Lisa Kruger

Started: She took up the sport in 2011 at age 11 in Harderwijk, Netherlands. She first competed in Para swimming in 2012 in Eindhoven, Netherlands. (Athlete, 28 Aug 2024; lisakruger.nl, 15 Sep 2019) Reason: She tried modern pentathlon when she was younger, and swimming was her strongest discipline. "I signed up for modern pentathlon and I really liked it. But in 2010, the condition of my arm declined really fast. My mum got scared that if I fell from a horse, my wrist would break again. I also struggled with shooting. Because two out of the five sports had become an issue, my mother and I decided it was time for me to do another sport. Swimming was my best event so we signed me up for swimming. I liked it even better." (Athlete, 28 Aug 2024; lisakruger.nl, 15 Sep 2019; TEDx Talks YouTube channel, 21 Nov 2017) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. Outside of sport she would like to become a doctor. (Athlete, 28 Aug 2024; knzb.nl, 22 Feb 2023) Awards: In 2018 and 2019 she was named Sportswoman of the Year at the Harderwijk Sports Awards in the Netherlands. (lisakruger.nl, 08 Dec 2020; hetkontaktharderwijk.nl, 19 Jan 2019) In 2016 she was named Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau in the Netherlands. (lisakruger.nl, 15 Sep 2019) She was voted the 2016 Sportswoman of the Year in Amersfoort, Netherlands. (lisakruger.nl, 15 Sep 2019) She received the 2013 Johan Cruyff Award for her achievements in Dutch national swimming competitions. (woelwaters.nl, 30 Jun 2013) Additional Info: OTHER ACTIVITIES She has worked as manager of a social media account called 'paraswimming'. "I enjoy doing that. And more with Instagram than TikTok. It is important to publicise what we do in the stories we post. You notice that people like that and sympathise with us. In this way we create a large group of followers that we take with us to Paris [the 2024 Paralympic Games]." (knzb.nl, 22 Feb 2023) TATTOO In December 2019 she had the Japanese character for 'water' tattooed on the back of her neck. "Because of this element, water, I have a dream, a purpose in life and a hobby that turned into a job. I'm concluding the 2010s with a tattoo that captures the whole decade for me. I started swimming in 2011 and started Para swimming in 2012. Back then my goal was to reach the Tokyo Paralympics, but things went quicker than expected. I started swimming in 2011, became Paralympic champion in 2016, and ended the decade by becoming world champion in 2019." (Instagram profile, 24 Dec 2019; Twitter profile, 24 Dec 2019)

Sporting Relatives: Her mother Natascha Vervoort represented the Netherlands in rhythmic gymnastics. (Athlete, 28 Aug 2024; r-gymnast.bplaced.net, 01 Jan 2024)