spy head Olympics
Nina Derwael herself rates her qualification for Paris as highly as her Olympic gold in Tokyo, and not without reason. The choice to determine its own course from now on after the departure of Marjorie Heuls and Yves Kieffer turned out to be the right one.
On Wednesday, November 29, Nina Derwael (23) did her first handstand since her shoulder surgery. Exactly 100 days later and just five months after going under the knife, she got her ticket to the Olympic Games. She rates that achievement as highly as her gold in Tokyo, and not without reason. In the eyes of many, Paris was an impossible mission. But although the retiring champion on the uneven bars has nothing left to prove and could just as well have said goodbye, she decided to pick up the thread and once again spend more than 30 hours a week in the Ghent Top Sports Hall.
Around Christmas, Derwael and her team chose to put the bridge aside for a while and start hunting for the Games on a device other than her beloved one. The fact that this move became a success is due to a combination of her undeniable talent, her perseverance, the pleasure that the Truiense still finds in gymnastics after almost 21 years of gymnastics and the absence of any ailments. The choice to determine its own course and put together a team independently after the departure of Marjorie Heuls and Yves Kieffer turned out to be the right one.
Wildest dreams
Her entourage gave her peace and confidence, which led to a healthy mind in a healthy body. Even though Derwael knew that it was a competition within the competition and many competitors already had their ticket in their pocket, only in her wildest dreams would she have dared to hope that she would be freed from the qualifying pressure after three of the four World Cup rounds. . The fact that Paris is inside allows her to work quietly towards the Games.
She still has more than four months to get completely ready. It is still important to find the balance between sufficient training and preventive work, so that her damaged shoulder is not put under too much strain. Gymnastics remains a very demanding sport. Two weeks ago, Derwael already indicated that she wanted to test her skills on the bars for the first time at the European Championships in early May. She will have to improve this anyway, because the element named after her, the Derwael-Fenton, was given a lower starting value. Moreover, the competition has not stood still, with the Algerian Kaylia Nemour as the main exponent.
Championship animal
According to head coach Ulla Koch (68), warmly embraced by Derwael in Baku, an Olympic final on the beam is also not a utopia. Stress resistance is very important, and that is a major asset of Derwael. She is a championship animal, who has nerves of steel under pressure and always goes for it. No matter which device she chooses, mediocrity is not an option. But just because you are an Olympic champion does not mean you automatically end up on the podium again.
In any case, this is a boost for her and for the Flemish Gymnastics Federation. After the dramatic World Championships in Antwerp, where the women’s team missed out on an Olympic ticket, at least one Belgian gymnast will soon be present at the Eiffel Tower. Top sports manager Ruben Neyens sees this as confirmation that the choice of Koch as interim coach was the right one. However, the collaboration ends in October and, according to Neyens, it is impossible that it will be extended. In that sense, he has made things difficult for himself, especially now that Derwael seems to be planning to continue until LA 2028.
