The Financieel Dagblad recently published an article about our founder, Pieter van Leijen. In the piece, Pieter shares his personal journey from a career in competitive sailing to founding MediCooler, a company that develops medical cool boxes for medication. His story is about perseverance, innovation and finding practical solutions to personal challenges.
The Dream of an Olympic Career
Pieter van Leijen was a promising talent in the sailing world, with a European youth championship title to his name and a place at the Top Sailing Academy. He dreamed of representing the Netherlands at the Olympic Games. But his career took an unexpected turn when he increasingly suffered from pain and inflammation. After months of tests, he was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (Bechterew's disease), a form of rheumatism that put his sporting ambitions at risk.
The Medication That Limited His Freedom
Fortunately, a medication was available that could relieve the symptoms of the disease, but it brought a new problem: the injections had to be kept cool at all times. This made travelling difficult, both for sailing training and for holidays. "What was first my lifebuoy gradually became my anchor," Pieter says in the article.
In an attempt to keep training, Pieter transported his medication in improvised cool boxes, sometimes even on the plane among the chilled snacks. However, it became clear that a better, more reliable solution was needed.
Founding MediCooler
This challenge led to the founding of MediCooler in 2019. Pieter developed a compact medical cool box specially for people who want to transport their medication safely, wherever they go. Thanks to this innovation, he was finally able to take the long-awaited family holiday to the United States.
MediCooler now offers solutions for countless others who need to keep medication at the right temperature. "I get messages from people who, for example, have wanted to travel to Tokyo their whole lives, or who live in Spain but regularly have to come to the Netherlands for their medication. Thanks to MediCooler, they too can go wherever they want," says Pieter.
Back on the Water
Although his Olympic dream fell apart, Pieter is still active in the sailing world. He divides his time between running MediCooler and coaching young sailors. He even coaches the youth team he once sailed in himself, just before they make the move to the Olympic class.
Read the Full Story
The full interview with Pieter van Leijen in the Financieel Dagblad offers an insight into his personal and professional journey. Read the article and discover how his perseverance and innovation changed not only his own life, but also the lives of many others: Read the article in the Financieel Dagblad (in Dutch).
Photo: Mark Horn for the FD