00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:03.200
(phone buzzing)

00:00:05.360 --> 00:00:07.280
- [Marieke] Hello?
- [Pola] Oh, Marieke!

00:00:07.360 --> 00:00:09.960
I just was checking in to
see how you're feeling.

00:00:10.040 --> 00:00:11.520
- You know what?

00:00:11.600 --> 00:00:15.240
Everybody is pushing me and asking me,

00:00:16.200 --> 00:00:18.080
"When are you going to die?

00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:20.920
Do you know already the date
that you're going to die?"

00:00:21.000 --> 00:00:22.600
I said, "Fuck you."

00:00:22.680 --> 00:00:25.800
I said, "You don't know
when you want to die."

00:00:25.880 --> 00:00:29.640
When the time comes,
when I feel it's enough,

00:00:29.720 --> 00:00:31.760
then I will decide.

00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:35.200
(gentle music)

00:00:39.080 --> 00:00:44.080
♪ I like the way it feels ♪

00:00:44.840 --> 00:00:49.840
♪ To be head over heels ♪

00:00:52.200 --> 00:00:56.760
♪ Remember ♪

00:00:56.840 --> 00:01:01.840
♪ The night we flew too high ♪

00:01:02.680 --> 00:01:05.840
♪ Like In a dream state ♪

00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:07.720
♪ State, state ♪

00:01:07.800 --> 00:01:10.680
♪ State of mind ♪

00:01:10.760 --> 00:01:15.760
♪ State, state, state ♪

00:01:16.720 --> 00:01:19.240
♪ Which I can't remember ♪

00:01:19.320 --> 00:01:22.080
(gentle music)

00:01:22.160 --> 00:01:23.880
(bottles clunking)

00:01:23.960 --> 00:01:25.320
Were you filming me?

00:01:26.280 --> 00:01:29.120
Come, we're going to the couch.

00:01:31.000 --> 00:01:33.520
The Paralympic Games in Rio.

00:01:33.600 --> 00:01:36.520
Oh, it was amazing, amazing!

00:01:36.600 --> 00:01:39.200
(upbeat music)

00:01:44.360 --> 00:01:47.320
On the way to Rio!

00:01:47.400 --> 00:01:49.480
(Marieke groaning)

00:01:49.560 --> 00:01:52.120
Come on, touch ground!

00:01:52.200 --> 00:01:53.320
Here we are.

00:01:53.400 --> 00:01:54.840
(upbeat music)

00:01:54.920 --> 00:01:57.640
Yes, Rio de Janeiro!

00:01:57.720 --> 00:02:00.320
(upbeat music)

00:02:01.960 --> 00:02:04.360
It was a really tough year.

00:02:04.440 --> 00:02:06.240
I had missed a lot of training

00:02:06.320 --> 00:02:10.600
because I had more days
in pain than good days.

00:02:12.560 --> 00:02:14.760
While I was training in Rio,

00:02:14.840 --> 00:02:18.520
I had a fever and I had
to go to the hospital

00:02:18.600 --> 00:02:20.240
and they were really scared.

00:02:20.320 --> 00:02:21.920
They said, "We have to send you

00:02:22.000 --> 00:02:25.120
to a bigger hospital in Sao Paulo".

00:02:25.200 --> 00:02:29.560
And I start to cry, "Please,
please give it a chance!

00:02:29.640 --> 00:02:30.640
Let me go.

00:02:31.560 --> 00:02:34.560
I have a race the 7th of September."

00:02:34.640 --> 00:02:36.480
(gentle music)

00:02:36.560 --> 00:02:39.640
(fireworks cracking)

00:02:42.040 --> 00:02:45.920
Saturday is D-Day.

00:02:46.000 --> 00:02:47.400
Let's rock!

00:02:47.480 --> 00:02:49.560
See you tomorrow, bye-bye!

00:02:50.120 --> 00:02:51.280
- [Announcer] And this is the

00:02:51.360 --> 00:02:54.120
reigning 100 meters Paralympic champion,

00:02:54.200 --> 00:02:56.200
Marieke Vervoort of Belgium.

00:02:56.280 --> 00:02:59.000
You may have read a lot about her lately.

00:02:59.080 --> 00:03:01.120
The Beast from Diest.

00:03:01.200 --> 00:03:04.240
Marieke Vervoort this time
really is the one to beat.

00:03:04.320 --> 00:03:06.160
Vervoort and Morgan at the moment

00:03:06.240 --> 00:03:07.960
are battling for the silver medal.

00:03:08.040 --> 00:03:09.840
Vervoort gets the silver!

00:03:09.920 --> 00:03:13.280
(spectators jubilating)

00:03:15.280 --> 00:03:18.000
- [Announcer] Marieke Vervoort
is a wheelchair sprinter.

00:03:18.080 --> 00:03:19.440
It's her third medal to date,

00:03:19.520 --> 00:03:21.000
and yet the focus really has been

00:03:21.080 --> 00:03:24.280
on this euthanasia discussion
after reports emerged

00:03:24.360 --> 00:03:26.320
that she was going to take her own life

00:03:26.400 --> 00:03:27.760
right after the games.

00:03:28.640 --> 00:03:31.120
(spectators jubilating)

00:03:31.200 --> 00:03:34.240
Knowing that she can choose
when and where to die

00:03:34.320 --> 00:03:35.920
is really what keeps her going.

00:03:37.040 --> 00:03:39.400
(cameras shuttering)

00:03:39.480 --> 00:03:43.240
- This is my last Paralympic games.

00:03:43.320 --> 00:03:45.400
I have a progressive disease

00:03:45.480 --> 00:03:49.640
and I signed my euthanasia papers already.

00:03:49.720 --> 00:03:53.640
I hope that euthanasia for every country

00:03:53.720 --> 00:03:56.640
does not mean murder,

00:03:56.720 --> 00:03:59.800
and that it makes people live longer.

00:03:59.880 --> 00:04:02.840
Like me. I signed my papers in 2008.

00:04:02.920 --> 00:04:07.840
Look, now we are 2016
and yesterday I won the silver medal.

00:04:08.760 --> 00:04:09.920
I'm really happy.

00:04:10.000 --> 00:04:12.600
(upbeat music)

00:04:27.480 --> 00:04:29.320
- [Host] There she is: Marieke!

00:04:29.400 --> 00:04:33.480
She's arriving now.
Let's give her a big round of applause.

00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:34.560
(crowd jubilating)

00:04:34.640 --> 00:04:38.040
Marieke Vervoort.
Winner of two medals in Rio.

00:04:38.120 --> 00:04:40.320
A silver and a bronze medal.

00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:47.960
Marieke, come here, come here!

00:04:48.040 --> 00:04:52.440
There she is.
Congratulations, Marieke.

00:04:53.520 --> 00:04:55.600
What's it like to be here?

00:04:55.680 --> 00:04:58.480
- Super, I'm finally back home.

00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:02.360
My goal was to make the podium twice
for a nice send-off

00:05:02.440 --> 00:05:06.440
and I achieved that.
It was fantastic.

00:05:06.520 --> 00:05:09.040
- That was incredible, indeed!

00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:11.480
- It feels incredibly good,
if you see that Diest...

00:05:11.560 --> 00:05:12.640
- [Fan] We love you!

00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:14.080
- I love you too!

00:05:14.160 --> 00:05:16.960
(crowd jubilating)

00:05:17.040 --> 00:05:18.880
- Have you found new things to do?

00:05:18.960 --> 00:05:20.400
What will you do tomorrow?

00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:25.080
- I don't know about tomorrow,
but I've got lots of plans.

00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:28.200
I am really looking forward to
a new challenge.

00:05:28.280 --> 00:05:31.000
I have a long bucket list to complete.

00:05:31.080 --> 00:05:33.720
- It doesn't sound like you'll waste away.

00:05:33.800 --> 00:05:35.880
- I always said that, after Rio,

00:05:35.960 --> 00:05:37.880
I would live from day to day

00:05:37.960 --> 00:05:40.280
and enjoy every little moment.

00:05:40.600 --> 00:05:43.320
- Marieke, have a great evening!
- Thank you.

00:05:44.840 --> 00:05:46.720
Cheers, guys!

00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:48.400
Now I have it all!

00:05:48.480 --> 00:05:51.160
I have four gold medals,

00:05:51.240 --> 00:05:52.840
two silver medals,

00:05:52.920 --> 00:05:55.360
and now I also have a bronze medal.

00:05:55.440 --> 00:05:59.040
And I have four World Records on my name.

