Rugby tackles ALS out of the world
On 6 September 2026 forty members of Rugbyclub Haarlem swam two kilometres through the canals of Amsterdam in the Amsterdam City Swim. Nobody stood on the bank to see who finished first. Swimming fast was not the goal. The goal was to raise as much money as possible together for ALS research and to draw attention to this disease.
We did not do this for no reason
Our chairman Pieter Zandhuis helped found Stichting ALS Nederland in 2006. On 10 December 2025 he was himself diagnosed with ALS. During the Swim three teams therefore went into the water to support Pieter: colleagues from Handelsbanken, Rugby Nederland, and family and friends. Pieter did not swim himself, but walked along the route with every team.
What rugby did for ALS
More than 3,300 swimmers took to the Amsterdam canals, among them 87 rugby players from all over the Netherlands and forty from Haarlem. Together they raised a record amount for Stichting ALS Nederland: more than three million euros. A weekend full of emotion, in which the Dutch rugby community came out in force to support our chairman.
Thank you to everyone who swam, supported and donated.
Watch and read more
Watch the aftermovie on YouTube, with all the moments of the day from start to finish. The Amsterdam City Swim event newspaper published a large feature on the Swim, with attention for Pieter (page 15). The Swim is over, but the fight against ALS goes on: you can always donate to Stichting ALS Nederland via als.nl.