Esmé Stollenga
In 2011 Esmé Stollenga had to quit speedskating due to a back injury. She had to undergo surgery twice and couldn’t speedskate for 4 years. In 2015 she made an awesome comeback resulting in great performances. Unfortunately, at the end of that season her back injury returned and she had to undergo surgery again. Esmé was back at square one, but she’s definitely not a quitter. After her rehabilitation she started speedskating again. Last year she finished in the top 10 of the national single distance championships and the national sprint championships. This season her goal is to compete in the national single distance championships for neo-seniors and next year she wants to reach the top in speedskating. Besides her sportsperformances, Esmé studies nursery. She will soon finish her bachelor’s degree.
Sophie Souwer
Exactly 10 years before the International Championships, past September, it was the first time for Sophie she sat in a rowing-boat. Quickly it became clear that she had a talent for rowing and for a
few years she had a talent for rowing and she started training a lot in the four, the pair and the single scull. She got a spot at the National Training-center in Amsterdam and finished her studies to
become a midwife. In 2016 she attended the Olympic Games in Rio the Janeiro, where she earned a 6 th place in the eight. In 2017 she managed to become national champion in the single sculls and above all, together with her crew, she became world champion in the sculling four! Never before a Dutch women squad became world champions in an boat type which participates at the Olympic Games!
Celine Koets
When the ACLO approached us to ask if we, Tennisclub Albertus Magnus, would like to nominate someone for the athlete of the year award, the choice was easy. We have several top athletes with a lot of talent who qualify for this titel, as our first team plays at an exceptionally high level. We play in the highest division of al student tennis clubs of the Netherlands and we owe this to the commitment, passion and motivation of our selection team players. Nevertheless, there is one player who stands out because she achieved something exceptional last year.
All performances combined; Celine plays 1st class mixed on Sunday and with her competition team, TC BOO (TAM 1), she ended on a unique 2nd place. This is very special since there is no student tennis club in the Netherlands that acts at such a high level at all. She also did a fantastic job in the tournament season, with a final spot in the women’s singles of the Meppel Open NRT** (National Ranking Tournament) and victory in the women’s doubles at the Bontekoe NRT*. And as if that is not enough already, Celine has won our/her own TAM open NRT* as icing on the cake, in both the singles and in the women’s doubles. A performance of size!
It is very unique for someone who studies to play as high as Celine on national level. It often turns out to be difficult to combine high level sports with studying. However, Celine shows that this is indeed possible!
