TeamNL and Odido start hunt for Paralympic Talents for LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032

With the start of the Paralympic Games in Paris, TeamNL and Odido announce a new collaboration for the TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days in the coming years. Together, they will organize additional Talent Days, and initiate new innovations to identify more potential talented athletes. The urgency for this initiative is high, as no TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days were held in 2019 and 2020 due to COVID-19. This led to a lack of new athletes with disabilities entering the LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032 cycles. The TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days mark a new chapter for Odido as a partner of NOC*NSF, TeamNL, and Dutch sports.

Odido is committed to supporting both elite sports and the sports federations within TeamNL, with the aim of promoting sports participation on a broad scale. Together with NOC*NSF and TeamNL, Odido aspires to make the Netherlands the most athletic nation in the world. This collaboration now extends to include the Paralympic Talent Days. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the influx of new Paralympic talent requires an additional boost. Since the TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days could not be held in 2019 and 2020 due to COVID-19, the intake of new athletes with disabilities for the LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032 cohorts has been insufficient.

Through its partnership with NOC*NSF, Odido is now making it possible to expand the number of Talent Days. Odido is also committed to a long-term effort to reach a broader audience. A first step in this direction is for example sharing knowledge and expertise on improving the accessibility of NOC*NSF's communication channels for individuals such as the deaf, hard of hearing, and visually impaired.

The importance of the TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days
In addition to the challenges posed by COVID-19, individual sports federations have struggled to identify and integrate potentially talented athletes with disabilities into talent groups, training programs, and elite sports pathways. Moreover, these potential athletes are scattered across the country, whether at regular or adapted sports clubs, whether or not in special education, weekly at rehabilitation centers, or having already completed rehabilitation. Because it is too resource-intensive for sports federations to maintain contact with all relevant referral sources and to act quickly when a talented athlete emerges, NOC*NSF launched a joint initiative with the sports federations in 2009 to coordinate talent intake nationwide, with the Talent Days being a key component. With the NOC*NSF partnership, Odido enables that the number of Talent Days can now be further expanded.

Marc van den Tweel, General Director of NOC*NSF: "Our collaboration with Odido gives us great confidence that we can significantly increase the influx of talented athletes in the lead-up to the LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032 Games. Together with Odido, we are already organizing an additional TeamNL Paralympic Talent Day in the fall of 2024. The Talent Days are essential for the Netherlands to nurture new Paralympic talent. It is fantastic that our partner Odido is making this possible."

Tisha van Lammeren, Chief Commercial Officer at Odido: "At Odido, we believe that everyone should have the opportunity to participate. The partnership for the TeamNL Paralympic Talent Days is an excellent way for us to reinforce this commitment. We are proud to support athletes with disabilities in this manner and to make a tangible contribution to the future success of Paralympic elite sports in the Netherlands."

Every step forward starts with the people behind you
Odido recently launched its new campaign around the Olympic and Paralympic Games: "Every step forward starts with the people behind you." This campaign highlights remarkable Olympic and Paralympic athletes such as Sifan Hassan, Marrit Steenbergen, and Joel de Jong. Through mini-documentaries, Odido aims to acknowledge and appreciate the important role of the team behind the athlete. The campaign is a tribute to the unsung heroes who contribute to every top performance and demonstrates that every step an athlete takes forward begins with the support network behind them.