MY STORY
THE MOUNTAINS WEREN’T ALWAYS BEAUTIFUL.
In 2006 a motor cycle accident changed my life and left me with a spinal cord injury. Sport became my way to look forward.
My journey has taken me to five Paralympic Games, 2 Paralympic bronze medals and a world title.
But the moments that shaped me most happened far away from the podium.
BEFORE EVERYTHING CHANGED.
SPORT HAS ALWAYS BEEN PART OF WHO I AM.
Before my accident, sport was already a big part of my life. I competed in athletics at national level, combining different events throughout my carreer including pole vault. I loved training, competing and pushing myself to see what was possible.
Then, on 30 October 2006, everything changed. A motorcycle accident left me with a spinal cord injury. Suddenly, the future I had imagined for myself no longer existed.
FINDING A NEW WAY.
SPORT BECAME MY WAY FORWARD.
Rehabilitation introduced me to wheelchair basketball. What started as a new way to move soon became much more than that. A new way of life.
Within two years after my acccident I competed at my first Paralympic Games in Beijing. In London 2012 we won bronze and in Rio 2016 we brought home another bronze medal.
Sport gave me goals, a team and a reason to keep looking forward.
A NEW MOUNTAIN.
FROM THE BASKETBALL COURT TO THE MOUNTAINS.
Participating in the Paralympic world also opened my eyes to other sports and brought me to para alpine skiing.
I fell in love with the speed, the mountains and the constant challenge of finding the fastest line down.
At the Paralympic Games in Beijing 2022, I finished fourth in the Super-G. A year later in 2023, I became World Champion in downhill. After a big crash in the downhill race of the Paralympic Games in Cortina 2026, I had to take a step down and rest. Luckely I was able to finish fifth in the giant slalom.
Different sport. Different challenges. The same drive to keep developing.
WHEN RESILIENCE GETS TESTED.
FROM THE OUTSIDE, I LOOKED FINE.
But resilience isn’t a straight line.
From the outside, I looked fine. But on the inside I wasn’t the person I used to be. An injury and negative thoughts had slowly taken over and eventually became a depression. At the hardest point of my life and of my carreer, I was dropped from the national team in 2023.
Stop? Hell no.
When you hit rock bottom, you look for possibilities. I found a new coach, a new team and most importantly, trust and space to develop again.
Sometimes moving forward doesn’t mean following the plan. It means creating a new one.
NOT A STRAIGHT LINE.
THE NEXT CHAPTER IS ALREADY BEING WRITTEN.
Five Paralympic Games. Two sports. Medals, setbacks, a world title and plenty of moments when things didn’t go according to plan.
Looking back, those moments taught me more than the easy ones ever could.
Today, I’m still competing at the highest level, with the 2027 World Championships as my next goal. And beyond competition, I use what sport has taught me to create impact, on stage, in organisations and within sport itself.
Because my story isn’t about everything going to plan.
It’s about what you do when it doesn’t.
