Paul Litjens (born 11 September 1947,
Loon op Zand
Loon op Zand () is a municipality and a village in the southern Netherlands. It had a population of in .
The western part of national park the Loonse en Drunense Duinen is located in the municipality of Loon op Zand.
Population centres
Topo ...
) is a former
field hockey
Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...
player for the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. He played 177 matches with the
Dutch national team, scoring 268 goals, an international record he held from 1982 to 2004.
Litjens record
Career
Litjens played for hockey clubs in Uden and Zaanstad
Zaanstad () is a Dutch municipality in the province of North Holland, situated northwest of Amsterdam. Its main city is Zaandam. It is part of the conurbation and metropolitan area of Amsterdam. It had a population of in .
Topography
Popul ...
before joining HC Kampong of Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...
. He was a member of the Dutch team that became World Champion in 1973 and participated in the 1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
and 1976 Summer Olympics
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...
. In both these Olympics, the Dutch team took a frustrating fourth place. In 1981 Litjens and the Dutch team won the Champions Trophy in Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
.
Litjens specialized in the penalty corner
In field hockey, a penalty corner, sometimes known as a short corner, is a penalty given against the defending team. It is predominantly awarded for a defensive infringement in the '' penalty circle'' or for a deliberate infringement within the de ...
and was a prolific goal scorer. He was the top scorer in the Olympic Games of 1976 and at the 1981 Champions Trophy.
Brand Ambassador
Litjens was the Brand Ambassador of Rucanor. He appeared in the poster for its Karachi King Super hockey stick.[Brand Ambassador](_blank)
See also
* List of men's field hockey players with 100 or more international goals
References
External links
*
1947 births
Living people
Dutch male field hockey players
Olympic field hockey players of the Netherlands
Field hockey players at the 1972 Summer Olympics
Field hockey players at the 1976 Summer Olympics
People from Loon op Zand
SV Kampong players
1978 Men's Hockey World Cup players
Sportspeople from North Brabant
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