.