Chasing goals, not heroes
New year, new me! Can you still say that in March? I don’t think so.
Luckily, I’m not a fan of that phrase anyway. I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions—why wait until January 1st to start something you want to change or improve? With my personal motto, “You don’t need a hero, it’s time to make your own,” every single day is about improving, setting goals, and making dreams come true.
Let me quickly introduce myself. My name is Bo Kramer, and I play for the Dutch Women’s National Wheelchair Basketball Team. This past summer, we won gold at the Paralympic Games in Paris. At 26 years old, I can proudly call myself the reigning European, World, and Paralympic Champion. For the past two years, I’ve been part of the Fairbanks family, where “supporting talent” applies not only to open source but also to sports.
In 2025, I’ll continue my partnership with Fairbanks, which means I’ll be writing a monthly column on all sorts of topics. What does my life as a top athlete look like? What lessons can be learned from the Paralympic sports world? These are obvious questions that will certainly come up, but I’ll also touch on less expected topics. So, stay tuned! If you have any fun ideas, don’t hesitate to ask questions or suggest subjects.
Alright, enough general info, let’s get back to the main topic: New Year’s resolutions. I find it interesting to look back on 2024. What went well? What did I learn? What needs improvement in the coming year? After a year fully dedicated to top-class sports, 2025 will be a year dedicated to my studies. I’ve started my Master’s in Biomedical Sciences at Radboud University. This means I have to find a new balance, 40 hours of studying combined with 20 hours of training per week. For the quick math whizzes out there: that means I’m running out of hours in the day. So, my goal is to find balance and successfully combine both. What’s your goal for 2025?
And if you’re wondering: Doesn’t this count as a New Year’s resolution? Technically, maybe. But since I don’t do resolutions, I officially started around January 9th ????
