This article was last updated on August 9, 2023
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Historic World Title Havik and Van Schip Result of ‘Lifelong Struggle’
Yoeri Havik was rewarded for 24 years of hard work. Jan-Willem van Schip experienced the highlight of his career after he had sat very deep. The historic world title in the madison on Tuesday in Glasgow released a lot from the duo.
Performance Under Pressure
What have we been watching? Van Schip laughs at the question an hour after the golden madison. “Yes, I know a lot,” says the 28-year-old Dutchman, before answering in a typical way for him.
“I think we’ve been looking at performance under pressure. At two guys who continued to do everything well under very difficult circumstances and during a very fast cycling race. Because try cycling at 60 kilometers per hour on a velodrome at all. And go then switch with your buddy at 65 kilometers per hour, while giving him a pendulum. And that with 36 men at the same time, in 35 degrees and with a heart rate of 200.”
It is an apt description of the madison, the part in which the Netherlands had never become world champion in the men. Until Havik and Van Schip strike one sweltering evening at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome. After two hundred laps of a very tough race, the duo has two points more than Great Britain due to a third place in the last sprint.
“That we are the first Dutch couple to win the world title… The smile on my face will only disappear in fifteen months, when the next World Cup starts,” says Havik, the man who secured the victory in the final phase with an ultimate effort.
Years of Hard Work
The 32-year-old North Hollander started cycling at the age of eight because he had seen Danny Stam and Robert Slippens riding a couple race. That duo came to World Cup bronze (2004) and World Cup silver (2005). “I started training hard 24 years ago,” says Havik. “It’s great that this is the result of a lifetime of fighting very hard for this.”
Van Schip’s Ups and Downs
The world title is also the result of five years of intensive collaboration with Van Schip. The Utrechter has always been an outsider in track cycling. He likes to experiment a lot, especially with material. In the run-up to the World Cup in Glasgow, he told the NOS that he regularly struggles with his status as an eccentric.
“The tall one has had very good days and very bad days in the past five years,” says Havik, himself a down-to-earth Zaandammer. “But step by step we have improved. And that results in it all coming out today, August 8, 2023.”
Van Schip, with the rainbow jersey around his shoulders: “I just sat deep, also due to physical malheur. Since March I have known a bit what’s wrong with it. And what to do with it. This trajectory was difficult. But just keep going with 65 cycling kilometers per hour, sticking out my claws, I still got a day further every time.”
“And in the end I just have so much fun through this sport. The finesse is so beautiful and so much fun. I enjoyed every little step Yoeri and I took together, the new level we found together. That’s really cool .”
Road to Olympic Gold
The next and biggest dream of Havik and Van Schip must come true next year in Paris. They now also want to be the first Dutch duo to conquer the Olympic title in the madison.
“We were able to run a very nice program last year,” says Van Schip. “We have been listened to, also from the union. Nick Stöpler has come as a coach. Together with him we took pen and paper and thought: what is needed? What needs to be improved?”
“That organization came into existence. We were structurally unable to do anything for about twelve weeks other than eating, cycling and sleeping. And visualizing how you can get the other person into the track well. This is the result of that.”
Havik: “Hopefully this world title will give Nick a good budget for the next twelve months.”
Van Schip laughs: “Yes, we need more budget. Because we can do much better.”
Havik: “If we can go on altitude training more often, we will be unstoppable in Paris.”
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