Jody Koenders was first introduced to snowboarding in 1995 at the age of sixteen. The dry slopes of Huizen, Netherlands had a special event and he decided to give it a go.
He immediately got hooked and from then on travelled almost two hours every week just to be able to board.
With all this dedicated practice his skills improved rapidly, Jody’s passion for snowboarding kept leading him to new, more difficult tricks and bigger air. Fortunately his improvement did not remain unnoticed for very long: in 1997 his deadly combination of talent and charisma made Jody catch the attention of Patrick van der Graaff, coach of the Dutch National Snowboarding Team. He offered him a place in the Dutch Talent Team, which he gladly accepted. Training with Patrick
literally paid off when Duotone noticed Jody that same year and offered him his first sponsorship deal.
After graduating from the Hotel and Management School in 1999 Jody decided to take things to the next level. With a spectacular run he became Dutch Halfpipe Champion and was eager for more. Besides getting an international contract by Duotone, he now signed with Oxbow and VANS. This allowed him to travel around Europe and enter in serious
competitions as well as chasing the endless snow. Eventually Saas Fee, Switzerland became base camp, from where Jody travelled to the most beautiful locations in the world and entered in the best competitions snowboarding had to offer. At the end of the season he finished 157th on the world ranking list.
The rise and rise of Jody Koenders was suddenly disrupted in the season of 2003 when he broke his right elbow during a quarterpipe contest in Belgium. Even though he made it to the finals, in order to keep snowboarding, cautious recuperation was very much needed. Slowly but surely he started riding again and regained his optimal skills. He again proved to be a true professional when he successfully defended his Dutch Halfpipe Champion title that same year.
Today, Jody is still doing what he does best: play hard and train even harder. His commitment, dedication and passion for the sport continue to
pay off. Not only has he recently signed a particularly lucrative sponsorship deal with ID&T, he is also supported by Santa Cruz, Protest, VANS, Dakine and Oakley, who provide him with all the equipment and garments he needs to ride in
comfort and style.