Niels Vink called the title Parasportsman of the Year an enormous honor on Wednesday evening. The 23-year-old wheelchair tennis player from Helmond was not only happy, but also very emotional during the NOC*NSF Sports Gala. His trainer and good friend Hans-Jurgen Striek died in September this year. “I dedicate this prize to him with one hundred percent certainty, one thousand percent even.”
During the speech after his win over Papendal, Vink had a hard time. He fought back tears and thought about Striek, the trainer he started working with at the age of 15.
“He immediately said that he saw me as a very good tennis player. I didn’t see it that way myself. He was there at my first junior tournament and also during all those other tournaments. I experienced everything with him.”
“His wife opened the door with tears in her eyes, then the news hit me.”
After winning the US Open this year, Vink heard that his trainer could no longer recover from a brain tumor. The news hit the best wheelchair tennis player in the world very hard.
“I wanted to show him my prize and brought some stuff with me. His wife opened the door with tears in her eyes, then the news hit me.”
Striek died in September of this year. Vink thus lost his trainer, but also a friend. “I would never have achieved this without him. The speech was emotional for me, it was in my head all the time. It shows how important he was to me.”
The multiple Paralympic champion owed the title of Parasportsman of the Year to another very successful sporting year.
A year that did not go smoothly, as the finals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros were lost. He then managed to win Wimbledon and the US Open. In doubles he won Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open.
“I am proud of the titles I have won and the first place in the world rankings,” says Vink, who lost both legs due to a bacterial infection at the age of 1. “But I also think it is an honor that I have become Parasportsman of the Year. How cool is it to be able to say that? The prize will get a nice place in my room, there is a nice wall where more prizes hang.”
