Fleur Jong

Started: She took up the sport seriously in 2015 in Arnhem, Netherlands. She started focusing on long jump in July 2019. (paralympic.org, 13 Nov 2020; Athlete, 06 Nov 2019, 16 Jul 2017) Reason: Dutch Para sprinter Marlou van Rhijn invited her to a talent day for Para athletes. "After I lost my legs I was trying to find a new sport with which I could improve my health and make the best of my new situation. Athletics provided me with lots of general skills and challenged me every day. I started falling in love with it quickly. I think it gave me a purpose. I was first trying to get back to my old life, but I was not the old me anymore. So, I was constantly confronted with that fact. And I was not confronted with that fact anymore because I found a new sport. I found athletics." (paralympic.org, 13 Nov 2020; Athlete, 06 Nov 2019; wandelgangen.psg.nl, 21 Jan 2015) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (olympics.com, 17 Jan 2024) Additional Info: LONG JUMP She was initially afraid to try the long jump but has since come to love the discipline. "It looked so dangerous, being a double amputee, but in 2019 I finally gave it a try and I loved it. My teammates and my coach were always trying to get me to do it and when I finally did, I felt so excited. Now I love being on the runway. I feel the excitement and the danger. It is a different kind of excitement than with sprinting, which I never experienced before. Now I cannot live without long jump. Sprinting is my first love, but jumping is my newest love." (Athlete, 06 Nov 2019) RETIREMENT THOUGHTS She considered retiring from Para athletics during her year-long rehabilitation period after undergoing surgery on her left leg in August 2018. "I was in such bad shape after surgery, nothing would heal. At one moment we felt like it would be a miracle if I could just walk normally again. I had given up on sports. The feeling hit me in September-October [2018] and I just felt like I had to quit. I am so happy that all those hours I put in when I couldn't run have paid me back now. It's a relief, now I can finally move on. I can do this. I believe in myself again." (paralympic.org, 13 Nov 2020, 31 Aug 2019) FOUNDATION In 2017 she set up the Para Atletiek Foundation with Dutch teammate Marlene van Gansewinkel and coach Guido Bonsen to support and motivate Para athletes. "My mission is to show that an impairment does not have to be a limitation. You can do so much more than you think. [Dutch Para snowboarder] Bibian Mentel helped me a lot. I hope everyone gets that support. From 2017 on this has been a very special journey and I am so proud of the team we put together and how we also give back to society. It feels good to put in the efforts for the foundation." (clientenbelangamsterdam.nl, 27 Mar 2024; Athlete, 06 Nov 2019; zest-magazine.nl, 31 May 2019)