Power
John van Lottum: "Padel is the new going out"
John van Lottum was once a successful tennis player. Now he tells me about his transition from athlete to entrepreneur, about the extremely popular padel - the fastest growing sport in the world - which he knows everything about, and Formula 1 for which his company DEUX organizes the closing shows. We meet at Plaza Padel in Heiloo, where business, pleasure and sport are united.Text: Irene van de Laar | Online editor: Fleur de Jong
Image: Karoly Effenberger
You retired as a professional tennis player in 2006. What was the deciding factor?
“I have a body of glass. I had many operations and ultimately suffered from a back injury that was too severe to continue. That took a very long time, I was out for almost two years. I tried to come back, but in the end it turned out to be too limited with all the interventions I had, so I decided to stop. Way too early. Yes, I found that very difficult. Especially because you are then entering your best years, leaving your youth behind you and having much more discipline and overview, which is necessary to perform consistently well. In addition, you have the feeling that this is the only thing you can do in life at that moment. Suddenly that is taken away from you and then you basically have to start all over again. The question then is: which way are you going now?”
Were you confronted with the well-known 'black hole'?
“Yes, that is inherent to the life of an athlete anyway. Normally you build your career with a certain expertise and you continue with it. You study to gain more knowledge of a specific branch that you choose and you will find your way in it. I did that too, but that part fell away: you have to work in a completely different discipline or industry. Does that include that black hole? Yes I think so. Especially because you also simply doubt yourself. What am I good at? I think the most important thing is that you are willing to take a few steps back and put your ego and pride aside in order to climb a ladder somewhere again. There are many who cannot do that, because you have to make concessions in many things to grow again. You cannot expect that you will immediately enter social life at the level you were in your top sport.”
What future perspective did you have in mind?
“I knew at least one thing for sure: not back in tennis. On the one hand, that made it very difficult for me, because what are you going for? What can you do then? On the other hand, it was also very liberating not to have to be tied to tennis for the rest of my life. I wanted to choose something where I felt free, where I had a good time. Then you will have to start somewhere where it may be a little less fun, but you can grow into that.”
Which path have you taken?
“I looked at the commercial side of the sport: where are the best job opportunities, where is the most money and what is close to me? That was football. After a number of conversations, I ended up at AZ through my network. I was able to make progress there and get started with something I did not master. I worked in the commercial team as a sponsorship manager. I had to get used to: driving to work in a lease car, getting coffee for colleagues, being part of a team and sometimes being unsure about things I still had to learn. But my top sports mentality always came to the surface and I wanted to get through this. I soon found myself wanting more. From there I made the step to the Eredivisie, a national platform. I was given every opportunity there, gained a lot of knowledge and eventually became commercial director of the Eredivisie. I was responsible for FOX Sports (the current ESPN; ed.), 24Kitchen and National Geographic.”
The new MASTERS Magazine
Want to read more of the interview with John van Lottum and find out what his biggest learning moment was? The spring issue of MASTERS celebrates regained freedom after two years of corona. The value of this is underlined by developments in eastern Europe, where the freedom of an entire people is at stake. We live in a new reality, but we can make plans again, go out for dinner, meet people. The world is turning again! Only: which way? Time for new bridges, new initiatives. What this edition of MASTERS offers inspiration for.
