WITHOUT SETBACKS THERE IS NO VICTORY.
I was 6 when I started playing football. That was at WVV in Maastricht. My cousin played there, and I went along to train with her once and then stayed. Later I played professionally for VVV-Venlo, Standard Liège, PSV and, since 2018, Ajax. In between, I was selected eleven times for the Oranje Leeuwinnen and I was also in the squad for the 2015 World Cup in Canada. After that World Cup, I moved to PSV, where I was injured during a training session. Almost a year later, in 2017, I was selected for the European Championship. We became European champions. I'm proud that, as a Moluccan woman, I was able to be part of that.
Family matters a lot to us. I'm a family person, and I've turned down offers from abroad for that reason. We have a large family with grandma Ietje as its linchpin. She was my biggest fan and motivator, even when I was injured. During that same period, my younger brother's wife passed away, and he was left with a two-year-old child. That was very difficult. But as a family, we help and support each other. Those periods were important lessons for me. Because without setbacks there is no victory. I came out of it stronger.
My great role model is my grandma Ietje. Grandma was the linchpin of the family. She lost her husband early, and then two of her sons. Grandma raised nine children on her own. That deserves respect. She was also my biggest fan. She was ill when I was photographed and interviewed for the book 70 Role Models. Grandma Ietje has since passed away. That's why I want to dedicate my contribution to this book especially to her.
Vanity is 3rd generation, granddaughter of Grandpa Agus and Grandma Ietje Lewerissa.
Village of origin is Nalahia on the island of Nusalaut.
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Person portrayed
Vanity Lewerissa
(1991, Maastricht)
Footballer at AJAX
and Oranje Leeuwin
Lives in Maastricht - Photographer Ed Leatemia
