PIEK Selena

General
OLYMPIC PLANS
She is planning to compete in both the women's doubles and mixed doubles events at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, but says she will likely only continue with mixed doubles ahead of the 2024 Games in Paris. "I wasn't 100% sure that I would continue [after the 2020 Olympic Games]. If I made the Olympics I would, but I could also imagine that if I didn't make the cut, that it would be a struggle to go back. Things were looking good for me, especially in the mixed. So I thought I would think after the [2020] Olympic Games. They [the 2024 Olympic Games] will only be three years after, and that is physically still feasible for me. If I were to continue, I would only choose the mixed doubles. I will no longer be able to physically follow both disciplines following Tokyo." (bwfworldtour.bwfbadminton.com, 09 Jun 2020; omroepgelderland.nl, 02 Sep 2020)

RETIREMENT THOUGHTS
She considered retiring from the sport in 2018 due to burnout and the retirement of her doubles partner Eefje Muskens. She began working with a sports psychologist and decided to continue with her badminton career. "I was really not feeling well. I did not sleep and could not enjoy anything anymore. Often I even thought about stopping, the fun was gone after all those years of being away, jet lagged and busy. In addition, Eefje [Muskens] suddenly stopped. I did not see that coming and I also got injured for a long time. You learn to put things into perspective, only I was also mentally injured and that is even more serious. I really started to work on myself. I had a lot of conversations and I started looking forward again. What makes me happy? That is winning, being a top athlete, but I also learned that I have to dare to enjoy it." (omroepgelderland.nl, 02 Sep 2020)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has served as a board member for the Athlete's Commission of Badminton Netherlands, and as board chair for the Athlete's Commission of Badminton Europe. (LinkedIn profile, 2020)