The idea for a Thor nude calendar was first proposed years ago, but on the boat last season, Danielle and I decided to kick-start the project. That night Joël and Kiki came on board and the committee was born. The timing was perfect with the release date coinciding with the lustrum.
There was the worry that not enough people would sign up to be stars of the calendar, but luckily that’s not an issue in Thor. Around 50 people were willing to volunteer their good looks! Once we had the models, we had to come up with the scenes for each month. So over drinks, as usual, we brainstormed the various ways we could represent Thor with naked people.
The photo shoots were a lot of fun for everyone involved. We ran into some awkward moments where staff of a nearby day-care centre began setting up for the day while we were in the middle of the try-scoring shot (basically jumping around in the mud naked). Also the big naked hug (aka the scrum photo) was taken in front of them. But luckily we were fully clothed before the young children arrived.

Lastly, we wanted this process to have a bigger impact than just having fun within Thor, so we decided to give the proceeds to a charity called Spieren voor Spieren. Thor is a sports society, but sadly not everyone has the luxury of being able to play rugby. Spieren voor Spieren aims to make the lives of children with muscle diseases better. They organise fun events for the children effected by muscle diseases, as well as run a medical centre where research can take place. In the end we raised more than 900 euros.
All in all, the calendar was a huge success. A big thank-you goes out to all the models who did an awesome job, and our awesome committee, thank you: Danielle, Joël, and Kiki. I hope this won’t be that last nude calendar to come out of Thor!

-Luka van de Sype