Joost Siemerink: An Overview of His Sports Career

This paper explores the life of Joost Siemerink, a great sportsman, right from his childhood to his later sports career, achievements, coaching and refereeing experience, and his current life. Joost was born in 1987 July 8th, together with his twin brother, Thom Siemerink (JTS-Paarden par 1). The duos were born to parents who started a school for riding which was known as ‘De Flevomanege’. Joost Siemerink and his brother were born in Boxtel, a city to the south of the Netherlands. The two brothers spent their early childhood in their home city together with their parents, and were brought up just like other children in the neighborhood. However, a couple of years later the parents moved to Dronten, a place in which their horse riding school was established. At the time of starting this school, neither the parents nor the two brothers knew what was to unravel few years later. The parents had started the school with the intentions of offering riding lessons to those interested, as well as a business like any other.

The brothers started developing interest on horse riding at the age of thirteen after their continued experience and encounter of watching what was happening around them. Out of curiosity, they decided to try riding and experience what they thought was to be just like a hobby. According to the information retrieved from one of their websites, it indicates that “they had watched the horses and the horse shows at the riding school many times and they decided to try to ride themselves”(JTS-Paarden Website). In this regard, it can be asserted that the two were motivated by curiosity and feelings of exploration to try and ride perhaps to have an experience of what it feels. This was not known to anyone of them that it could turn out to be a professional and long-term activity or sport.

A few months later and after their repeated trials of horse riding, Joost Siemerink and his brother had gained some levels of experience, and together they decided to participate in a public horse riding show. Consequently, they were able to excel in their participation and being their first public show, it was such an enriching experience as they ended in the first and second positions respectively. It is at this time that horse riding became a constant hobby and experience as they started getting involved more and more in such activities, a situation that did not change to date. As young boys, they could spend most of their time in riding horses with their friends, and they continued to gain experience every single moment of their involvement.

It was until they graduated from high school that Joost Siemerink together with his brother (Thom Siemerink) decided to take horse riding to the next level. They joined “AOC de Groene Welle in Zwolle” to study Horse Business and Management. During this time, (while studying and after studying”, they amazed exceptional experiences at different places such as “Jeroen Dubbeldam, Stal Brinkman in Twello, Dolfsma in Kampen, De Horsthoekhoeve in Heerde, H&H Stables in Daarle and at Waldman Horses in Putten” (JTS-Paarden Website) respectively. Moreover, they perfected their riding art and developed more enthusiasm into the business in overall. The main strategy employed by Joost and Thom in their quest for experience, was to work for several companies, and in those companies they worked at, they ensured that they rode show jumpers from all ages and competed at different national shows. The decision to ride horses of all ages and also to participate in numerous national competitions did not only give them a good exposure, but enhanced in them the skills necessary to handle different situations and challenges ion horse riding. Despite this, they too obtained their certificates, ORUN-certificate, to enable them start teaching horse lessons for show jumping. As a matter of fact, this was the turning point for Joost Siemerink as his tireless efforts and dedication took him all the way into becoming a great sportsman in horse riding.

Overview of his Sports Career

Although his sporting activities and career date back to his early life closely attached to his family especially his brother, Joost Siemerink has demonstrated outstanding capabilities in training horses and participating at various events. Joost Siemerink moved to his current place in the year 2009, in Welsum. At Welsum, he actively gets involved in horse training for himself, as well as for other people and places that he works with together with his brother. Despite the coordinated efforts to build his career with his brother by working for others and for themselves, by 2012 the number of horses they needed to train grew fast and as a result, they decided to work for their business only, marking the turning point of his sporting career. As a matter of fact, it is important to note that Joost Siemerink horse riding as a sporting career grew out of passion, family exposure, as well as professional training that he undertook. He is one of the renowned individuals in the Netherlands for this sporting activity (JTS-Paarden Website)

Sports Achievement

As an overall overview, the greatest achievement by Joost Siemerink is based on the fact that he was able to raise ranks right from a mare hobby to a professional horse rider and trainer. His childhood admiration on horse riding was later to become a professional engagement and art that is well perfected on and this has seen him win numerous trophies at local and national levels. Moreover, it is also important to appreciate that his achievements are felt even outside the Netherlands. Another important achievement by this great sportsman is the fact the he was able to establish together with his brother a training organisation “the JTS-Paarden”. The experience he obtained at different stables in the Netherlands have been of paramount significance in educating and training both horse riders and show-jumpers (horses), not only in the Netherlands but also in other countries. The following is a picture of the show-jumpers being trained at the JTS-Paarden (JTS-Paarden Website).

