History-making trans darts player Noa-Lynn van Leuven receives warm welcome at World Championships
Noa-Lynn Van Leuven hopes to return to the World Championships next year (James Fearn/Getty Images)
Trans darts player Noa-Lynn van Leuven says that she’s keen to return to the World Championships next year despite facing defeat in her history-making debut.
The Dutch player, who transitioned in 2021, made history in October after she became the first trans person to qualify for the World Championships following a 5-3 victory over English star Beau Greaves in the 21st PDC Women’s Series in Leicester.
In the run up to the gender-neutral World Championships competition the 28-year-old has faced abuse and online hate because she is a trans woman, with spectators booing her at the Grand Slam of Darts in November, female opponents refusing to play her and her detractors accusing her of only being “only being trans to win darts matches”.
It’s going to be a big achievement for me and for my kind of people,” she told the PA news agency prior to the start of the tornament. “But I guess I just want to be Noa, I just want to play darts and not always having to talk about the fact I’m also transgender.”
Taking to the stage at the Alexander Palace in London on Tuesday afternoon (17 December), Van Leuven faced off against fellow Nederlander Kevin Doets. During the match, Van Leuven had a 87.06 average and scored six 180s, but after taking the first set was unable see the game out and lost to Doets 3-1.
Speaking to the press after the match, Van Leuven acknowledged the crowd’s warm reception of her saying: “I guess they just want to see good darts. Both Kevin and I showed some good darts.”
Pleased with her performance, Van Leuven noted Doets has more experience than she does and “that’s what made the difference this game”.
She continued, as quoted by BBC Sport: “He was the better player today. Hopefully I’ll reach the Pro Tour next year and I’ll play him again and I’ll be the better player.
“I want to become a better player and the only way to do so is going out on that stage, playing Challenge Tour, playing Pro Tour and just play the best players there are.”
Later, taking to social media, the dart player said she “played a steady game, but after the first set, something felt off – I started to lose a bit of confidence”, admitting her mental health had been impacting her.
“No, I’m not okay”
She wrote: “I had really been looking forward to this match, but it also carried a lot of weight for me. To be honest, these past few months have been incredibly challenging. If anyone’s wondering: no, I’m not okay. I haven’t been for a while.
“I’ve been battling my mental health for over a year now, and it’s been tough – on and off the oche. My hope is that I can now take some time to focus on myself, to heal, and to come back stronger – not just as a player, but as a person too.
“A big thank you to everyone who came to watch or showed their support towards me, your kindness means more than you know.”
Commenting on the match to Sky Sports, Doets said Van Leuven “played better than I did at the beginning and it was really hard.”
He also added the crowd were “great” and did not boo.
“The crowd were amazing – they didn’t boo anyone. They didn’t boo me, they were great,” he said.
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