Dai Dai N'tab

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Name of coach	Jac Orie [club], NED
When and where did you begin this sport?	He first tried speed skating at age 12 on an ice track in Oisterwijk, Netherlands.
Reason for choosing this sport	He came into contact with the sport through inline skating. He practised both sports until he had to choose between them at age 18.
Club / Team	Team Jumbo-Visma: Netherlands

Ambitions	To compete at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. (nos.nl, 02 Sep 2021)
Other information	OLYMPIC MOVE In 2020 he made the switch from Team Reggeborgh to Team Jumbo-Visma. Part of his motivation to make the move was to help his preparations for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. "I just want to win Olympic gold in two years, hence my choice for Jumbo-Visma. A different route, a new trainer, a different training group, two years before the Games. You don't often get such a chance in your career. I also think that I am now training harder and more than in the past. The approach is very different from what I was used to. It is more of a scientific way of working. How the training is approached, how we are tested, I am currently learning a lot and that is quite exciting." (ad.nl, 07 Jun 2020; nhnieuws.nl, 01 Jul 2020) MISSING PYEONGCHANG He did not compete at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang after a double false start saw him disqualified at the Dutch Olympic trials. "At first I was angry, furious. I never imagined myself doing that. Then I became sad and the tears came. And then I was empty, speechless. I spoke with my coach, who said that I had made mistakes that you absolutely cannot make. And he was right. I am someone who makes mistakes, but always learns from them. In the coming years I will show what I am really worth. It might look like I've gotten over it now, as I am not one to give up and wallow in disappointment, but don't get me wrong - it hurt a lot." (ad.nl, 28 Dec 2017; rtvnoord.nl, 27 Dec 2017) HERITAGE He has a Dutch mother and a Senegalese father. (nrc.nl, 17 Nov 2019; nos.nl, 01 Nov 2014)
Nicknames	Alexandre [a name that is also shown in his passport], Gifkikker ['Poisonous frog', a nickname given to him by his teammates for being so energetic]. (nrc.nl, 17 Nov 2019; schaatsen.nl, 20 Feb 2014)
Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs	He always gets his hair cut before a competition. (nos.nl, 10 Jan 2020)
Injuries	He sustained a groin injury in the late part of 2015. (schaatsen.nl, 17 Oct 2016)
Hero / Idol	US speed skater Shani Davis, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, Dutch speed skater Ronald Mulder. (Athlete, 13 Nov 2017; omroepbrabant.nl, 05 Jul 2017)