Julia van der Sprong

In this Dutch name, the surname is van der Sprong, not Sprong.
Julia van der Sprong
Personal information
Born (1999-09-27) 27 September 1999 (age 25)
Gouda, South Holland, Netherlands
Sport
CountryNetherlands
SportWheelchair basketball
Disabilityspinal cord injury
Disability class3.5
ClubDeVeDo
Medal record
Women's wheelchair basketball
Representing  Netherlands
Paralympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Team
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Team
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2018 Hamburg Team
Gold medal – first place 2022 Dubai Team
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2019 Rotterdam Team
Gold medal – first place 2021 Madrid Team
Gold medal – first place 2023 Rotterdam Team

Julia van der Sprong (born 27 September 1999) is a Dutch wheelchair basketball player (3.5 disability class). Van der Sprong plays for DeVeDo (Ermelo) where she plays as a forward.[1]

In 2018, van der Sprong made her World Championship debut with the Dutch national team during the 2018 World Championship in Hamburg, where the Dutch team won gold.[2] With the Dutch team, she also won gold at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo[3][4] and the 2022 World Championships in Dubai.[5]

Background

Van der Sprong was an active hockey player and speed skater in her youth. However, at the age of sixteen, she suffered a spinal cord injury as a result of an acute inflammation in her spinal cord. After her recovery, she could still run short distances, but could no longer play sports as before.[6] During her rehabilitation, she was introduced to wheelchair basketball and turned out to have a talent for it.[7] In addition to wheelchair basketball, Van der Sprong completed a Bachelor of Business Administration at Radboud University in Nijmegen.[6]

References

  1. ^ "DeVeDo - Selectie". devedo.nl. Archived from the original on 16 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Overtuigende start Orange Angels rolstoelbasketbal op het WK". teamnl.org. 16 August 2018. Archived from the original on 16 July 2023.
  3. ^ Pavitt, Michael (4 September 2021). "The Netherlands win maiden women's wheelchair basketball gold at Tokyo 2020". InsideTheGames.biz. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Wheelchair Basketball Results Book" (PDF). 2020 Summer Paralympics. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  5. ^ "Rolstoeltennisster De Groot in de prijzen bij Sportgala, De Jong Parasportman van 2023". nos.nl. 20 December 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Als rolstoelbasketballer heeft Julia van der Sprong gewoon een A-status". voxweb.nl. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 16 July 2023.
  7. ^ "Goudse Julia van der Sprong gaat voor gouden plak". goudsdagblad.nl. 25 August 2021. Archived from the original on 2 September 2023.