Highlight: Tijmen Snel

There are a lot of talented people in many fields on the campus of the TU Delft, including Sports. Every month, we put one of our elite athletes in the spotlight. This month, the honour goes to speed skater Tijmen Snel.

Last November the first  important tournament of this season took place: the qualification tournament for the World Cup in Thialf. How did it go?
“Fantastic! At the 500 meters I skated a personal best. Before the start of the tournament, I had a good feeling about it. It’s great that my achievements reflect my feelings. Unfortunately, the 1500 meters didn’t go wel. A day later, I performed way better during the 1000 meters, which resulted in another personal best. Overall, it was a successful tournament. Especially because it was the first time I finished in the top ten of the general classification in a senior tournament.”

During the training period, which started in May, you  occassionaly trained with the Jumbo team of amongst others Kjeld Nuis and Sven Kramer. How was it?
“Super! Those guys train with higher speed than I do normally. I learned a lot. I hope that I can be part of a commercial team myself next year. But what the odds are? That’s a hard question. But I think there is a realistic chance to make the move if I can develop myself in the way that I did in the last period of time.

During the end of December (from Friday 28 until Sunday 30 December) the Dutch Speed Skating Championships take place. What are your goals?
“I hope that I can reach the same level as I did during the World Cup qualifiers. Maybe I can skate even faster on the 500 meters and the 1000 meters. The goal for the 1500 meters is to perform way better in comparison to the World Cup qualification.”

At this moment, what is your biggest goal in your speed skating career? 
I hope that I can get a spot in a commercial team, so that I can focus on speed skating completely. Currently, I train in The Hague. By becoming part of a commercial team in an elite sports environment I can develop myself even more. In the long run, my aim is to become one of the best speed skater in the world, particularly in the 1000 and 1500 meters.

Next to speed skating, you study Mechanical Engineering. How do you combine your studies and elite sports?
I really like the fact, that I have something that keeps me busy next to speed skating. But it is very important to keep the balance. I expect that at the end of this academic year I will have finished my bachelor, more or less. Next year I want to be fully focused on speed skating. After all, if I am going to live in Heerenveen, it will be a lot harder to combine my education and sports.

For more information about study and elite sports, click <link en sc elite-sports>here.