00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:03.560
I am the happiest girl on all the world.

00:06:03.640 --> 00:06:06.240
(upbeat music)

00:06:25.000 --> 00:06:27.840
You feel so free because you
don't need the wheelchair.

00:06:27.920 --> 00:06:29.880
The wheelchair is standing outside

00:06:29.960 --> 00:06:32.280
and you are inside,

00:06:32.360 --> 00:06:34.080
so free like a bird.

00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:35.360
- [Instructor] If you are now in the wind...

00:06:35.440 --> 00:06:38.120
- [Marieke] Yeah.
- If you want to try to go forward,

00:06:38.200 --> 00:06:40.360
basically if you bring your arms
in a little bit,

00:06:40.440 --> 00:06:41.520
just bring them to the side

00:06:41.600 --> 00:06:42.680
like this you know.
- Yeah.

00:06:42.760 --> 00:06:44.880
- If you bring them to the side like that,

00:06:44.960 --> 00:06:46.680
you're gonna go forward.
- Yeah.

00:06:46.760 --> 00:06:49.320
(upbeat music)

00:06:51.080 --> 00:06:53.760
(wind whirling)

00:07:15.520 --> 00:07:17.440
I don't have any fear.

00:07:17.520 --> 00:07:19.840
My death fear is gone

00:07:19.920 --> 00:07:22.120
and now with everything I do,

00:07:22.200 --> 00:07:26.960
the wilder it is, the riskier it is,
the more I like it.

00:07:27.040 --> 00:07:29.640
(upbeat music)

00:07:33.120 --> 00:07:34.920
We go with the flow.
- Yeah.

00:07:35.000 --> 00:07:37.560
(upbeat music)

00:07:47.160 --> 00:07:49.720
(indistinct chatters)

00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:53.640
- Hey, who keeps ringing the bell
all the time?

00:07:53.720 --> 00:07:56.360
- Is this a brothel, or what?

00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:04.080
The doorbell isn't working.

00:08:07.040 --> 00:08:10.160
How shall I inscribe the book? "Fat..."

00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:12.680
- It's for the Daycare Center.

00:08:12.760 --> 00:08:14.800
- "Fat bitch?"
- No!

00:08:18.040 --> 00:08:20.760
(Marieke kisses)

00:08:21.760 --> 00:08:24.920
(indistinct chatters)

00:08:25.360 --> 00:08:28.920
"To the Daycare Center"

00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:30.400
- [Peggy] A drink, for the pain?

00:08:30.480 --> 00:08:32.520
- No, because...
- Are you not allowed?

00:08:32.600 --> 00:08:34.640
- I'll get my shots
of morphine and Valium later.

00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:36.080
- Oh! Okay.

00:08:37.120 --> 00:08:42.480
- I'd better not,
or I will start singing "O Sole Mio!"

00:08:44.160 --> 00:08:46.920
- You know, mi casa es tu casa.

00:08:47.000 --> 00:08:48.000
- I know.

00:08:49.840 --> 00:08:52.360
- I love you so much.
- I love you too.

00:08:52.440 --> 00:08:55.600
(indistinct chatters)

00:08:57.200 --> 00:09:00.440
- You should go to sleep soon.
- Yes.

00:09:00.520 --> 00:09:04.760
Ann will stay here with me tonight.
- Yes.

00:09:04.840 --> 00:09:07.160
- I am so glad you came.
- Two babysitters.

00:09:07.240 --> 00:09:09.600
Annie was going to stay, too.
- Yes.

00:09:09.680 --> 00:09:12.280
(dogs barking)

00:09:15.520 --> 00:09:18.440
(Marieke coughing)

00:09:32.400 --> 00:09:37.280
I want peace.
Peace, peace, peace.

00:09:48.560 --> 00:09:53.920
I feel like I could pass out any moment.

00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:56.960
- Yes, it looks like you could.

00:09:57.040 --> 00:09:59.760
(spoon clunking)

00:10:05.320 --> 00:10:06.880
(Marieke groaning)

00:10:08.560 --> 00:10:11.160
(gentle music)

00:10:15.080 --> 00:10:17.760
Marieke does not like
to be alone at night.

00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:21.680
She is happy to know
that she is not alone,

00:10:22.440 --> 00:10:24.960
that there is someone
in the room next door.

00:10:27.160 --> 00:10:30.520
But lately I get the feeling

00:10:30.600 --> 00:10:33.160
that her fear is growing stronger.

00:10:38.640 --> 00:10:43.240
She finds it difficult to say,
"That day, I want to die."

00:10:43.320 --> 00:10:45.520
(gentle music)

00:10:45.600 --> 00:10:48.360
(engine revving)

00:10:48.440 --> 00:10:51.280
- You didn't come yesterday.

00:10:51.360 --> 00:10:53.400
- I couldn't, because of my daughter.

00:10:53.480 --> 00:10:55.680
You still have some color.

00:10:55.760 --> 00:10:58.000
- I'd just like it trimmed a bit shorter.

00:10:58.080 --> 00:11:00.320
Can you put a Nike logo in it?
- Yes.

00:11:00.400 --> 00:11:01.680
- You can?

00:11:03.160 --> 00:11:08.760
I didn't wash my hair.
I thought it would be better for you.

00:11:12.880 --> 00:11:15.600
- And how was the party yesterday?

00:11:15.680 --> 00:11:18.960
- Not good, because you weren't there.

00:11:19.040 --> 00:11:21.640
- True.
- Then it's no good.

00:11:21.720 --> 00:11:26.000
- It was terrible.
But she had already called off.

00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:29.160
- Were there a lot of people there?
- Yes.

00:11:29.480 --> 00:11:33.840
Mom and Dad were going on and on
about the party.

00:11:34.320 --> 00:11:37.920
- That's only normal.
- Oh, come on.

00:11:39.480 --> 00:11:42.320
Mom and Dad aren't my friends,
they're my parents.

00:11:42.400 --> 00:11:47.520
- We'll invite them to the next party.
- No way.

00:11:48.080 --> 00:11:51.360
- But I will.
- Then I won't come.

00:11:55.920 --> 00:12:00.320
It's been getting a little better,
but still...

00:12:00.400 --> 00:12:01.640
(trimmer buzzing)

00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:04.040
But it's still...

00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:07.400
I have been trying.

00:12:08.800 --> 00:12:11.360
They have also put in some effort,
a few times.

00:12:11.440 --> 00:12:15.680
But my dad gets it more than my mom does.

00:12:18.120 --> 00:12:21.040
- Yes, but it's different.
She has a mother's heart.

00:12:21.120 --> 00:12:23.400
(trimmer buzzing)

00:12:24.400 --> 00:12:26.960
(upbeat music)

00:12:38.000 --> 00:12:41.280
- [Host] Thanks for joining us today,
ladies and gentlemen,

00:12:41.360 --> 00:12:46.200
for Marieke and her new book,
"The Other Side of the Medal."

00:12:46.280 --> 00:12:49.600
- I've spoken my mind without holding back.

00:12:49.680 --> 00:12:52.720
The Flemish public
should understand that,

00:12:52.800 --> 00:12:55.600
even with a serious disability,

00:12:55.680 --> 00:13:01.120
with all the pain,
you can still do things.

00:13:01.200 --> 00:13:04.800
I thought that,
after quitting professional sports,

00:13:04.880 --> 00:13:08.040
that I would fall into a deep depression,

00:13:08.120 --> 00:13:09.920
but that didn't happen.

00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:17.080
I'm lucky to have lots of great friends
and family

00:13:17.160 --> 00:13:20.120
who are there for me in the good times,

00:13:20.200 --> 00:13:24.200
but most of all,
they are there in the bad times.

00:13:24.720 --> 00:13:26.680
Giddy up, go.

00:13:26.800 --> 00:13:28.200
(upbeat music)

00:13:38.240 --> 00:13:39.640
Caroline with a C?

00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:44.760
'Dear Caroline:
I hope my life story inspires you.

00:13:44.840 --> 00:13:46.080
Love, Marieke and Zenn.'

00:13:49.200 --> 00:13:50.200
(metals chiming)

00:13:50.280 --> 00:13:52.000
(dog barking)

00:13:52.080 --> 00:13:54.040
Zenn is really Zen, huh?

00:13:55.880 --> 00:13:59.120
She means everything to me,
right Zenn?

00:14:02.960 --> 00:14:04.960
Don't kiss me like that.

00:14:05.040 --> 00:14:07.480
They're gonna think it's a sex movie.

00:14:08.920 --> 00:14:10.600
Fetch.

