Wietse VAN ALTEN

Practising archery since he was 7, Wietse van Alten débuted internationally in 1999, reaching the quarter-finals of both the indoor and outdoor World Championships. Following a team silver at the 2000 Europeans, van Alten qualified for the Sydney Olympics where he captured a surprise bronze - the first Dutch medal in archery since 1920. After missing much of the 2001 and 2002 season due to a persistent elbow injury, van Alten again reached the quarter-finals of the 2003 World Championships. He competed in the Athens Olympics, but was eliminated in the second round. After failing to qualify for Beijing, he retired. Apart from his individual performances, van Alten collected several team accolades, notably winning silver at the European Championships in 2000 and bronze in 2008. Turning to coaching after his career, van Alten saw Rick van der Ven almost equal his performance as he led him to a 4th place at the 2012 London Games.