‘As a child, I used to play hockey, but that wasn’t really me. My parents had friends whose son practised rowing. That inspired me to become a helmsman at the age of 14. It was so much fun that I decided to practise several times a week’, Abe (27) says. ‘Meanwhile, I went to school and did a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at the UvA. I also took a master’s degree in System & Network Engineering and joined TeamNL, three years in advance of the Olympics. From then on, I started rowing fulltime.’ His hard work certainly paid off. At the Olympics in Tokyo, Abe won gold in the Rowing Men’s Quadruple Sculls. ‘When I was a child, I always dreamt of entering the Olympics. However, in the years that followed I was fully focused on bringing out the best in me, instead of on the achievements. But now that I have a gold medal, I’m so happy. The pressure is gone and now I have the opportunity to fully enjoy rowing.’

Hard work pays off
‘What I like about rowing, is that it’s such a fair sport. In many other sports, umpires have a considerable impact on the match. But in rowing, whoever crosses the finish line first is the winner’, Abe smiles. ‘Hard work always pays off. It’s a splendid combination of strength and tactics, and it’s wonderful to be part of a team.’ Yet, no matter how much Abe loved rowing, he felt something was missing in the years when he was preparing fulltime for the Olympics. ‘At times, I felt like I wasn’t going anywhere. In Italy, it’s fine for top athletes to fully focus on their sports career. But in the Netherlands, you’re encouraged to find a good job after you’ve retired as an athlete – which is something I aspired, too. That’s why I broadened my horizon after the Olympics and started the application process.’

Solving the puzzle
As it turned out, Deloitte is the place to be for Abe. ‘I’m able to work 20 hours per week at most. During training season I don’t work at all. For Deloitte, that was self-evident’, he says passionately. ‘The people at Deloitte take my interests into account. And not just mine. At Deloitte, work/life balance is key.’ At the moment, Abe works at Deloitte for four hours every day, followed by four hours of rowing practice. “I love the variety. Working helps me to focus on something else than rowing. I need that. As a Software Engineer I’m occupied with encoding and programming. Currently, we’re using Artificial Intelligence to develop an Arabic language model for agreements. Building new and challenging solutions is great. It’s like solving a puzzle. Both as an athlete and a Software Engineer I aim for perfection.’

Part of a team
According to Abe, working and rowing are much alike. ‘It energises me to be part of a team, which requires excellent communication, setting goals, scoring, and sticking to deadlines to achieve your goals. As a top athlete, you’re always working to the best of your abilities. As a Software Engineer, I’m bringing the same kind of energy’, Abe explains. ‘I’m thrilled that by working for Deloitte, I can enjoy the best of both worlds and keep growing. Deloitte enables me to do so in various ways. It’s wonderful to work for an employer who understands me so well. As for my future plans: for now I’m fully focused on the world championships in the fall of 2022. I’m still pondering on the idea of going to the Olympics in Paris. But whatever the future holds in store for me, I’m glad I can focus on rowing and on my job.’