00:14:11.440 --> 00:14:13.880
Come. Find it. Fetch.

00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:16.600
(upbeat music)

00:14:18.280 --> 00:14:19.720
Find it. Fetch.

00:14:20.680 --> 00:14:22.160
(Marieke laughing)

00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:24.840
(upbeat music)

00:14:34.240 --> 00:14:36.960
(engine revving)

00:14:44.440 --> 00:14:48.440
Zennie, I love you!

00:14:48.520 --> 00:14:51.080
(upbeat music)

00:14:54.040 --> 00:14:55.960
(elevator beeping)

00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:02.360
- Hey, buddy.

00:15:02.440 --> 00:15:03.760
(Odette laughing)

00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:07.080
Hi, sweetheart.
- Hi, Mom.

00:15:07.760 --> 00:15:08.760
Hi, Mom.

00:15:09.600 --> 00:15:11.320
(both kiss)

00:15:11.400 --> 00:15:13.480
Look, what a nice picture here.

00:15:13.560 --> 00:15:14.840
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:15:14.920 --> 00:15:16.760
- Look at me!

00:15:16.840 --> 00:15:18.920
What a nice baby.

00:15:19.000 --> 00:15:20.000
- Yes.

00:15:20.960 --> 00:15:22.040
There you were nice.

00:15:22.120 --> 00:15:24.160
- They always say:

00:15:24.240 --> 00:15:27.440
"Ugly people get beautiful children."

00:15:27.520 --> 00:15:29.160
(all laughing)

00:15:32.000 --> 00:15:34.120
- Thank you, thank you.

00:15:36.400 --> 00:15:37.240
- Cut!

00:15:39.680 --> 00:15:42.000
Back then everything was perfect.

00:15:42.080 --> 00:15:43.080
- [Odette] Yes.

00:15:43.640 --> 00:15:46.520
- A normal, normal child.

00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:48.880
Look, how young I was
and I helped clean the house.

00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:51.680
- [Odette] Yes, yes, working.
- [Marieke] Working!

00:15:51.760 --> 00:15:53.000
(Odette laughing)

00:15:53.080 --> 00:15:56.120
- [Marieke] I really
hated wearing dresses,

00:15:56.200 --> 00:15:59.760
but at that age, when you were
young, your mother chose.

00:15:59.880 --> 00:16:01.880
Ah, such ugly clothes.

00:16:02.760 --> 00:16:06.240
I was more a boy than a girl,

00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:10.760
I wanted to always wear pants and shorts

00:16:10.840 --> 00:16:14.080
and that kind of stuff.

00:16:14.160 --> 00:16:17.120
And now we know why, eh?

00:16:17.200 --> 00:16:19.720
(all chuckle)

00:16:21.200 --> 00:16:25.760
- It started over there already, no?
In Pisa?

00:16:25.840 --> 00:16:27.360
- [Jos] Marina Di Pisa.

00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:29.400
- [Marieke] Marina Di Pisa.

00:16:29.480 --> 00:16:30.520
(Jos laughing)

00:16:30.600 --> 00:16:33.400
My Achilles tendon, here.

00:16:33.480 --> 00:16:40.200
And every time when my heels
were touching the ground,

00:16:40.280 --> 00:16:46.120
it was like electricity
was going into my legs.

00:16:46.200 --> 00:16:48.320
It was very, very painful.

00:16:48.400 --> 00:16:50.200
And when you are in puberty,

00:16:50.280 --> 00:16:53.240
and doctors cannot find what's wrong,

00:16:53.320 --> 00:16:56.280
they don't see it
and they immediately say,

00:16:56.360 --> 00:16:57.640
"It's not there the problem,

00:16:57.720 --> 00:17:01.000
but it's here, it's all in your mind."

00:17:01.080 --> 00:17:05.040
And then I met Dr. Molenaers and he said,

00:17:05.120 --> 00:17:06.960
"There is really something wrong,

00:17:07.040 --> 00:17:08.840
we don't know what it is,

00:17:08.920 --> 00:17:10.720
but we're gonna treat you

00:17:10.800 --> 00:17:14.720
like there is something
really wrong, physically."

00:17:14.800 --> 00:17:19.080
And I was on my good way
until insurance said,

00:17:19.160 --> 00:17:22.000
"We still don't know what your disease is,

00:17:22.080 --> 00:17:24.520
and we don't pay."

00:17:24.600 --> 00:17:26.960
So everything was for nothing.

00:17:27.640 --> 00:17:32.400
- The doctor has promised
that you could walk again

00:17:32.480 --> 00:17:34.400
in the house.
- [Marieke] In house, yeah.

00:17:34.480 --> 00:17:38.000
- Not far, but in the house.

00:17:38.080 --> 00:17:41.840
- When you are able just to stand up,

00:17:41.920 --> 00:17:45.560
it already really means a lot.

00:17:45.720 --> 00:17:46.840
- [Host] Marieke Vervoort!

00:17:46.920 --> 00:17:49.520
(upbeat music)

00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:53.920
What is the diagnosis now?

00:17:54.000 --> 00:17:58.560
- They diagnosed me with
"reflex sympathetic dystrophy."

00:17:58.640 --> 00:18:00.600
- And it...
- It's a mouthful

00:18:00.680 --> 00:18:02.960
but actually they found out

00:18:03.040 --> 00:18:05.880
that I have "progressive myelopathy."

00:18:05.960 --> 00:18:09.280
- Progressive? That doesn't sound good.

00:18:09.360 --> 00:18:11.760
- No. It continually gets worse.

00:18:11.840 --> 00:18:15.280
The problem is in the spinal cord.

00:18:15.360 --> 00:18:19.000
- And what's happening to your spinal cord?

00:18:19.080 --> 00:18:20.760
- It's causing paralysis and stuff.

00:18:20.840 --> 00:18:24.000
I hope that it will stabilize.

00:18:24.640 --> 00:18:26.680
No one can live like that.
It destroys you.

00:18:26.880 --> 00:18:29.600
- Purely the pain?
- Yes.

00:18:29.680 --> 00:18:32.880
Passing out from the pain,
who could bear that?

00:18:33.080 --> 00:18:38.000
I'm unsure about the future.
We'll have to see.

00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:41.120
But hope springs eternal, as they say.

00:18:41.480 --> 00:18:44.080
(upbeat music)

00:18:45.960 --> 00:18:48.080
Ever since I was young,

00:18:48.160 --> 00:18:51.320
I've been doing sports
and I trained really hard for it.

00:18:51.400 --> 00:18:54.480
(upbeat music)

00:18:54.560 --> 00:18:55.840
I was a winner.

00:18:56.760 --> 00:19:00.000
(water whirling)

00:19:00.080 --> 00:19:02.680
(upbeat music)

00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:06.600
In 2004 I started up.

00:19:06.680 --> 00:19:10.080
I did triathlon at a really high level,

00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:13.720
and did a motivational
speech in Lanzarote.

00:19:14.280 --> 00:19:18.760
And 2007 in Hamburg in Germany,

00:19:18.840 --> 00:19:23.840
I was not only World Champion
in my disabled category,

00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:27.400
but overall with all the females.

00:19:27.480 --> 00:19:29.560
(upbeat music)

00:19:29.640 --> 00:19:30.680
Yes.

00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:32.880
I was so proud.

00:19:32.960 --> 00:19:33.960
Yeah.

00:19:38.000 --> 00:19:43.400
On September 28, 2007
the plane took off.

00:19:43.800 --> 00:19:47.440
And I looked out of the window
tears rolled down my cheeks.

00:19:48.400 --> 00:19:49.400
Unbelievable.

00:19:52.280 --> 00:19:55.520
"My dream is coming true.
I am on way to Hawaii."

00:19:55.800 --> 00:19:58.960
I was going to do the
mother of the triathlons,

00:19:59.040 --> 00:20:02.200
I was going to do the Ironman of Hawaii.

00:20:02.280 --> 00:20:05.040
Wow, I couldn't believe it!

00:20:05.120 --> 00:20:07.000
Only for crazy people,

00:20:07.080 --> 00:20:10.360
3,800 meter swim,

00:20:10.440 --> 00:20:14.400
180 kilometers with the hand cycle,

00:20:14.480 --> 00:20:17.960
and then the marathon of 42 kilometers

00:20:18.040 --> 00:20:19.800
with the racing chair.

00:20:20.480 --> 00:20:22.280
And I did the swim.

00:20:22.360 --> 00:20:25.600
One hour, 17 only on my arms.

