When Hetty van de Wouw joined the top sports selection in 2016, she looked with admiration at the track cyclists in the rainbow jersey. Now that the 27-year-old Kaatsheuvelse is herself a three-time world champion, she can wear the champion’s jersey at the coming European Championships. “The first time I put it on, it felt like it wasn’t allowed.”
With a silver keirin medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Van de Wouw already showed that he belongs to the absolute world top. A year later, the World Cup was really her tournament with gold in the sprint, team sprint and kilometer time trial. “It feels very special that I can call myself world champion. It is not that my life has changed. After the Games I was recognized more often on the street or in the supermarket, but it is not that it has changed much.”
During the European Championships in Konya, Turkey, which starts next Sunday, a lot of attention will be paid to Van de Wouw. The role as favorite is new for ‘Hetty Raketty’. “I feel that eyes are on me, although that is more of an outside thing. On the track I still have to do the same as before. I know, partly because of the Olympic Games and the World Cup, that I can rely on myself. I am certainly not a one-hit wonder, I know how to deliver a good performance.”
De Kaatsheuvelse does not expect opponents to adapt to her. “When you cycle on the road, you can apply tactics with a team. On the track it is much more individual, you do what works for you.”
She will cycle in the rainbow jersey in four parts of this European Championship. The sweater she once aspired to as a youngster on her bike. “Last year at the National Championships I put on the jersey for a day. The first day I was sick, but when I woke up the next morning I really wanted to cycle. That was not a success, I had to throw up and needed 45 minutes to recover. This European Championship I can finally put it on, I’m going to enjoy it.”
The European Championships in Konya are the last major tournament that does not count as a qualifying moment for the 2028 Olympic Games. Van de Wouw sets the bar high for himself. “We don’t have many competitions, it’s fun to see where you stand. It’s important for me to continue developing, I’m not yet at the end of my learning curve. Of course I’m aiming for the podium, but above all I want to have fun.”
