'Everything will be fine', is the message that dean Lutgarde has for top draughts player and physics and astronomy student Jan Groenendijk. On Friday, the World Championship finalist complained that Radboud University is not very flexible, despite his busy sport schedule. The faculty wants to solve this - a meeting is planned.

One could easily call it a cry of despair, last Friday. ‘I want to become world champion ánd be a student in Nijmegen. I do not want to have to choose, even though it looks like the university wants me to’, said Jan Groenendijk, who competes in the finale of the World Championship this week. Because of this competition, he missed the resits of his exams. And it seemed like it is impossible to reschedule those.

‘Jan is a top player and therefore, the faculty wants to be flexible.’

His statements also reached the board of the science faculty. ‘We discussed it and have been examining his situation’, says Lutgarde Buydens. ‘Jan is a top player and therefore, the faculty wants to be flexible. We have planned a meeting with him, but these things cost time, especially because of the championships. We are going to look for a solution. Everything will be fine.’

The priviliges for talented athletes at university are not very clear. The rules for top athletes state: ‘Faculties have the obligation to strive, within the reasonable limits, to offer their education possibilities flexibly to students who are marked as top athlete.’ We shouldn’t take that lightly, says university spokesman Martijn Gerritsen. ‘It is a declaration of intent, but definitely one that is taken seriously. Whoever qualifies for this system, can be sure that his or her faculty is as flexible as possible.

Fingers crossed
Two years ago, the student council published a memo that showed that this is not always the case. ‘The support for top athletes, in the non-financial sense of the word, leaves room for improvement. (…) Study programs and individual teachers and student councelors often lack the knowledge or motivation to, in cooperation with an athlete, take a closer look at someone’s schedule.’

For Groenendijk, this should soon be dealt with. ‘We hope to welcome him back a world champion and then, we will work this out’, says Buydens. ‘And in the meantime, we keep our fingers crossed for a good result during the competition!’

For the last news about the game, click here.