Xan de Waard rejoins Orange’s training group. After just under six months without the Dutch team, her hunger for field hockey has not yet been satisfied. ‘I noticed last winter that I still like field hockey the most.’
De Worth last played in an Orange shirt during the gold final of the Olympics against China. When the team reunited for the first time in November after all the euphoria, the 29-year-old captain decided, after a good conversation with national coach Raoul Ehren, to temporarily pause her international career. She needed rest and a change in her schedule.
While the Netherlands played matches in a new lineup in Argentina and later in India for the Pro League, De Waard focused on her social career. She chose not to take a long vacation or otherwise unwind, but dove into working life.
De Waard wants to invest in a future for after the field hockey
‘Once you graduate and you just keep playing field hockey, companies are still going to ask what you’ve been doing lately,’ De Waard begins, just after she won the first game of the second half of the season with SCHC comfortably over Pinoké (5-2). ‘And I’m a little stressed about that. I don’t want to start at zero when I’m done with field hockey later. I think it’s important to gain experience off the field as well and invest in that.’
Xan de Waard played the first game of the second half of the season against Pinoké with SCHC on Sunday. Photo: Bart Scheulderman
The performance of SCHC’s midfielder is admirable. For the past twelve years – she debuted at seventeen – she put everything aside for her top sports career while still completing her studies. She earned her master’s degree in Econometrics and Research, but really making social meters remained difficult.
‘I have tried in the past, but working much more than twenty hours is just not possible. You can’t combine that with field hockey. And then you add little. Employers can’t rely on you. Sorry, I won’t make the deadline because I have to train. That doesn’t work. I find that super difficult,’ she says. ‘That makes sure you don’t get a lot of responsibility. When you work so few hours, you don’t know exactly what a job entails. Then you don’t get the chance to really learn what you like and therefore what you want to do after field hockey.’
Since September, the captain of the Dutch national team has been working as a sports consultant at Hypercube, a consultancy in the field of sports and mobility. She went abroad with her colleagues and led a project. Responsibilities and experiences she had never experienced before. She enjoyed that. “I like that my job has to do with sports. And that you can use data to make leagues more fun for the fans and for the players. I say this with a big wink, but I also know from a player perspective what a league looks like that doesn’t contribute optimally to the development of the sport.’
I still think field hockey is the most fun there is and I noticed that over the winter. I don’t feel like I missed anything because I made other important steps. Xan de Waard
Xan de Waard with Luna Fokke, during the quarterfinals of the Olympics. Photo: Willem Vernes
Mentally recharged again
Yet the Orange fire was still burning. ‘I still find field hockey the most fun there is and I noticed that even in the winter,’ she says. ‘I don’t feel like I missed anything because I made other important steps,’ De Waard said. But not only her social career was the reason for her Orange break. She also needed time to unwind. ‘I was very tired. I was really looking forward to the winter. Running a preparation with your team at the club in the cold. But once the time came, I was super looking forward to it. I enjoyed being on the field. I was mentally recharged.’
The months flew by. As early as the first weekend, De Waard went out with girlfriends. ‘I was never able to do that. I enjoyed it immensely. Later I also went out with my family. Normally there is never time for that either. It wasn’t until January that things got crazy. For the first time in over ten years I was not abroad. Or on a training trip. But because of all the work my day flew by.
Paris 2024 – Xan de Waard with the gold medal. Photo: Willem Vernes
Sneaking a peek at how things are going at Orange
Because of the busy work weeks, she had little time for other things. Watching the Dutch national team was out of the question. ‘The first matches in Argentina were late. Around bedtime, which is no longer possible with my work routine. I liked that too. Had deliberately taken distance. Then I shouldn’t follow them either. In India I occasionally turned on the stream. That was sometimes sneaking in during working hours. But I really didn’t analyze the entire match. Just peeking at how it was going.
In India I occasionally switched on the stream. Sometimes it was secretly during working hours. But I really didn’t analyze the entire match. Just a quick peek at how it was going. Xan de Waard
De Waard has won just about every prize there is to win in field hockey. Her trophy cabinet is bulging. Yet her field hockey hunger won’t let up. ‘It’s not about the amount of prizes, but about what I want and like. I found out that I still want this. And I’m getting an opportunity from Raoul. I’m very happy about that.
On Monday, De Waard will be back on the court with the Dutch team for the first time. ‘I am happy that I have been able to experience recently what it is like to spend a lot of time working. They support me, even when I will have fewer hours again soon. I can’t wait to join the Orange.’
Xan de Waard handed out lots of autographs Sunday after the game. Photo: Bart Scheulderman