Figure 1: A show-jumper being trained

Source: (JTS-Paarden Website)

Figure 1 above gives an illustration of an amazing performance by one of the horses being trained by Joost Siemerink in his training organization and he runs with his brother. This is one of the examples of the greatest achievements that have been made by Joost Siemerink that have placed him in a good position in the sporting world, and that has contributed greatly to his good reputation. Throughout the years, Joost Siemerink has recorded tremendous achievements and successes at international as well as national shows. He was also among those that were successful in the Dutch Championships for many young horses (JTS-Paarden Website).

Coaching and Referee Experience

A part from the numerous accomplishments and success, Joost Siemerink started a few years ago to train show jumpers in Ukraine, one of the greatest accomplishments in his coaching career. Nevertheless, this does not mean that his outstanding triumphs within the Netherlands and in some areas are not recognized, but rather an emphasis that he has taken his coaching experience to international horizons. It is noted that he makes several trips to Ukraine every month, specifically to ensure that the riders are well trained and supported in a number of ways during their sporting participations. Within the career path of Joost Siemerink, the outstanding highlight is the training and jumping of the ‘big star’ stallion when he was three years old. Up to date, the ‘big star’ is one of the most recognized and famous horses in the entire world. In the 2016 Olympics at Rio de Janeiro, Joost Siemerink won a gold medal using his current rider ‘Nick Skelton’. A part of the tremendous accomplishments accorded to him, the team work spirit exhibited by him and his brother cannot be underestimated. The two also takes on students to help them do their internships, a fact that continues to give him a good platform to render his services to the society (JTS-Paarden Website).

Joost Siemerink’s Current Activities

As already noted, Joost Siemerink is committed and engaged into horse riding and training as his main activity, not just as a hobby but rather as a profession. He has won the title of a great trainer who is able to break in and train young horses, a fact that has seen his business being trusted by many people that continue to bring their horses for training. It is also important to note that the horses being trained by Joost are not just from individuals only, but also from big stables from within and outside the Netherlands. Moreover, the horses being trained by Joost are not just the young ones, but of all ages and for all classes (JTS-Paarden Website). The picture below is one of the training sessions among the current works of Joost Siemerink.

Figure 2: A training Session in Progress

Source: (JST-Paarden Website)

As illustrated in figure 2 above, training horses is one of the main activities undertaken by Joost Siemerink, a part from training riders and participating in horse riding sports. Besides the private lessons that Joost Siemerink offers, he also teaches at riding clubs by giving instructions to all types of horses and individuals as well. Many families take their kids, who have interests in horse riding to him for coaching, and this continues to make his engagements wider as a busy coach. Joost Siemerink’s cutting edge is based on his willingness to train riders at home and also offer them support at shows whenever they need his help. Additionally, Joost Siemerink is able to help his international clients in finding the right horses for them whenever they want to buy one, though his well-established global network (JTS-Paarden Website).

Business and Collaboration

As already asserted in preceding sections, Joost Siemerink cooperated with his brother Thom to establish their own business for training horses, as well as buying and selling horses for their global clients. The main reason behind his successful trading activities is founded on the fact that he got so famous, and received positive feedback and rating from his customers. Their business has constantly benefited from its top class facilities in offering the best training services for horses in the Netherlands and world over. Their facilities are outstandingly spacious and they have access to more than 17 spacious stable that enables them to turn out the horses more frequently. Some of the partners that Joost Siemerink collaborates with include; Sport-Elite, Dier, Tuin & Ruiltersport, De Margaretha Hoeva (Audi Team), Brinkman Twello, Niek Jansen, and Springstall Jurjan Bloem among others as demonstrated in the figure below (JST-Paarden Website).

Figure 3: Some of the Collaborators

Source: (JST-Paarden Website)

As observed in figure 3 above, the success of Joost Siemerink and his brother’s business is founded on a wider network built nationally and internationally. The above are just but a few examples of the collaborators who are more than 17 in number (JST-Paarden Website).

