On Thursday February 27, Eindhoven University of Technology wants to kick off the carnival weekend with the longest polonaise in the world. The organization hopes to get more than 1218 participants on their feet, enough to break the official world record currently held by the municipality of Ridderkerk, and appeals to everyone in the Brainport region and the surrounding area.
The initiative comes from employees of Eindhoven University of Technology. "We really want to do this together with the region and thus increase solidarity in the Brainport region through carnival. So you can actually speak of a Brainpolonaise," laughs co-organizer and TU/e community manager Esther Lutterman.
Feast of connection
Lutterman and other colleagues see how the sentiment towards international knowledge workers in the Netherlands, in particular, is changing. For example, the government wants to put a brake on the number of foreign labor migrants and international students. Expats feel less welcome as a result. Lutterman: "But in our region, everyone matters."
The organization wants to show solidarity with Brainport residents from different backgrounds by breaking the world record for the longest polonaise in the world. Lutterman: "Everyone can be part of this. Moreover, in this way, we introduce newcomers to our carnival traditions and Brabant hospitality, which also benefits the integration process. It will be a celebration of connection, after all, we can only break this record if we do this together."
"Of course, the Executive Board wholeheartedly endorses and supports this sympathetic action," says TU/e president Robert-Jan Smits. "As TU/e, we are proud of our community, including our internationals, of course. Our Brainport region will not make it without top international talent. That is why it is extremely important that foreign knowledge workers feel welcome and at home with us, and a piece of Brabant culture can certainly help with that."
Officials review the record attempt
The record attempt is, therefore, open to everyone and will take place on Thursday, February 27. At 3:45 p.m., participants can gather on the TU/e campus, by the pond next to the Atlas main building. The record attempt starts at 16.00 hours. Carnival clothing is not mandatory, but of course, it does contribute to the atmosphere.
Officials from the International World Records Organisation in Geneva will assess the record attempt and, if the outcome is positive, register it and send it to the Guinness Book of World Records. The current world record dates from 2023, when the municipality of Ridderkerk brought more than 1200 polonaise runners to the Radio NL Summer Tour. Before that, the record was held by 588 people from Slupca, Poland.