Barbara van Bergen

Netherlands

Alpine Skiing

Biography

Impairment information

Type of Impairment

Spinal Cord Injuries

Origin of Impairment

Acquired

Classification

LW11

Further personal information

Occupation

Motivational Speaker

Languages

Dutch, English, French, German

Higher education

Communications - Ichthus University of Applied Sciences: Rotterdam, NED

Sport specific information

When and where did you begin this sport?

She first tried skiing in 2007 in Kaunertal, Austria. She began to pursue the sport more seriously in 2013.

Why this sport?

"Winter sports are an important part of my life. After my accident I knew one thing for sure: I can still do winter sports, no longer snowboarding but I can ride in a sit-down ski. That way I can still do what I think is fantastic, and that is out in the snow with friends."

Club / Team

CTO Papendal: Arnhem, NED

International debut

Year

2014

Competing for

Netherlands

Location

Landgraaf, NED

General interest

Nicknames

Bar [short for Barbara]. (Athlete, 07 Jul 2016)

Hobbies

Wakeboarding, cooking, travelling. (Twitter profile, 14 Nov 2020; rotterdamtopsport.nl, 01 Apr 2018; Athlete, 07 Jul 2016)

Memorable sporting achievement

Winning a bronze medal in wheelchair basketball at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. (rotterdamtopsport.nl, 01 Apr 2018)

Hero / Idol

Dutch Para alpine skiers Kees-Jan van der Klooster and Anna Jochemsen. (Athlete, 07 Jul 2016)

Injuries

In January 2015 she broke her collarbone. (capelsdagblad.nl, 12 Oct 2016)

Sporting philosophy / motto

"Nothing is impossible. Love life, live life." (IPC, 10 Feb 2018)

Other sports

Prior to the injury she sustained in 2006, she competed in athletics at national level in the Netherlands. She was also part of the Dutch wheelchair basketball team at three editions of the Paralympic Games starting in 2008 and winning bronze in 2012 and 2016. (SportsDeskOnline, 10 Jan 2019; teamnl.org, 12 Feb 2018; paralympic.org, 2017)

Ambitions

To compete at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing. "I started in Beijing [2008], that was my first Paralympics, so how cool would it be to compete there in the winter as well and have that full circle." (Facebook page, 14 Nov 2020; insidethegames.biz, 04 Nov 2019)

Impairment

She was involved in a motorcycle accident in 2006 that resulted in paraplegia. (Athlete, 07 Jul 2016)

Other information

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has served on the World Para Alpine Skiing Athlete Focus Group. (paralympic.org, 02 Apr 2020)

AMBASSADOR
She has served as an ambassador for the Dirk Kuyt Foundation in the Netherlands. The foundation supports and organises events for people with an impairment. (avontuurlijkevrouwen.nl, 22 Oct 2020)

Results

		Unit	Date	Rank

Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games (Beijing, China)
Event	Unit	Rank
Women's Tournament	Group B	2
Women's Tournament	Classification 5-6	101
Women's Tournament	Classification 5-8	202
Women's Tournament	Quarterfinal	303
Women's Tournament	Group B	9
Women's Tournament	Group B	8
Women's Tournament	Group B	5

London 2012 Paralympic Games (London, Great Britain)
Event	Unit	Date	Rank
Women	Group A	2012-08-30	1
Women	Group A	2012-08-31	4
Women	Group A	2012-09-02	8
Women	Group A - Standings	2012-09-03	2
Women	Group A	2012-09-03	10
Women	Quarterfinal	2012-09-04	303
Women	Semifinal	2012-09-06	202
Women	Bronze Medal Match	2012-09-07	102

Rio 2016 Paralympic Games (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
Event	Unit	Date	Rank
Women	Group B	2016-09-09	3
Women	Group B	2016-09-10	5
Women	Group B	2016-09-11	8
Women	Group B	2016-09-12	9
Women	Group B - Standings	2016-09-12	2
Women	Quarterfinal	2016-09-13	301
Women	Semifinal	2016-09-15	202
Women	Bronze Medal Match	2016-09-16	102

Kranjska Gora/Sella Nevea 2019 World Para Alpine Skiing Championships (Kranjska Gora/Sella Nevea, Slovenia)
Event	Unit	Date	Rank
Women's Giant Slalom Sitting	Race 1	2019-01-22	4
Women's Slalom Sitting	Race 1	2019-01-24	9999
Women's Downhill Sitting	Race 1	2019-01-30	4
Women's Super-Combined Sitting	Race 1	2019-01-31	9999
Women's Super-G Sitting	Race 1 (from SC)	2019-01-31	9999