Athletic Background

Jill started playing water polo at her local club Zeester Meerval before moving to Polar Bears Ede, one of the stronger programs in the Netherlands. During her time there, she became Dutch national champion with her team, marking an important milestone early in her development.

After Polar Bears, Jill transferred to VZV Njord, where she is currently in her second season, while also combining her training and competition schedule with PSV to continue developing at a high level within the Dutch Eredivisie.

In addition to her club career, Jill participated in regional and national development programs. She first trained within a WOC (regional training center) and was later selected for the RTC. Through performance testing at RTC, she was selected for the KNZB+ Program, where she trained for several years in an advanced development environment.

Strengths

Jill’s biggest strengths come from her physical style of play at center forward. She uses her strength effectively to hold position at center, create space for teammates, and frequently draw exclusions from defenders.

Defensively, she is capable of pressing high and disrupting opponents’ offensive flow, forcing attackers to play farther from the goal and slowing down offensive actions. She also contributes in transition, often turning around her defender during counterattacks and creating fast-break opportunities.

Her willingness to battle physically in the center position, combined with her tactical understanding of space and movement, makes her a valuable presence in the water.

Athletic Goals

Jill is focused on improving her strength and explosiveness, particularly through a more structured strength and conditioning program tailored specifically to water polo. While she already trains in the gym independently, she is looking for a more professional training structure to maximize her physical development.

She also aims to further improve her finishing ability at center forward, becoming more efficient in converting opportunities around the goal.

Jill’s goal is to continue developing into a stronger and more complete center forward. She believes that training and competing in the United States would provide a more intensive and professional environment with stronger physical preparation and higher training volume.

By training in this type of environment, she aims to become faster, stronger, and more explosive, while refining her skills at the center position and competing at the highest possible level.