SCHIPPERS Dafne

General
BACK PROBLEMS
In 2021 she talked about how she has dealt with ongoing back problems. "The last two years I have actually not been pain-free, or very little. In the period before that I sometimes had a lot of pain and sometimes no pain. Now there are less high peaks and deep troughs in terms of pain, but this is also not the most ideal. I know I can still run fast, the talent is still there. But my body just doesn't want to work the way I want it to work. As an athlete, you do everything to be the best and when an injury hinders you, that's frustrating. The pain will never go away and that's what hurts most. Although I know what I can or can't do, it's difficult." (ruetir.com, 11 Jul 2021; nos.nl, 28 Jun 2021)

RETURN TO BENNEMA
In late-2018 she returned to train with her long-time coach Bart Bennema after a two-year spell with US coach Rana Reider. She originally began training with Bennema in 2008 before her spell with Reider. (nrc.nl, 17 Feb 2019)

HEPTATHLON TO SPRINTING
She formerly competed in heptathlon, an event in which she won bronze at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, Russian Federation. In 2014 she decided to focus solely on sprint events. She says speed was always her strong suit in heptathlon. "It was a matter of curiosity. I just wanted to give it a try and see how far I can reach if I concentrate on the sprints. Sprinting absolutely matters in the heptathlon. Almost half the heptathlon, the 100m hurdles, the 200m and even the long jump requires a high level sprinting ability. These events have always been my strong parts." (portland2016.com, 16 Mar 2016; dafneschippers.nl, 20 Mar 2016; athleticsweekly.com, 18 Oct 2015)

She became the first female Dutch athletics competitor to win a gold medal at the world championships with her victory in the 200m at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, People's Republic of China. In 2013 she became the first female Dutch athletics competitor to win a medal at the world championships when she claimed bronze in the heptathlon. (SportsDesk Online, 06 Apr 2016; athleticsweekly.com, 18 Oct 2015; athleticsweekly.com, 18 Oct 2015)