00:20:25.680 --> 00:20:27.480
(crowd cheering)

00:20:29.680 --> 00:20:33.600
And I started with the bicycle,

00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:35.640
and it was so heavy.

00:20:35.720 --> 00:20:37.800
There was a lot of wind.

00:20:37.880 --> 00:20:39.920
The limit time for people

00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:43.120
with and without disability is the same.

00:20:43.200 --> 00:20:47.520
I was only 15 minutes
too late in the changing zone.

00:20:47.600 --> 00:20:51.560
They didn't allow me
to do the last part of the race.

00:20:51.640 --> 00:20:54.240
(somber music)

00:20:57.800 --> 00:21:00.960
Really disappointed,
I turned back to Belgium.

00:21:01.040 --> 00:21:06.480
It was really a disaster.

00:21:08.320 --> 00:21:11.480
I'm actually not doing very well.

00:21:11.560 --> 00:21:17.560
At the end of January
the disease got worse all of a sudden.

00:21:18.120 --> 00:21:20.280
(gentle music)

00:21:20.360 --> 00:21:23.520
Looking at the future scares me.

00:21:26.560 --> 00:21:31.440
(gentle music)

00:21:31.520 --> 00:21:36.320
In 2008, I had to stop doing triathlons

00:21:36.400 --> 00:21:38.600
which had been my life.

00:21:39.120 --> 00:21:45.120
And then I fell
into a very deep depression.

00:21:45.200 --> 00:21:49.440
And I wanted to commit suicide.

00:21:49.600 --> 00:21:52.200
(gentle music)

00:21:55.760 --> 00:22:00.000
At one point, I told my psychologist

00:22:01.000 --> 00:22:04.120
"Look, I've collected all my medication.

00:22:04.600 --> 00:22:09.720
I can't live this life anymore."

00:22:11.000 --> 00:22:14.680
She put me in touch
with Dr. Wim Distelmans

00:22:15.200 --> 00:22:22.040
the man who was behind
the euthanasia law in Belgium.

00:22:22.120 --> 00:22:28.800
He told me, "Marieke,
it doesn't have to be like this.

00:22:28.880 --> 00:22:32.560
Here, there is such a thing
as a euthanasia law."

00:22:46.640 --> 00:22:47.760
(gentle music)

00:22:47.840 --> 00:22:50.600
(birds chirping)

00:23:03.240 --> 00:23:05.160
- Here she is!
- Hello, Wim.

00:23:05.240 --> 00:23:07.680
- How are you doing, sweetie?
- Not so good.

00:23:11.920 --> 00:23:14.160
- Would you take a seat there?
- Yes.

00:23:14.240 --> 00:23:19.560
- I'm going to take my jacket off.
I thought it was 2.30 PM.

00:23:19.840 --> 00:23:23.200
- So, the first contact you had
with each other was in 2008?

00:23:23.280 --> 00:23:26.280
- Yes. I had just had to give up
my favorite sport.

00:23:26.360 --> 00:23:29.400
I had to give up more and more
all the time.

00:23:29.520 --> 00:23:33.280
And then I contacted Dr. Distelmans.

00:23:33.480 --> 00:23:36.080
And that is how the story started.

00:23:36.520 --> 00:23:40.640
- In Belgium, we have a good law.

00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:45.600
And only three countries in the world
have the same law.

00:23:45.760 --> 00:23:48.400
It's really liberating.

00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:51.200
At the Federal Euthanasia Commission,
we see that

00:23:51.280 --> 00:23:54.760
the main reason
why people request euthanasia

00:23:54.840 --> 00:23:56.920
is loss of control,

00:23:58.720 --> 00:24:03.080
dependence on others
and loss of self-determination.

00:24:03.160 --> 00:24:05.680
In fact, these euthanasia affidavits

00:24:05.760 --> 00:24:07.400
give the patients a sense of security

00:24:07.480 --> 00:24:09.760
that allows them to go on living.

00:24:09.840 --> 00:24:12.240
She is limited because of her disability,

00:24:12.320 --> 00:24:15.040
but she still has control.

00:24:15.120 --> 00:24:18.720
She is still young now,
but back then she was very young.

00:24:19.000 --> 00:24:22.520
And it's a pity when someone that young

00:24:22.600 --> 00:24:23.800
says she wants to quit living.

00:24:23.880 --> 00:24:27.080
- But this contradicts
what some people have said about you.

00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:29.360
Some people call you Dr. Death.

00:24:29.440 --> 00:24:34.760
- The thing I always say at my talks is,

00:24:35.040 --> 00:24:39.720
"Look, people often see euthanasia
as murder.

00:24:39.800 --> 00:24:44.320
Euthanasia means a lot more than that.
It prolongs life."

00:24:44.400 --> 00:24:47.400
There would be fewer suicides

00:24:47.480 --> 00:24:50.640
if there were a euthanasia law in place.

00:24:50.720 --> 00:24:54.120
- So, Doctor, are you afraid of death?

00:24:54.200 --> 00:24:55.600
- I don't want to die.

00:24:55.680 --> 00:24:58.480
- You are afraid of it? Or...

00:24:58.560 --> 00:24:59.880
- I'm not afraid of death.

00:24:59.960 --> 00:25:04.200
But I am afraid of the part
just before death.

00:25:04.280 --> 00:25:06.920
The transition between life and death.

00:25:07.000 --> 00:25:08.000
- Yeah.

00:25:08.120 --> 00:25:12.280
- I have seen a lot of people die

00:25:12.360 --> 00:25:14.800
in a way I would not want to die.

00:25:16.400 --> 00:25:17.680
(gentle music)

00:25:17.760 --> 00:25:20.600
(camera shutters)

00:25:20.680 --> 00:25:25.360
- Wim is like my rock I can always turn to.

00:25:27.680 --> 00:25:30.560
- Here you go.
- Thank you.

00:25:32.880 --> 00:25:38.560
- When those euthanasia papers
were confirmed it was like...

00:25:38.960 --> 00:25:40.080
Bam.

00:25:40.320 --> 00:25:44.040
Something heavy was falling off me.

00:25:44.120 --> 00:25:47.280
I had my own life under control.

00:25:47.360 --> 00:25:50.080
And look, I'm still here.

00:25:50.160 --> 00:25:54.200
You're always doing more
and more because you know

00:25:54.280 --> 00:26:01.120
you've got your own life in your hands

00:26:01.200 --> 00:26:04.080
because you can say when's enough.

00:26:04.160 --> 00:26:06.720
(gentle music)

00:26:08.600 --> 00:26:10.560
(crowd cheering)

00:26:10.640 --> 00:26:12.120
(Marieke screaming)

00:26:12.200 --> 00:26:14.760
(upbeat music)

00:26:25.560 --> 00:26:28.880
(bell chiming)

00:26:28.960 --> 00:26:32.360
(Marieke screaming)

00:26:32.440 --> 00:26:33.480
It's really crazy.

00:26:33.560 --> 00:26:36.440
I quit top sports,

00:26:36.520 --> 00:26:39.000
but I've gotten busier than ever.

00:26:39.080 --> 00:26:41.640
(upbeat music)

00:26:49.280 --> 00:26:51.960
(bird chirping)

00:26:52.040 --> 00:26:53.400
- Cheers.

00:26:53.480 --> 00:26:54.960
- [All] Cheers.

00:26:55.040 --> 00:26:57.760
(plane whirring)

00:27:02.520 --> 00:27:03.520
- Stay!

00:27:05.800 --> 00:27:07.560
- Zennie!
- Zennie!

00:27:08.640 --> 00:27:11.280
A little higher. Yes.

00:27:11.360 --> 00:27:12.840
- My matey!

00:27:12.920 --> 00:27:15.440
(both kiss)

00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:19.400
(indistinct chatters)

00:27:19.480 --> 00:27:23.680
She is my biggest supporter ever.
My dearest treasure.

00:27:23.760 --> 00:27:26.800
She follows me everywhere.
And...

00:27:27.760 --> 00:27:29.600
And friendship forever, eh?

00:27:30.680 --> 00:27:32.600
- Hi sweetie.

00:27:32.680 --> 00:27:34.920
- Hi, sweetheart.
- Hey.

00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:36.400
- How are you?

00:27:36.480 --> 00:27:37.840
- I'm very well.

00:27:37.920 --> 00:27:39.480
- Nice to see you!

00:27:39.560 --> 00:27:41.560
- Oh the hair.
- Yeah, Nike.

00:27:41.640 --> 00:27:43.760
- Crazy girl, oh crazy girl.