A critical analysis of Joost Siemerink and His Sporting Career

From the reviewed information, it is evident that Joost Siemerink has many traits that helped him to grow drastically in his sporting profession. Firstly, Joost Siemerink has demonstrated to be a very ambitious sportsman as he followed his dream of horse riding from a very tender age. This is enhanced with his curiosity to try horse riding despite him not having any prior experience. Moreover, by virtue that he decided to try riding a horse at the age of three years, it is clear that he was courageous, a virtue that is a very necessary ingredient in this kind of sporting. Also, based on the fact Joost Siemerink and his brother were able to register good results of being position one and two respectively in a riding show, a few months after they decided to engage in horse riding, it is a demonstration of how determined he was together with his brother. It is this determination that has helped him to record greater achievements in his sporting life.

Despite these virtues, the fact that his parents had established a school for riding horses, it gave him an opportunity to attain exposure that was necessary to stimulate in him the ambitions that he later developed. Such ambitions are paramount as they enhanced his enthusiasm of becoming an experienced and excellent horse rider and coach. Moreover, by virtue that he grew in his career together with his brother, it implies that he is a good team player and this helped him to reach to the horizon of his goals. Team spirit is important especially when it serves as a motivation during the times when is discouraged from continuing gin a certain engagement. Moreover, sporting activities are sometimes discouraging and tiring and are better pursued in a team.

Another important trait exhibited in Joost Siemerink sporting life is the virtue of honesty or integrity. As a matter of fact, being able to get a good rating and feedback from people on his engagements in the sporting world implies that he can be trusted. Essentially, this has served as the premise on which the business of buying horses for his clients has been built, as people can trust him for obtaining good types of horses. Additionally, given that Joost Siemerink has tried to undertake various activities and investments in the horse business, it implies that he is entrepreneurial, a fact that has contributed greatly to the success of their business.

Since Joost Siemerink is not only ambitious in training and participating in horse riding activities, his industrious character is also demonstrated through the decision to engage in buying and selling of horses, as well as training other people. He does not feel bad to help others excel, a part from training them but also on offering support during competitions and shows. Of great significance is the fact that he was able to win the global Olympics at Reo de Janeiro, a fact that has given him a good standing among the sportsmen in his field. Moreover, this remarkable achievement is a demonstration of his efforts and hard work to perfect the talent he has although attained through exploration of it just being a hobby that has eventually turned to be a great profession and life changer activity.

Since the sportsman has developed great and good international networks that enable him to excel well in business, it is an implication that he is outspoken and able to associate with other people in an open way. Ideally, this is the basis for the trust he has obtained and the ability to outsource horses for his clients. Fundamentally, being able to balance time or personal training, participation in shows and competitions, training different types and ages of horses, training horse riders, and also taking part in running and managing their business, it shows that he is a good time manager and able to plan his activities well. As a matter of fact, success in sports requires one to be a good time manager. Additionally, most of his achievements are a testimony of his consistency. Essentially, he has demonstrated consistency in following his ambitions, training hard to be able to be a good rider, and also in understanding what it takes to be a good trainer for horses.

Unlike other sporting activities, horse riding is an activity that relies on animals as opposed to being an athlete. Therefore, it is of paramount that the trainer can understand how to manage the horses and also be able to instill a good discipline on the horses. This gives Joost Siemerink a special rating as he does not only excel in riding but also in training the horses.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this paper has explored the developments of Joost Siemerink, right from his childhood desires of trying horse riding, into professional achievements as a sportsman in horse riding. It has also demonstrated him as a consistent, hardworking, ambitious, determined, team-player, industrious, entrepreneurial, and honest individual. Moreover, his drastic achievements that have taken place in a short time given that he is in his early thirties, clearly indicate the right attitude possessed by him in exploring into horse riding sports. From the analysis and research of Joost Siemerink’ life and experiences, it has been noted that the early childhood of an individual can potentially influence his or her later career or personality. Joost Siemerink got a good exposure from his parents that helped him to reach his goals, by the fact that they had started a school that instilled in him the urge to try horse riding.

Works Cited

JTS-Paarden. History: What started as a bet has become their greatest passion. Retrieved online on 18th December 2018 from: https://www.siemerinkstables.com/over-ons/geschiedenis.