Fighting with the Girls from Vlaardingen has been named Best Movement Initiative of South Holland 2025. From the hands of deputy Anne Koning, the initiators received a check for €6,000 to continue their project so that even more girls can work on their physical and mental strength.
Worth its weight in gold
“South Holland is known as the province where people exercise less than is good for them, so all your initiatives are worth their weight in gold,” said deputy Anne Koning in her opening speech at the award ceremony for the Best Movement Initiative 2025. An award that is given annually to innovative and effective projects in South Holland that encourage residents to move more. Of all 44 submissions the province received this year, Fighting with the Girls was a clear winner. “Great how you give these girls a little extra,” said Anne Koning as she handed over the check for €6,000 to initiators Christina Heck and Amber de Waal.
Positive impact on society
This was the fourth time the election for the Best Movement Initiative was organized and innovative movement projects were rewarded for their positive impact on society. An external jury assessed the submissions based on originality, accessibility, and the extent to which the project contributes to the goal of enabling people to participate in sports and movement offerings, and compiled a top 10. It was then up to the public to vote online and choose the winner. With 260 votes, Fighting with the Girls was the winner. Second place, with 202 votes, went to Sports Day Foundation Zomerkind (Hoeksche Waard) and third place, with 193 votes, was for Moving for people with early dementia (Papendrecht). They respectively received a cash prize of €4,000 and €2,000. The remaining 8 initiatives each received an encouragement prize of €500.
Safe and supportive environment
The main prize winner offers girls aged 12 to 15 a safe place to work on their mental and physical health. “We focus on non-sporting girls in Vlaardingen-West,” says founder Christina Heck (25). “This is a neighborhood where livability and safety are under pressure and where especially the girls need extra attention.” Co-initiator Amber de Waal adds: “We want to provide these girls with a safe, supportive environment in which they become mentally and physically stronger. A place where they can work on their self-confidence and where they really feel seen and heard.”
Female role models
Fighting with the Girls offers a 20-week program with a unique mix of martial arts training, nutritional advice, and mental health sessions led by inspiring female role models. Although Christina, as a former professional judoka and from her studies in Sports Management, knows how to put together a sports program, it was especially important that the girls themselves indicated what they needed. “We just asked them,” says Amber, “and with their input, we created a program that centers on the core values of martial arts.” Fighting with the Girls is now in its third program since its start in February 2024, and they can already share results. Christina: “After the 20-week program, the girls have the opportunity to continue boxing in a girls group or follow a training course with us to become a sports coach. So far, 96% of the girls have continued, either independently or with us. We are of course super proud of that, because that is what we do it for.”
