“I think it has always been super small steps, since I started snowboarding and ended up in the Dutch team,” says Van der Velden about his progression. “And now all of a sudden it comes out and I can reap the benefits.”
In any case, the top form is just in time, after a year full of injuries. In March last year, Van der Velden suffered an ankle injury that cost him the end of the season, in September he was sidelined again for two months with a knee injury.
Bubble in a bungalow
So the motto for Beijing with two weeks to go is: stay healthy, especially now that the corona virus is still rampant. Van der Velden, who has already had covid once and has been vaccinated three times, is not taking any risks.
“When I get home, I will go into isolation for the most part. We have arranged a bungalow somewhere where we go in with a large part of the team, so that we minimize all contacts and hopefully can go to the Games corona-free.”
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