00:27:43.840 --> 00:27:44.840
- Yeah.

00:27:46.120 --> 00:27:48.040
- Hello, everybody.

00:27:48.120 --> 00:27:50.720
Is everybody happy in the house?

00:27:50.800 --> 00:27:53.000
- [Audience] Yeah!

00:27:53.080 --> 00:27:56.600
- I am very happy that you are all present.

00:27:56.680 --> 00:27:58.040
(gentle music)

00:27:58.120 --> 00:28:02.120
- You all received an invitation
for a "dream concert."

00:28:02.200 --> 00:28:05.480
Marieke really enjoys meditating.

00:28:05.560 --> 00:28:09.800
To her, those moments
are profoundly relaxing.

00:28:09.880 --> 00:28:13.760
Welcome to the dream concert
"Believe You Can."

00:28:16.360 --> 00:28:19.440
(instrumental music)

00:28:54.120 --> 00:28:56.680
(bowl chiming)

00:29:05.080 --> 00:29:07.520
- I've never met someone
like you to be honest.

00:29:07.600 --> 00:29:10.440
You're a huge, huge inspiration.

00:29:10.520 --> 00:29:12.880
You know my expression for you.

00:29:12.960 --> 00:29:15.440
Well, I'm not gonna say
this on camera, you know it.

00:29:15.520 --> 00:29:17.240
(all laughing)

00:29:17.320 --> 00:29:18.840
- A woman with balls.

00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:22.160
(all laughing)

00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:26.400
- It was one of the nice
words I learned in Flemish,

00:29:26.480 --> 00:29:29.400
and I had a nice way of expressing it

00:29:29.480 --> 00:29:32.520
because I truly believe in Marieke,

00:29:32.600 --> 00:29:34.680
she really is
a woman with balls.

00:29:34.760 --> 00:29:37.000
(all laughing)

00:29:37.080 --> 00:29:38.240
- [Marieke] I love you!

00:29:38.320 --> 00:29:39.440
- I love you back.

00:29:39.520 --> 00:29:40.960
(all laughing)

00:29:41.040 --> 00:29:44.920
- How did I meet Marieke?

00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:48.280
They were looking
for a 'sports godmother' for Marieke.

00:29:48.360 --> 00:29:50.040
(upbeat music)

00:29:50.120 --> 00:29:52.240
- A young girl in a wheelchair

00:29:52.320 --> 00:29:55.200
that wants to do the Iron Man in Hawaii.

00:29:56.560 --> 00:29:58.640
I was on television at that time.

00:29:58.720 --> 00:30:02.000
They asked me, "Maybe you
can help us to get her

00:30:02.080 --> 00:30:03.360
the money we need?"

00:30:03.440 --> 00:30:05.400
(upbeat music)

00:30:05.480 --> 00:30:08.040
(audience clapping)

00:30:08.120 --> 00:30:11.200
Of course, she is a top athlete.

00:30:11.280 --> 00:30:12.840
You have to be stubborn,

00:30:12.920 --> 00:30:14.640
you have to be a fighter.

00:30:14.720 --> 00:30:16.680
Somebody who wins.

00:30:16.760 --> 00:30:18.960
- [Announcer] Women's
100 meters, T52 final.

00:30:19.960 --> 00:30:22.320
Marieke Vervoort of Belgium in six.

00:30:22.400 --> 00:30:26.160
(spectators cheering)

00:30:26.240 --> 00:30:27.080
And they're away.

00:30:28.640 --> 00:30:30.960
It's the two American girls away well,

00:30:31.040 --> 00:30:35.280
but it's Marieke Vervoort
of Belgium in lane six

00:30:35.360 --> 00:30:36.400
who is going extremely well.

00:30:36.480 --> 00:30:38.600
Marieke Vervoort of
Belgium's gonna win it.

00:30:38.680 --> 00:30:40.440
Vervoort, and here comes the Canadian,

00:30:40.520 --> 00:30:41.760
but she's left it a little too late.

00:30:41.840 --> 00:30:43.560
Marieke Vervoort of Belgium

00:30:43.640 --> 00:30:46.080
wins the 100 meters T52 final.

00:30:46.160 --> 00:30:49.840
(Marieke shouting)

00:30:49.920 --> 00:30:53.280
(spectators applauding)

00:30:56.800 --> 00:30:58.160
- I did it.

00:30:58.240 --> 00:30:59.480
(Marieke screaming)

00:31:04.360 --> 00:31:05.800
- [Announcer] It's been rounded down to

00:31:05.880 --> 00:31:08.040
a new championship record

00:31:08.120 --> 00:31:10.040
for Marieke Vervoort of Belgium.

00:31:10.120 --> 00:31:13.920
(spectators cheering)

00:31:14.000 --> 00:31:16.200
- [Announcer] Gold in the one, the two,

00:31:16.280 --> 00:31:18.120
and now the 400 meters.

00:31:18.200 --> 00:31:20.800
A hat trick of titles in this T52.

00:31:20.880 --> 00:31:23.800
(orchestral music)

00:31:26.160 --> 00:31:28.000
- Ms. Marieke Vervoort.

00:31:28.080 --> 00:31:29.320
- Thank you. It's an honor.

00:31:29.400 --> 00:31:32.000
I'd like to give you a big hug.

00:31:33.160 --> 00:31:34.960
Thank you. Bye.

00:31:35.200 --> 00:31:37.760
(gentle music)

00:32:03.440 --> 00:32:04.520
Oh, it hurts. Help.

00:32:04.600 --> 00:32:07.440
- Yes, that's what I'm doing. Really.

00:32:07.520 --> 00:32:10.120
(Marieke groaning)

00:32:10.360 --> 00:32:11.760
(gentle music)

00:32:35.480 --> 00:32:37.360
(Marieke choking and groaning)

00:32:56.960 --> 00:32:59.680
(dog barking)

00:33:01.840 --> 00:33:06.600
- I dream every time that I'm dying

00:33:06.680 --> 00:33:11.640
and it's so scary when I dream it.

00:33:12.560 --> 00:33:16.960
If you can't breathe
and you can do nothing about it.

00:33:17.040 --> 00:33:19.600
(gentle music)

00:33:29.520 --> 00:33:31.080
(utensils clunking)

00:33:31.160 --> 00:33:33.520
- Marieke visits us and she is happy.

00:33:33.600 --> 00:33:36.200
- You'd like her to be happy all the time,

00:33:36.280 --> 00:33:39.440
but she may just as well feel awful later.

00:33:39.720 --> 00:33:45.280
- Yes. Then you feel so powerless.

00:33:45.360 --> 00:33:47.360
You can't do anything.

00:33:47.440 --> 00:33:51.960
You can't help her.
You want to help her, but you can't.

00:33:52.560 --> 00:33:55.200
It's terrible to see.

00:33:55.280 --> 00:33:59.040
- You really cannot help.
All you can do is

00:33:59.120 --> 00:34:01.240
make sure

00:34:01.320 --> 00:34:03.800
she has at least a bit
of comfort at those moments.

00:34:03.880 --> 00:34:08.200
- And make sure she doesn't hurt herself
during a spasm.

00:34:08.320 --> 00:34:10.920
- And keep her from falling out of bed.

00:34:12.400 --> 00:34:16.520
- So, I am very scared
about the moment when...

00:34:17.400 --> 00:34:19.360
Marieke is no longer among us.

00:34:19.440 --> 00:34:21.760
I have no idea how I will react

00:34:21.840 --> 00:34:24.920
or how I'll be able to process it.

00:34:25.000 --> 00:34:27.760
- It's just not possible.
- No.

00:34:27.840 --> 00:34:31.000
Things like that,
you can't really process. No.

00:34:33.440 --> 00:34:36.160
I don't want to cry.
I really don't want to cry.

00:34:36.240 --> 00:34:38.200
- I wouldn't do that.
- No.

00:34:44.200 --> 00:34:45.600
Just stop.

00:34:52.680 --> 00:34:55.240
(gentle music)

00:35:12.240 --> 00:35:14.800
(phone beeping)

00:35:14.880 --> 00:35:16.800
- [Marieke] Who's that?

00:35:20.040 --> 00:35:21.960
That's my favorite nurse.

00:35:22.320 --> 00:35:23.760
- Hi.

00:35:23.840 --> 00:35:25.600
- [Marieke] Pola?

00:35:25.680 --> 00:35:28.720
Does it matter that you
are you going to look

00:35:28.800 --> 00:35:32.360
at my bus that crashed
in the tree over there

00:35:32.440 --> 00:35:35.720
while they are catheterizing me?

