And so now it is time to look ahead and give meaning to a life outside the ring. One thing is clear, she will never move. She is a Nieuwedieper through and through. “Den Helder is just my town. I was born and raised there Beachcomber of the Year been. My family and friends live here. You have everything here: the peace and quiet, the beach. It’s just wonderful.”
Her gym, in one of the monumental buildings on Willemsoord, has now become a warm place for many athletes in the city. She wants to spend even more time on this in the near future.
“For example, we give boxing lessons here to people with Parkinson’s disease. When they are boxing, they are not a patient for a moment. You are only a boxer and only have to think about punches and kicks. I hope that the lesson offer, together with team, to be able to expand.”
Boxing helps with withdrawal
Baars also helps another group of people who can use the sport to solve their problems. “We train people here who… have a serious problem with an addiction and take steps to get rid of it. You just notice that the training allows them to unload and no longer have to think about the problem for a while. If you’ve had a shitty day, you throw a bag together and everything goes out. You just notice that it works.”
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