NOS Sport•vandaag, 10:28
Badminton players are chasing an Olympic ticket: ‘As a top athlete you have to be ready for anything’
Badminton players Debora Jille and Cheryl Seinen will play the final of the Dutch Open today in Den Bosch. In turbulent times, they are chasing world ranking points that are needed for an Olympic ticket for next year. That beckons, but it hasn’t arrived yet. They won’t know more until May.
They are a bright spot in Dutch badminton, because things are not exactly going smoothly in the direction of Paris. For example, national coach Ruud Bosch quietly disappeared into the background a few weeks ago. The badminton association never communicated this to the outside world. Henri Vervoort is now taking over his duties.
In addition, Mark Caljouw struggles with mental problems. The best badminton player in the Netherlands missed out on a medal at the European Games by one point – and despite two match points in the decisive match. That would not only have meant his first European medal among the seniors, but would also have given him a starting ticket for Paris.
Don’t play freely
“That really affected me,” admits the 28-year-old Rijswijker. “Every time I’m on the court there’s a blockage. I can’t play freely. Because I don’t want to feel the pain of giving it my all again, it seems.”
Jille and Seinen final can be followed live
The badminton finals, including those of Debora Jille and Cheryl Seinen, can be followed live on Sunday afternoon via the stream on our site.
The Jille/Seinen match in the women’s doubles will probably start around 4 p.m.
Caljouw, who will now have to make every effort to get to Paris, already lost in the first round in Den Bosch. The Dutch hopes in Brabant are now pinned on Jille and Seinen, who will meet Julie Finne-Ipsen and Mai Surrow from Denmark in the final of the women’s doubles.
They are in that final battle as silver medalists at the European Games in Krakow. Selena Piek and Robin Tabing won gold in the mixed doubles. They chose a tournament in Finland over the Dutch Open, but were honored in Den Bosch.
Orange Pictures Debora Jille and Cheryl Seinen
Jille and Seinen have a title together: last year they won the Dutch Open after their opponent gave up. Their success in Poland has also given them a lot of self-confidence. “That has given us a really big boost,” says Seinen. “We had not yet achieved such a good result, although we were often close to it. To now be in the final was really great.”
The current situation in badminton does not exactly help in their efforts to take some steps forward. “It is far from ideal,” says Jille. “But we have to deal with that. As a top athlete you have to be ready for anything. This is another great test to pass.”
2023-10-15 08:44:01
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