In 2016 I made my first meters over the water. My uncle taught me the basics of windsurfing and I was directly addicted to the power of the water, the wind, the feeling of freedom and defying the elements! With my savings I soon bought my own windsurf board and sail. Those didn’t fit under the straps of my bicycle, but luckily my parents were nice enough to bring me to the water every windy weekend.

When I turned eighteen, I didn’t realize how fast I had to get my driver’s license. Because the moment I was allowed to drive, I was then allowed to travel to the water myself, with my board on the roof of the car. This allowed me to be on the water more often, and I was improving more rapidly. As a result, my passion for windsurfing swelled to tsunami-like proportions. To really make a leap, I decided to focus on windsurfing for one whole year. I took a gap year and left for windsurfing paradise Tenerife.

This year was my point of no return and windsurfing has been a real part of my life ever since. That’s why I organized my life in such a way that I could spend as much time on the water as possible. I combined the feeling of freedom you experience on the water, with the freedom from entrepreneurship. I founded my recruitment agency StarGo, so I was able to work remotely: wind, water and WIFI became primary necessities of life.

Because I don’t want to develop myself solely as an athlete, but also as a person, I made the decision to study Business Administration at the ‘Vrije’ University of Amsterdam. The combination of my sport, entrepreneurship and study is challenging, but under healthy pressure is where I perform best.

Every year in winter I can be found in Tenerife for three months, where I train with the best slalom windsurfers in the world. Also in the Netherlands I spend as much time as possible on the water. And five times a week, I dive into the gym under guidance of my trainer, friend and sponsor Jeroen,to get as strong and fit as possible. This way I can deliver peak performance on the water.

Windsurfers who practice their sport at a a (semi-)professional level train all year round. So do I. But summer is competition season; and there are competitions all over the world. During the summer of 2022 I will participate in my first ever world championship. With only one goal: to become the best slalom windsurfer in the world.