“If you have a positive outlook on life, you will get more”

Ermeloër Jaap de Vries has been allowed to participate in the Paralympic Games four times and has won gold three times. “I was rejected on the sports test and thought I would never be able to play football again.”

The Paralympic Games are in full swing. Lisa Kruger from Harderwijk also shines in the pool, but there is also a sports hero in Ermelo: Jaap de Vries has been allowed to participate in the Games on several occasions.

Refuse

When he was eight, Jaap was rejected as a football player. “At that time, sports tests were still passed before you were allowed to participate in a sport. In the sports test, I was rejected and I could forget to play football. But nothing has turned out to be less true. Jaap was examined at the Pius hospital in Harderwijk. There he got the go-ahead and that’s how De Vries started playing football at Horst Football Club. “I stood out by playing football, I was offered a chance to play for the Dutch Paralympic team and the adventure began.”

Paralympic of Ermelo

In 1988, he played his first Paralympic match with his soccer team in Seoul, South Korea. “I was a captain at the time and we won the award.” Also in 1992 in Barcelona (Spain) Jaap played, as in 1996 in Atlanta (United States) and in 2000 in Sydney (Australia). “We won three times out of four.

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Barcelona

Because the Ermeloër has participated several times as a high level athlete in the Paralympic Games and has played various World Cups, he has seen a lot of people. “I’ve been to Rio, St. Petersburg and Barcelona, ​​among others. I will never forget those moments and I enjoyed the trips. The longer we stayed in the country, the more time we had to explore the city and its surroundings. It was beautiful and pleasant.

Barcelona still holds a special place in my heart.

Before the match, the team was driven to the stadium by bus. “In Barcelona, ​​we climbed the mountain with the team. We saw the spectators go up and they got higher and higher as we went up. We won the gold medal in this game.

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For example, Jaap still regularly visits Barcelona. “I love the sea, the temperature and the atmosphere of the country. I often returned to the Spanish capital. I visited the stadium and felt the hairs stand on end; Goosebumps. “Today he doesn’t go to the Barcelona football stadium very often.” I took my children with me, but in the end it was an experience that I had myself. it can be difficult.

What’s in it for you?

He also brought a lot to the Ermeloër. “In 1996, the former Queen Beatrix knighted me in the Catshuis. I am also in the book ‘The top 500; the best Dutch athletes of the century ”. Johan Cruyff, for example, is in the book and only five disabled athletes. I am one of them and I am proud of it.

In addition, Jaap would like to add another positive note. “I had a disability due to the lack of oxygen at birth. Sometimes I wonder if I would have played football for the national team if I hadn’t had this limitation. But on the other hand: I am now high in my frequency; I am very positive. If you have a positive outlook on life, you will get a lot more.

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meteorologist

Now that Jaap is no longer on the pitch as a Paralympic athlete, he still runs his businesses (including one with wooden picnic tables) and predicts the weather on a daily basis. We also ask him to forecast the weather every month for indebuurt.nl/randmeren. In July 2020, he spoke of his vocation as a local meteorologist in the article: Ermelose Jaap: “I predict the weather better than meteorologists”

Paralympic athlete from Harderwijk

In 2021, there will also be a sports hero from our region at the Paralympic Games; the Harderwijk Lisa Kruger. She won the Games in 2016 and this year she has already won a silver medal. Are you curious when she should swim? Consult its bathing schedules here.

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