00:35:35.800 --> 00:35:38.400
(gentle music)

00:35:44.320 --> 00:35:45.640
Zenn!

00:35:45.720 --> 00:35:50.440
Give me a hug. Give me a hug.

00:35:52.080 --> 00:35:53.200
Sleep.

00:35:54.080 --> 00:35:57.160
I wrote a whole paper.

00:35:57.840 --> 00:36:02.040
Maybe you can see it there,
behind my chair.

00:36:02.120 --> 00:36:03.880
Dear Sirs:

00:36:03.960 --> 00:36:05.560
With this letter,

00:36:05.640 --> 00:36:08.000
I would like to renew the approval
for my euthanasia

00:36:08.080 --> 00:36:14.520
that I already requested
and received in 2008.

00:36:14.600 --> 00:36:21.360
Since then, my disease has become
significantly worse.

00:36:21.640 --> 00:36:27.520
Now I am 38.
I should be in the prime of my life.

00:36:27.960 --> 00:36:32.000
But, that, alas, is not the case.

00:36:32.520 --> 00:36:35.280
All my movements cause pain.

00:36:35.360 --> 00:36:38.280
Slowly but surely, I am going blind.

00:36:38.360 --> 00:36:43.560
I really cannot keep living this way
much longer.

00:36:44.000 --> 00:36:46.560
Best wishes, Marieke.

00:36:46.960 --> 00:36:51.160
And here, I close with my date of birth
and signature.

00:36:55.760 --> 00:36:56.600
Hello!

00:36:58.080 --> 00:37:04.080
Jan and I are on a date
at EuroDisney in Paris.

00:37:04.880 --> 00:37:10.120
Tickets... Look, the big castle.
There are the ticket booths.

00:37:11.880 --> 00:37:16.160
Alright. Let's go to the castle.
Toodaloo!

00:37:19.520 --> 00:37:22.920
- [Jan] I've known Marieke since 2008.

00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:26.200
If Marieke was around
you'd always hear her.

00:37:26.280 --> 00:37:27.840
(rail rattling)

00:37:27.920 --> 00:37:29.520
Beautiful, huh?

00:37:31.600 --> 00:37:33.880
Are you ready?

00:37:40.320 --> 00:37:43.000
(Jan screaming)

00:37:54.680 --> 00:37:56.360
Was that fun?

00:37:57.040 --> 00:38:00.880
(indistinct chatter)

00:38:04.720 --> 00:38:05.800
(Marieke gushes)

00:38:05.880 --> 00:38:07.400
[Jan] Enjoy.

00:38:07.480 --> 00:38:12.840
[Jan] When she drank cava,
always in company,

00:38:12.920 --> 00:38:17.560
it would help her ease the pain.

00:38:18.160 --> 00:38:20.720
(gentle music)

00:38:32.440 --> 00:38:36.960
- I always tell my friend Jan, who's gay,

00:38:37.040 --> 00:38:41.160
if he didn't like boys,
and if I didn't like girls,

00:38:41.240 --> 00:38:43.240
we would have been a couple.

00:38:43.400 --> 00:38:48.840
And we just always have
a lot of fun together.

00:38:48.920 --> 00:38:50.760
It's just great.

00:38:52.120 --> 00:38:54.480
(engine revving)

00:38:54.560 --> 00:38:56.200
(gentle music)

00:38:56.280 --> 00:38:59.000
What a dog's life, eh, Zenn?

00:38:59.080 --> 00:39:03.160
So heavy, poor doggie.

00:39:03.240 --> 00:39:05.680
Poor little thing.

00:39:06.720 --> 00:39:09.400
- [Pola] What happened
when you burned yourself?

00:39:09.480 --> 00:39:13.160
- In 2014, the week before

00:39:13.240 --> 00:39:18.720
I was planning to do
the biggest race in Belgium,

00:39:19.000 --> 00:39:20.880
I was cooking pasta,

00:39:20.960 --> 00:39:23.160
and I had an epileptic attack

00:39:23.240 --> 00:39:28.200
and all the hot boiling water
fell on my belly and my legs,

00:39:28.280 --> 00:39:31.360
and all my skin was peeling off,

00:39:31.440 --> 00:39:33.240
and it was really painful.

00:39:33.320 --> 00:39:34.360
I almost died.

00:39:34.440 --> 00:39:36.800
It was like a horror movie.

00:39:36.880 --> 00:39:39.440
(gentle music)

00:39:52.920 --> 00:39:54.680
You have my jacket, right?
- [Jan] Yup.

00:39:54.760 --> 00:39:56.080
- Yup!

00:39:56.320 --> 00:39:57.760
Ho, ho, ho!

00:39:57.840 --> 00:40:01.000
- Shh, they might kick you out!

00:40:03.080 --> 00:40:08.400
- Cluck cluck, oink oink, woof woof!
- Shh! It's a hospital.

00:40:10.640 --> 00:40:12.840
Zenn, Mommy will be back in a minute.

00:40:14.560 --> 00:40:18.960
- Alright, how is the champ?
- Meh.

00:40:21.680 --> 00:40:23.960
- OK. Can you install yourself up there?

00:40:24.040 --> 00:40:27.360
- Yes, I'll install myself.

00:40:27.440 --> 00:40:29.080
- [Thomas] Lots of ups and downs?

00:40:29.160 --> 00:40:30.720
- Yeah.

00:40:30.800 --> 00:40:34.960
Don't pull like that.
- Yes, that's good.

00:40:36.400 --> 00:40:40.560
But it's not as red as it was before.

00:40:40.640 --> 00:40:47.120
- But I've been wearing longer shorts to
cover everything up.

00:40:49.680 --> 00:40:54.640
- Actually, it is healing pretty well.
- It is, isn't it?

00:40:54.720 --> 00:40:56.240
Here it's a bit red.

00:40:56.320 --> 00:40:58.240
- Is your pump working okay?
- Yes.

00:40:58.320 --> 00:40:59.960
- Okay, good.

00:41:00.040 --> 00:41:02.880
Another new one?
- Yeah.

00:41:02.960 --> 00:41:05.600
- Everything is looking good.
- Yes.

00:41:05.680 --> 00:41:07.200
Wielemieke!

00:41:08.960 --> 00:41:11.560
And how is your sporting career?
- Over.

00:41:11.640 --> 00:41:14.240
- Over? And now?
- I can't do it anymore.

00:41:14.320 --> 00:41:15.760
- You don't have the strength anymore?

00:41:15.840 --> 00:41:18.800
- No. I am
in the hospital more than anywhere.

00:41:18.880 --> 00:41:21.200
- You've lost weight.
- Yes, I feel terrible.

00:41:21.280 --> 00:41:23.280
- You're losing more muscle.

00:41:23.360 --> 00:41:25.800
- I feel terrible.

00:41:25.880 --> 00:41:29.280
- When did you quit training?

00:41:29.360 --> 00:41:30.520
- After Rio.

00:41:30.600 --> 00:41:33.200
At the final training session,

00:41:33.280 --> 00:41:35.680
I was involved in an accident.

00:41:35.760 --> 00:41:36.760
- Yes?

00:41:36.840 --> 00:41:40.040
- I broke my sternum.
- Yes, I heard about that.

00:41:40.120 --> 00:41:42.320
- Damn, that hurt!

00:41:42.400 --> 00:41:45.880
And I still managed a bronze medal.
I did it!

00:41:45.960 --> 00:41:48.680
- You did well...
A beautiful ending, wasn't it?

00:41:48.760 --> 00:41:52.640
- Purely on mental strength.

00:41:55.080 --> 00:41:59.400
- Do you have appointments scheduled
with Dr. Distelmans?

00:41:59.480 --> 00:42:02.920
- Yes, probably next Monday.

00:42:03.000 --> 00:42:07.360
This time with another doctor,
who specializes in pain.

00:42:07.880 --> 00:42:12.600
An appointment with someone
I have never met.

00:42:12.680 --> 00:42:16.360
Because we keep hitting a wall.

00:42:16.440 --> 00:42:18.640
Nothing is really helping with the pain.

00:42:19.280 --> 00:42:21.560
Sometimes when it's really bad,

00:42:21.640 --> 00:42:24.200
I pray to die

00:42:24.280 --> 00:42:27.600
and sometimes I hope
that I'm going to sleep

00:42:27.680 --> 00:42:29.040
but I never have to wake up,

00:42:29.120 --> 00:42:31.920
that I don't have to make
the decision by myself.

