Theodorus "Theo" Adrianus de Lange (born 16 March 1960 in

Kralingen Kralingen is a former village in the Dutch province of South Holland, now a neighbourhood of Rotterdam. It is located about 3 kilometres east of the city centre, in the borough Kralingen-Crooswijk. Kralingen was a separate municipality until 1895 ...

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

) is a

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

from 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 ...

, who represented his country at the

2018 Vintage Yachting Games The 2018 Vintage Yachting Games was the third post-Olympic multi-class sailing event for discontinued Olympic and Paralympic Classes. The event was held from 16–22 September 2018 on Øresund, Copenhagen in Denmark. The organization of this event ...

Hellerup Hellerup () is a very affluent district of Gentofte Municipality in the suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. The most urban part of the district is centred on Strandvejen and is bordered by Østerbro to the south and the Øresund to the east. It compri ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. De Lange as middleman together with

helmsman A helmsman or helm (sometimes driver) is a person who steering, steers a ship, sailboat, submarine, other type of maritime vessel, or spacecraft. The rank and seniority of the helmsman may vary: on small vessels such as fishing vessels and yacht ...

Rudy den Outer Rudy den Outer (born 22 July 1954 in Rotterdam) is a sailor from the Netherlands, who represented his country at the 2008 Vintage Yachting Games – Soling, 2008 Vintage Yachting Games in Medemblik, as helmsman in the Dutch Soling ''Sophie's Ch ...

and Gabor Helmhout on the

foredeck The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...

took the

Gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

in the Soling. During the 2019 North American Championship in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

, De Lange again as middleman in the Dutch Soling ''Sophie’s Choice'' together with helmsman Rudy den Outer but now with Thies Bosch on the foredeck took first place. This was the first time

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an sailors won this championship in the over fifty years history of the North American Soling Championship! With Rudy den Outer and

Ramzi Souli Ramzi Souli (born 30 June 1980 in Numansdorp) is a sailor from the Netherlands, who represented his country at the 2012 Vintage Yachting Games in Bellano Italy. Souli on the fordeck together with helmsman Rudy den Outer and Gavin Lidlow in th ...

Theo became European Champion in the Soling at

Mandello del Lario Mandello del Lario (Lecchese: ) is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the province of Lecco, in Lombardy, on Lake Como. Since 1921, Mandello del Lario has been home to Moto Guzzi—the Italian motorcycle manufacturer, now a subsidiary of Piagg ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

in 2021, De Lange became in 2000, together with Rudy den Outer and

Leo Determan Leo Determan (born 7 April 1949 in Rotterdam) is a sailor from the Netherlands, who represented his country at the 2008 Vintage Yachting Games in Medemblik The Netherlands. Determan in the middle together with helmsman Rudy den Outer and Ronald ...

, the last Dutch Champions during the Olympic Soling era. Theo is since 2018 also one of the elected International Soling Association committee members. European Champions Soling 2021

Personal life

De Lange lives and works near Capelle aan den IJssel, earned a degree in law at the

Erasmus University Erasmus University Rotterdam (abbreviated as ''EUR'', nl, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam ) is a public research university located in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The university is named after Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, a 15th-century humanist ...

, is married and has two daughters.

References

1960 births Living people Dutch male sailors (sport) Finn class sailors Soling class sailors Sportspeople from Rotterdam {{Netherlands-yachtracing-bio-stub