Demi Vollering has shed light on her emotional interview after she won stage five of the Vuelta Femenina on Thursday, where she dedicated her victory to people who are ‘finding it really hard mentally at the moment’.
The Dutchwoman pointed to her head as she crossed the finish line at Lagunas de Neilas, later stating in an interview that her celebration was to raise further awareness of mental health issues across Europe.
Vollering has always been very open regarding her own struggles with her mental health, and in a Linkedin post on Friday morning, the 28-year-old explained that her winning gesture was for those who ‘fight battles we don’t always see.’
She wrote: "Mental strength helped me win yesterday’s stage. But not everyone wins the battle with their mind. As athletes, we often talk about how mindset makes the difference. But for many people - especially young people - the mind becomes too strong in the wrong way. It overwhelms, it isolates, it wins quietly. This win in the Vuelta was for them."
She went on to list some stats, from a variety of sources, regarding mental health issues amongst young people in her home country of the Netherlands, including that suicide is the leading cause of death among people under 30. Other stats she mentioned included that 75% of mental health problems are reported to have developed before the age of 25 in most cases.
According to the UK-based mental health awareness charity Mind, one in four people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year. One in six people also report experiencing a common mental health problem such as anxiety or depression in any given week in England. It happens to be mental health awareness week in the UK next week, fittingly.
Meanwhile in the US, Mental Health America says that nearly one in five American adults will have a diagnosable mental health condition in any given year and 46% of Americans will meet the criteria for a diagnosable mental health condition sometime in their lives.
Vollering added: "As someone with a platform, I feel a growing responsibility to speak up - and to act. Let’s make sure we are supporting young people, not just in sport, but as well in any other industry. Support them in building resilience, confidence and mental strength."
In the UK, Mind offer a suite of resources if you are struggling with your mental health. Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org.
