Olympic Diary: Marit Bouwmeester

Marit Bouwmeester (NED), the defending Laser Radial Olympic champion, provides an update on preparing for the rescheduled Games from her home in the Netherlands

Tell us about your memories of Rio 2016.
I won an Olympic gold medal in 2016. It was just great to be on the top step of the podium after being second in the London 2012 Olympics. I was very much looking forward to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, but obviously public health is the most important thing, so hopefully we can do the Olympics next year in 2021.

What has lockdown been like for you? How did you train and keep fit onshore while you weren’t allowed to sail?
To be honest, lockdown wasn’t too bad for me as I bought a very lovely house. I haven’t been able to spend much time at home, so it was really nice to spend that time here. In Holland we had this “intelligence lockdown” so we were still able to go on the streets. I had my own gym in the back yard so I was able to keep fit, so it wasn’t too bad.

With Tokyo 2020 being rescheduled to 2021, what are your plans for the next 12 months, and how will you prepare and train for another year of Olympic campaigning?
The Olympics will be next year, but it’s quite uncertain when we can travel – if we can go to Tokyo this year or not. I’m happy that summertime has arrived in Holland, so the water is not too cold to sail, and I’ll just train here until there will be events or we can go to Tokyo. Hopefully the Olympics will be next year – fingers crossed.

Tokyo Olympic Sailing Program
Men’s One Person Dinghy – Laser
Women’s One Person Dinghy – Laser Radial
Men’s Two Person Dinghy – 470
Women’s Two Person Dinghy – 470
Men’s Skiff – 49er
Women’s Skiff – 49erFx
Men’s One Person Dinghy Heavy – Finn
Men’s Windsurfing – RS:X
Women’s Windsurfing – RS:X
Mixed Multihull – Nacra 17

Original dates: July 24 to August 9, 2020
Revised dates: July 23 to August 8, 2021

Details: https://tokyo2020.org/en/games/schedule/olympic/