Jelle Bakker

Jelle during the Marble League

**Jelle Bakker** is the founder of the Marble League. Their older sibling is Dion Bakker.

## History

Before starting the Marble League, Jelle was based in the city of Knikkegen where they founded the Knikkegen Marble League, a regional marble sports competition. Jelle was inspired to organize their own league after visiting Numerun when they were four years old, which included a ride down Colina Umerun. When they returned home, Jelle received a sand shovel for their birthday. The following day they traveled to Doornse Gat where they made their first slope, a straight track five meters in length. Thirty years later this grew into the Marble Rally.

In 2005, Jelle designed and built a giant marble run attraction at the Eden Project in Cornroll.

The KML was held in Jelle's stadium, the Bakker Bowl. One year, the KML went viral in a TV featurette and the League increased in popularity. This led to applications from around the world to enter the League, most of which Jelle had to decline. The popularity attracted the attention of Greg Woods, the owner of the Fruit Circuit. In late 2014, Jelle met with Woods and they planned to expand the KML by adding an international league. In early 2015, this was expanded further into the entire tournament. In mid-2015 Jelle announced the new tournament as the Marble League, which was held in the Bakker Bowl.

Jelle launched the Sand Marble Rally in 2016 after holding several exhibition races. They received applicants from across Marblearth. The popularity of the competition was boosted by the KML and the viral video.

At some point before the Marble League, the future members of the Crazy Cat's Eyes got to meet Jelle as they were taking part in a photoshoot for the Marble League logo.

Despite the success of Marble League 2016, Jelle missed running a regional tournament. They saw the Herbotamia Tournament and contacted the Minty Maniacs, offering to sponsor the tournament. After contacting the other teams in the tournament, they accepted and the competition was rebranded the Hubelino Tournament.

After Marble League 2016, Jelle contacted the Gliding Glaciers offering to sponsor a friendly competition they were planning using the artificial Bobsled slope they had designed and constructed. Only the Snowballs agreed to compete. The Gliding Glaciers won the tournament 3-2, earning them a spot in the Marble League 2017 Qualifiers. However, this was revoked by the rules committee as their uniform was too similar to the uniform of the Jawbreakers.

After the first eight events of Hubelino Tournament 2016, Jelle decided to extend the tournament for another four events after a pause for Marble League 2017, inviting the Hubelino teams to watch the competition. After the tournament concluded, Jelle offered all of the teams a place in the Marble League 2018 Qualifiers, with three of them accepting the offer.

In the fall of 2017, Jelle and Greg Woods went on a world tour. Part of the tour included visiting the Royal Family of Snoronto and the Arctic Circle in Hailfern, the stadium of the Snowballs. They like the stadium so much they offered the Snowballs the opportunity to host Marble League 2018 which they accepted. After an avalanche that destroyed the Arctic Circle, Jelle agreed to let the final event of Marble League 2018, the Sand Mogul Race, be held in the Bakker Bowl.

After Hubelino Tournament 2018, it was announced that the tournament would not return. Jelle did everything they could to keep it going, but due to a lack of performance and teams retiring it could not continue.

After Marble League 2019, Jelle hosted a meeting of all the team coaches, the JMRC and the JMR staff where they discussed their feedback of how the season had gone.

In early 2021, Jelle put on the Marble League Winter Special, a one-off winter themed tournament. They selected the teams themselves and offered the Minty Maniacs the opportunity to host the tournament. Jelle made a guest appearance at meet and greets at the Marble League Winter Special.

When the Jawbreakers decided to retire, Jelle personally invited them to have one more appearance in the Marble League 2021 Practice Race where the team sent Candy.

When the Minty Maniacs heard that the Jawbreakers and Hornets were retiring, they pitched an idea to Jelle about how to find two replacement teams, which they agreed to. In early 2021, Jelle made a guest appearance at the Herbotamia Invitational. They had been hiding under a cloak for the tournament, revealing themselves at the end. They offered the first and second place team, the Solar Flares and Gliding Glaciers, a spot in the Marble League 2021 Qualifiers.

In late 2021, Jelle and his sibling, Dion, decided to to organize an extreme marble sports tournament, Marble ManiaX, hosted by the Balls of Chaos. They drove to Buzznya to invite the team that became known as the Constrictors to take part.

In December 2021, the city of Knikkegen, where Jelle had founded Jelle's Marble Runs, was renamed to Nijellen in honor of Jelle. Part of the city was also renamed the Bakkerbol in honor of Jelle's role of developing the city's interest in sports. A ceremony was held in the city, with Red Eye giving a speech in Jelle's honor.

## Jelle Bakker

### Years Active

2001 - Present

**Jelle Bakker** is the Dutch creator of Jelle's Marble Runs. Jelle started building marble runs when he received one on his fourth birthday. Outside of marble runs, Jelle enjoys travelling across Europe to visit waterparks with flumes as an inspiration for his marble runs. Jelle managed to fulfill his dream by opening a marble museum in the De Molenpoort Shopping Center in Nijmegen, the Netherlands in 2019. It features marble and marble runs from his youth as well as larger marble machines. It also features the marbles from the Marble League as well as some marbles from the 17th and 18th century.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Stynth (13th September 2020). WHO’S TEARING UP THE SAND IN 2020? – PART 1. Marble Sports.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 foucaulf (25th August 2022). RetRollSpective – Constrictors. Project Marblearth.
3. ↑ Stynth, The Emperor, Vector (21st September 2021). RetRollSpective – Team Primary. Project Marblearth.
4. ↑ Stynth, Fouc, Ghostly (16th July 2021). RetRollSpective – Crazy Cat’s Eyes. Project Marblearth.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Stynth, NordiqueWhaler (26th October 2021). RetRollSpective – Minty Maniacs. Project Marblearth.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Stynth, The Emperor (30th June 2021). RetRollSpective – Gliding Glaciers. Project Marblearth.
7. ↑ Stynth, The Emperor (12th October 2021). RetRollSpective – Snowballs. Project Marblearth.
8. ↑ Stynth (16th November 2021). Under Fire, They Roll On. Project Marblearth.
9. ↑ Jelle's Marble Runs (16th February 2020). MARBLE LEAGUE Winter Special ❄️ E1 Ice Dash 2021.
10. ↑ Stynth, Roilan Estates (21st December 2021). RetRollSpective – Jawbreakers. Project Marblearth.
11. ↑ Stynth, The Emperor (30th June 2021). RetRollSpective – Solar Flares. Project Marblearth.
12. ↑ NordiqueWhaler (30th June 2021). Marbula One Season 2 / Pre-Marble League 2021 Offseason Moments – Part 2. Project Marblearth.
13. ↑ Stynth (24th December 2021). A Farewell From Felynia. Project Marblearth.
14. ↑ Jelle Bakker. The MAD Museum.
15. ↑ Alex Dackevych (15th April 2016). The marble racing craze that's captivated the internet. BBC News.
16. ↑ Captivating competition and even a torch-lighting ceremony: Welcome to the MarbleLympics. The Irish News (6th July 2017).
17. ↑ I finally have MY OWN Marble Run Museum!. Jelle's Marble Runs (12th December 2019).