{"id":922806,"date":"2026-10-06T13:22:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T13:22:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/922806\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T13:22:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T13:22:15","slug":"demi-vollering-looks-up-to-kobe-bryant-as-sporting-inspiration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/922806\/","title":{"rendered":"Demi Vollering looks up to Kobe Bryant as sporting inspiration"},"content":{"rendered":"

Demi Vollering\u2019<\/a>s season is almost over, but after the past few weeks, it really can\u2019t get any better. The Dutch cyclist won both the World<\/a> and European Road Cycling<\/a> Championships, just a week apart. Vollering reflected on those achievements in an interview with NOS<\/a> during the rest day at the European Championships in Slovenia.World Champion sees life’s up and downs as ‘all part of the process’\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the interview, Vollering spoke about someone she looks up to: the great American basketball player Kobe Bryant, who died in 2020. \u201cI think he\u2019s a truly inspiring man. The way he dedicated his entire life to elite sports\u2014that inspires me a great deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

“And I recognize a lot of that in myself, too. The way he was focused on every detail and was truly obsessed with his sport. I think I have that in me, too,” said the 29-year-old Dutch cyclist.<\/p>\n

Vollering gives an example. \u201cI always say: life is one big process, and ups and downs are automatically part of it. And when you\u2019re on an upswing, you think, \u2018Ah, now I\u2019ve figured out life,\u2019 and you feel like you have to hold on to that. And precisely because you start clinging to it so desperately, you\u2019re bound to experience that downward spiral again at some point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more below the photo!<\/p>\n

\"demi-vollering-8\"\/<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering won the European and World Championships.<\/p>\n

Vollering, after winning the World Championship title: ‘still the same person’<\/p>\n

The cyclist says her life hasn’t really changed since she became world champion in Montreal.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpeaking of Kobe\u2026 he puts it so well: it doesn\u2019t matter whether you win or lose; the next day, you get up and just go back to doing what you always do.\u201d<\/p>\n

“So that’s kind of how it feels, actually. Yes, I won a wonderful race\u2014I’m incredibly proud of that\u2014and especially of getting to wear such a beautiful jersey. But on the other hand, you’re still the same person, the same cyclist. You\u2019ve achieved something wonderful with a lot of great people around you, but that\u2019s not the end of it,\u201d said Vollering.<\/p>\n

“Definitely beforehand, you really did have that feeling of: yeah, you\u2019re kind of obligated to win because of your standing, you know? Even after the Tour, we actually went into the World Championships thinking: honestly, the season can\u2019t get any better from here. So if you become world champion now, that\u2019s a nice bonus, but it\u2019s not a must or anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

“And then you arrive in Canada, and that mindset changes right away, and you really start to feel like, ‘Yeah, but I have to do it,'” Vollering admits honestly.<\/p>\n

Read more below the photo!<\/p>\n

\"demi-vollering-nederland\"\/<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering with the Dutch national team in Canada.<\/p>\n

Vollering’s hunger isn’t satisfied yet, LA 2028 is on the horizon<\/p>\n

Vollering is still on the hunt for more wins, following a record-breaking season.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, she\u2019ll compete in the European Time Trial Championships,<\/a> but secretly, she\u2019s already looking ahead to 2028. \u201cThe job\u2019s not finished,\u201d as Kobe Bryant would say.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Olympics, of course\u2014they\u2019re definitely high on the list, too. The course isn\u2019t entirely known yet, of course, but it is in the hills, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

“So I hope that will be a really great course, too, one where we can come up with a solid plan. And then you hope you’ll be able to head into it in top form and that it all comes together.”<\/p>\n

“But of course, there are still plenty of other great things ahead. I just really love winning and getting better. So next year, too, in races I’ve won before,” said Vollering.<\/p>\n

“Take Li\u00e8ge, for example: that\u2019s the one I\u2019d most like to win every year. Or Amstel: those are absolutely beautiful races that I always love to line up for. So it\u2019s not hard at all to get pumped up for them and train hard.”<\/p>\n

“Even if you\u2019ve already won them a few times, and even if you have a rainbow jersey, that just gives you extra motivation,\u201d she concludes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Demi Vollering\u2019s season is almost over, but after the past few weeks, it really can\u2019t get any better.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":922807,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,19488,225903,82,20364],"class_list":["post-922806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-demi-vollering","tag-latest-cycling-news","tag-sports","tag-womens-cycling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/922806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=922806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/922806\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/922807"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=922806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=922806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=922806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}