- Sports
- 04/03/2026
Sports spotlight | Oktopus’ favorite number is 8
TU/e boasts 38 student sports clubs. At the student sports centre SSC, you can game, jump, run, cycle, row, fly, shoot, hang, play chess, surf, push, and plenty more. Cursor invites each club to introduce itself—starting with a simple question: what’s your favourite number?
Warming up
It makes perfect sense to chair Victor Baas that the favorite number of Eindhoven Student Indoor Handball Association Oktopus is 8. “An octopus has eight tentacles, right? And a handball player could use eight arms too.” It’s a well-kept secret that each tentacle represents a particular trait. Baas doesn’t know them by heart, but he knows where to find the book that describes all eight: in the office of ESSF, the umbrella organization for the sports associations.
Baas is a goalkeeper, and for him leg strength matters more than arm strength, because he often has to jump to keep the ball out of the net. The other six players need to be not only agile but also very strong. “Handball is a physical sport where you have to make sure no one knocks you over.”
For now, Baas is taking it easy when it comes to handball because he is recovering from a concussion. “I got hit on the head by a ball during a game. That’s an exception, though. It doesn’t usually get that rough.” The injury does give him time to stand on the sidelines in an octopus suit, Baas reflects during his conversation with Cursor. He has experience wearing the suit: he wore it with pleasure during the Intro and at Carnival.
Scores
The 59th board consists of three members.
Oktopus has 59 Okkies and is therefore one of the smaller associations.
3 teams: 2 men’s teams and 1 women’s team.
7 players per team, including 1 goalkeeper.
1 protective cup for the male goalkeepers. No other protective gear is used.
1bottle of port in the team bag.
30 minutes of playing time per half.
Around 28 goals for the winning team.
10 centimeters of tape under Baas’ goalkeeper shoes.
A handball court is 40 meters long and 20 meters wide.
The 6 meter line marks the circle around the goal; players must stay out of it.
The Okkies play 4 or 5 (student) tournaments per year.
Analyses
A final score of 18–30 would be unthinkable in soccer, but in handball it’s not unusual. Every player runs back and forth continuously. It’s a good thing the court is only 40 meters long.
Why does Baas put tape under his shoes? “I stuck two pieces of tape under each heel so I can quickly drop into a hurdle sit: one leg stretched forward, one bent backward, and my butt on the floor. That way I can stop balls heading for the lower corners.”
The Okkies happily drink the bottle of red port from the team bag in the shower. But only after a win, Baas claims. “And only at away games, because the SSC doesn’t allow it.”
Oktopus is currently organizing the largest student handball tournament in Europe. During the last weekend of May, the association expects between 400 and 450 participants, who will play, sleep, eat, and party in and around the SSC. The matches will last just fifteen minutes, so as many games as possible can be played in the three halls at the SSC that Oktopus has at its disposal.
This article was translated using AI-assisted tools and reviewed by an editor.
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