00:42:32.000 --> 00:42:33.480
- She's changed.

00:42:33.560 --> 00:42:36.880
When she was here,
about three years ago,

00:42:36.960 --> 00:42:38.840
she was a different athlete.

00:42:38.920 --> 00:42:40.440
She was in trained,

00:42:40.520 --> 00:42:42.960
she was well-shaped, muscles.

00:42:43.040 --> 00:42:46.960
But now you see that she is changing.

00:42:47.040 --> 00:42:49.360
And she has the mind to continue,

00:42:49.440 --> 00:42:51.600
but she does not have
the force anymore.

00:42:51.680 --> 00:42:53.600
And so we must think about,

00:42:53.680 --> 00:42:55.880
she must think about how to continue,

00:42:55.960 --> 00:42:59.000
what she can do, what she will do,
what she wants to do.

00:42:59.080 --> 00:43:00.360
She is a champion,

00:43:00.440 --> 00:43:03.640
and a champion must decide
what she wants to do.

00:43:03.720 --> 00:43:06.280
(gentle music)

00:43:17.040 --> 00:43:19.640
- Zennie, Zennie!

00:43:19.880 --> 00:43:22.720
(gentle music)

00:43:22.800 --> 00:43:25.000
- [Lieve] Hey, sweetie.
- Godmother!

00:43:25.080 --> 00:43:26.520
- Are you awake?

00:43:27.680 --> 00:43:29.400
Are you awake, darling?

00:43:30.080 --> 00:43:31.080
How's it going?

00:43:31.160 --> 00:43:32.960
- I can't sleep anymore.

00:43:33.040 --> 00:43:35.440
- I can see that.

00:43:35.520 --> 00:43:37.800
Can I set this aside?

00:43:44.200 --> 00:43:45.240
Come, Marieke.

00:43:46.080 --> 00:43:48.680
- I don't feel good.

00:43:48.760 --> 00:43:50.000
- I hear that.

00:43:50.080 --> 00:43:52.000
- I'm not feeling well.

00:43:52.080 --> 00:43:54.000
- You're not feeling well?

00:43:54.080 --> 00:43:56.560
- No.
- Tell me about it.

00:43:56.640 --> 00:44:00.920
- It's my health.

00:44:01.160 --> 00:44:04.960
It keeps getting worse and worse.

00:44:05.320 --> 00:44:08.440
And the episodes are coming faster
one after the other.

00:44:08.520 --> 00:44:09.520
- Yeah.

00:44:10.160 --> 00:44:14.360
- I'm very scared all the time.

00:44:14.800 --> 00:44:18.120
- Scared that you'll be forced
to make a decision?

00:44:18.200 --> 00:44:19.960
Or what is scaring you?

00:44:22.240 --> 00:44:24.920
(Marieke groaning and choking)

00:44:25.000 --> 00:44:26.080
- Mieke.

00:44:32.360 --> 00:44:37.960
Hey, doll. What do I need to do?
Darling, tell me.

00:44:43.840 --> 00:44:45.120
(Marieke choking)

00:44:45.480 --> 00:44:49.760
Marieke has asked me to be
the last person to be around

00:44:50.240 --> 00:44:52.320
when she has made her final decision
for euthanasia.

00:44:53.000 --> 00:44:54.080
- Pain...

00:44:55.040 --> 00:44:57.640
- I promised her, so I will be there.

00:45:08.320 --> 00:45:11.000
- Do you remember what I asked of you?

00:45:11.080 --> 00:45:13.360
- I do, indeed, remember.

00:45:13.440 --> 00:45:15.880
- Would you still do it?

00:45:16.880 --> 00:45:19.480
- I am not going to break my promise.

00:45:21.600 --> 00:45:24.640
- But I cannot... I don't want to...

00:45:24.720 --> 00:45:27.120
- Marieke, I know.

00:45:27.200 --> 00:45:29.200
- I'm so stupid!

00:45:29.280 --> 00:45:31.720
- Oh whoa, whoa, whoa. Tut tut tut.

00:45:44.880 --> 00:45:46.680
(dog barking)

00:45:48.720 --> 00:45:49.720
- [Pola] Marieke!

00:45:49.800 --> 00:45:50.880
- [Marieke] Hi Pola!

00:45:51.840 --> 00:45:57.640
You know, my friend is
an arranger for funerals.

00:45:58.000 --> 00:46:02.680
And we spoke with each other two weeks ago

00:46:02.760 --> 00:46:06.280
and I already arranged
my funeral with him.

00:46:07.080 --> 00:46:10.640
In case something happened
and you never know.

00:46:10.720 --> 00:46:13.120
It's the same with you, Pola.

00:46:13.200 --> 00:46:17.440
You can also die tomorrow
because of heart problems,

00:46:17.520 --> 00:46:20.160
or a car that hits you.

00:46:21.120 --> 00:46:24.240
I already wanna arrange everything now

00:46:24.320 --> 00:46:28.440
and I told him I choose a red casket.

00:46:28.520 --> 00:46:30.400
I want a red one,

00:46:30.480 --> 00:46:34.680
and I want everybody
to drink a glass of cava

00:46:34.760 --> 00:46:36.800
and that they are not sad,

00:46:36.880 --> 00:46:41.240
but they say cheers to
the good life of Marieke.

00:46:41.320 --> 00:46:44.480
So, everything is arranged.

00:46:45.240 --> 00:46:46.480
(gentle music)

00:46:46.560 --> 00:46:49.040
(car beeping)

00:46:52.960 --> 00:46:56.120
I am in the hospital in Diest.

00:46:56.200 --> 00:47:01.120
The day before yesterday,
I had a big epileptic fit.

00:47:01.480 --> 00:47:05.520
And I hope I can go home soon.

00:47:05.640 --> 00:47:08.200
(gentle music)

00:47:15.680 --> 00:47:16.960
- Look who's here.

00:47:17.040 --> 00:47:20.000
- Hey! Daddy-boy!

00:47:21.800 --> 00:47:24.440
- Truffles from Brussels!

00:47:24.520 --> 00:47:26.280
- Oh oh oh!

00:47:26.360 --> 00:47:28.200
- Ho ho ho! Santa!

00:47:29.000 --> 00:47:31.440
- Oh! Oh!

00:47:31.520 --> 00:47:32.840
- Ho ho ho.

00:47:33.120 --> 00:47:35.760
(phone ringing)

00:47:38.520 --> 00:47:40.280
- I'm a busy woman!

00:47:40.400 --> 00:47:43.560
(indistinct chatters)

00:47:44.960 --> 00:47:47.280
- Hello, this is the Sex Line.

00:47:47.360 --> 00:47:49.800
- [Lieve] Finally, the Sex Line on the line.

00:47:49.880 --> 00:47:53.080
(Marieke chuckles)

00:47:53.960 --> 00:47:57.120
- The sex line isn't very doing very well.

00:47:57.200 --> 00:47:59.960
- No? What's wrong with it?

00:48:00.040 --> 00:48:02.520
- It's broken.

00:48:06.400 --> 00:48:07.800
- Marieke?

00:48:07.880 --> 00:48:11.640
- Godmother, I'm sorry,
I keep falling asleep.

00:48:11.720 --> 00:48:14.680
- It's OK, honey. I understand.

00:48:14.760 --> 00:48:19.200
Oh, Marieke.
I'll call back another time. Is that okay?

00:48:19.440 --> 00:48:21.280
- That's super.

00:48:21.360 --> 00:48:25.400
- Okay. Big kiss, sweetie.
And a very big hug.

00:48:25.480 --> 00:48:28.840
- I love you! Bye-bye!

00:48:29.400 --> 00:48:31.480
- [Woman] Wow, there are a lot of people here!

00:48:31.560 --> 00:48:33.280
- [Friend] Hey, Hayden!

00:48:33.360 --> 00:48:35.880
- [Woman] Oops.
- [Friend] Zennie!

00:48:35.960 --> 00:48:37.960
(all laughing)

00:48:38.040 --> 00:48:40.320
- Hayden, what's that?

00:48:40.400 --> 00:48:44.760
[Woman] We'll come back later
when there are fewer people here.

00:48:44.840 --> 00:48:48.040
(indistinct chatters)

00:48:49.040 --> 00:48:50.800
- What's all this?

00:48:50.880 --> 00:48:54.040
- See you later!
- See you later.

00:48:57.000 --> 00:48:59.920
- [Pola] Give us like half an hour.

