Traditions and Folklore in Friesland
Pole-vaulting across a canal involves a sprint to a pole of up to 13 metres long, jumping to it and climbing to the top to get as far as possible, aiming for the opposite bank. This Frisian sport of “Fierljeppen” (=far-leaping) originated from farm boys needing to jump across drainage canals between different plots of land.
Photo by Ludo Kuipers, Sat Aug 11, 1979