Chelsey Heijnen will box the semi-finals at her first World Cup with the seniors without pressure. The 23-year-old Roosendaal is aiming for a ‘gold’ award in the class up to 63 kilograms. On Wednesday afternoon she will compete with the Algerian Imane Khelif for a place in the World Cup final. According to the national coach Sayit Yanik, anything is possible. “The odds are equal.”
“The goal was to reach the top 8 and thereby obtain the A status of the NOC*NSF sports umbrella,” says national coach Sayit Yanik. “After that, we secretly adjusted the goal to take a medal, because that was just in it. That also worked. Chelsey was very tense before her first match at this World Cup, she felt the pressure. But now she is ‘free’ in her head. It looks like she has wings. Then almost everything works.”
With NOC*NSF’s A status, Heijnen, who already collected almost 24,000 euros in prize money at the World Cup, will have more financial options in her route to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
“She can now focus on boxing full-time. Previously she had to do it mainly with her own resources, but now she gets support. It is great for the Dutch boxing sport that a new generation is rising after the period of Nouchka Fontijn. Chelsey is still very young, she needs a lot of hours and years to get to that level, but if she continues like this, she will be fine.”
Fontijn took silver at the Rio 2016 Games and ended her career in Tokyo last year with Olympic bronze.
Heijnen was initially a talented rugby player, who even made it to national youth teams. On the advice of a rugby coach, the Roosendaal started boxing in 2015 to improve her footwork. It soon became apparent that she also has a talent for this. Within two years she became European champion under 18.
“She has a bit more strength than others and does not avoid anyone. That is sometimes an advantage in boxing,” Yanik says with a laugh from Istanbul. “Her rugby background comes in handy. She can take a beating. The base is very good at Chelsey.”
The semi-final is on Wednesday afternoon around four o’clock. A possible final is Thursday evening.
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