00:49:05.120 --> 00:49:07.640
When we were on the phone
a couple of months ago,

00:49:07.720 --> 00:49:11.960
you said to me, "Pola I have
a serious question for you.

00:49:12.040 --> 00:49:13.920
Are you going to keep
filming until the end?

00:49:14.000 --> 00:49:15.840
Are you going to keep
filming until I die?"

00:49:15.920 --> 00:49:17.600
Do you remember you asked me that?

00:49:18.560 --> 00:49:19.720
- Yeah.

00:49:19.800 --> 00:49:21.680
- And I think we said,

00:49:23.200 --> 00:49:24.800
well I said to you,

00:49:26.520 --> 00:49:29.760
"Do you want me to keep
filming until that point?"

00:49:31.200 --> 00:49:35.600
- When the doctor is
doing it, that's private.

00:49:35.680 --> 00:49:41.080
But before and after, you can film it.

00:49:42.120 --> 00:49:46.040
But because it's very difficult
for my parents as well,

00:49:46.120 --> 00:49:48.320
because I asked my parents

00:49:48.840 --> 00:49:51.600
when they do the euthanasia,

00:49:53.120 --> 00:49:56.640
I want to say goodbye to you first,

00:49:56.720 --> 00:49:59.240
and then you go to another room.

00:49:59.960 --> 00:50:03.000
And then when they do it,

00:50:03.080 --> 00:50:09.920
I only want my godmother
of sports, Lieve with me

00:50:10.000 --> 00:50:13.920
and my psychologist with me.

00:50:14.600 --> 00:50:17.560
And for the rest I want nobody with me.

00:50:17.640 --> 00:50:18.480
- Yeah.

00:50:22.200 --> 00:50:24.720
(bell chiming)

00:50:36.440 --> 00:50:42.440
- As you can see, it's 2:38 AM again.

00:50:43.000 --> 00:50:45.520
And I still haven't slept.

00:50:46.360 --> 00:50:51.000
The clock...
It ticks, and it ticks...

00:50:51.480 --> 00:50:56.920
and it ticks so goddamned slow.
It's driving me crazy.

00:50:57.000 --> 00:51:03.000
Wait, I'll flip my camera around,
so you can see me.

00:51:04.040 --> 00:51:08.240
There. Yesterday, Saturday,

00:51:10.440 --> 00:51:15.440
I went to get my intravenous
and I got caught.

00:51:16.240 --> 00:51:20.200
I hooked myself up,
and it felt amazing.

00:51:20.400 --> 00:51:23.000
(gentle music)

00:51:28.720 --> 00:51:33.720
♪ I've got my feet on
the ground to stand on ♪

00:51:36.160 --> 00:51:39.640
♪ Where I belong ♪

00:51:39.720 --> 00:51:44.720
♪ Where we belong ♪

00:51:47.320 --> 00:51:52.320
♪ I've got my song, my song ♪

00:51:53.200 --> 00:52:00.880
♪ And my song is yours ♪

00:52:05.000 --> 00:52:08.280
♪ Huh ♪

00:52:08.360 --> 00:52:11.960
♪ Huh ♪

00:52:13.440 --> 00:52:16.280
(water splashing)

00:52:24.480 --> 00:52:27.520
- I think it was in 2009

00:52:27.600 --> 00:52:30.960
when I first came to Lanzarote.

00:52:32.600 --> 00:52:36.480
In Belgium it was cold and lots of rain.

00:52:36.560 --> 00:52:39.040
(gentle music)

00:52:39.120 --> 00:52:42.400
And here I felt a lot better.

00:52:42.480 --> 00:52:45.000
The climate is dry and warm.

00:52:46.520 --> 00:52:50.640
I was able to train
in the winter like in the summer.

00:52:50.720 --> 00:52:54.160
♪ And my home ♪

00:52:54.240 --> 00:52:57.360
♪ Is your home ♪

00:52:57.440 --> 00:53:01.040
♪ My home is your home ♪

00:53:01.120 --> 00:53:03.080
- And here it's always like coming home.

00:53:03.160 --> 00:53:05.760
(gentle music)

00:53:08.080 --> 00:53:11.560
Come. Come here.
Come on, in the car.

00:53:11.640 --> 00:53:14.880
In the car.
In the car. In the car.

00:53:15.280 --> 00:53:16.280
Hey.

00:53:16.720 --> 00:53:19.400
(bright music)

00:53:22.440 --> 00:53:26.120
If you drink a lot,
you don't feel a thing.

00:53:26.200 --> 00:53:28.720
(all laughing)

00:53:28.800 --> 00:53:31.400
(bright music)

00:54:12.360 --> 00:54:15.120
(water whirling)

00:54:24.440 --> 00:54:29.720
I want them to throw my ashes here
in Lanzarote in the sea.

00:54:30.800 --> 00:54:33.880
My parents live at the Belgian coast,

00:54:33.960 --> 00:54:35.320
and my father said,

00:54:35.400 --> 00:54:38.280
"I can't live at the Belgian coast anymore

00:54:38.360 --> 00:54:42.800
when I know that you are
somewhere in the sea.

00:54:42.880 --> 00:54:44.680
I can't live with it."

00:54:44.760 --> 00:54:46.400
(waves crashing)

00:54:46.480 --> 00:54:49.080
(gentle music)

00:54:59.920 --> 00:55:02.600
(Annie sobbing)

00:55:20.680 --> 00:55:23.440
(gulls squawking)

00:55:33.160 --> 00:55:34.400
- I think it's a lovely place

00:55:34.480 --> 00:55:39.960
but it's hard to know when she's dead,

00:55:40.040 --> 00:55:42.480
she's gonna be there, it's hard.

00:55:43.600 --> 00:55:45.920
I can't imagine it, I won't...

00:55:47.080 --> 00:55:49.080
I accept what she wants to do,

00:55:49.160 --> 00:55:51.720
but I don't have to like it.

00:55:51.800 --> 00:55:54.400
(somber music)

00:55:58.360 --> 00:56:00.920
(Annie kisses)

00:56:18.240 --> 00:56:20.160
(waves crashing)

00:56:38.120 --> 00:56:42.680
- I told my parents
I have too much pain now

00:56:43.200 --> 00:56:46.760
and I'm now sure

00:56:46.840 --> 00:56:50.080
to ask the doctor

00:56:50.360 --> 00:56:56.160
to do euthanasia
in the month of March or April.

00:56:56.880 --> 00:56:59.160
Because I can't anymore.

00:56:59.240 --> 00:57:04.760
But the end of March, beginning of April,

00:57:04.840 --> 00:57:10.480
then it's okay for me
to say goodbye to the world.

00:57:11.240 --> 00:57:13.480
- [Pola] And you don't wanna try to stay

00:57:13.560 --> 00:57:15.800
until your birthday on the 10th of May?

00:57:16.840 --> 00:57:21.440
- No, I don't want to be 40 years old.

00:57:22.160 --> 00:57:25.640
No, 39 is okay.

00:57:25.720 --> 00:57:28.040
(Marieke laughing)

00:57:34.280 --> 00:57:36.000
- [Pola] Oh, it's been a long time.

00:57:37.000 --> 00:57:40.720
I wanted to get in touch
and I kept trying to call you,

00:57:40.800 --> 00:57:42.480
and you never answered.

00:57:42.560 --> 00:57:44.800
And finally I emailed your father,

00:57:44.880 --> 00:57:48.280
then he told me that your mom
was very sick with pneumonia.

00:57:48.360 --> 00:57:50.480
And he said we're very scared.

00:57:51.520 --> 00:57:53.160
- She's very bad.

00:57:53.400 --> 00:57:55.920
I just had a phone call that...

00:57:57.000 --> 00:57:58.400
that it's...

00:58:03.240 --> 00:58:07.360
that it's so bad that she can die soon.

00:58:07.440 --> 00:58:09.000
- [Pola] Oh, God!

00:58:10.760 --> 00:58:12.400
- It's really bad.

00:58:14.400 --> 00:58:17.160
(engine revving)

00:58:19.960 --> 00:58:22.880
(machine clicking)

00:58:35.560 --> 00:58:38.680
We are visiting Mom.

00:58:41.520 --> 00:58:45.760
I always try to cheer her up
by saying "mother."

00:58:46.400 --> 00:58:50.960
Once it worked,
and after that, it didn't work anymore.

00:58:51.840 --> 00:58:54.800
Mommy, you have to keep fighting.

00:58:54.880 --> 00:58:57.680
None of us can live without you.

00:58:58.720 --> 00:59:02.520
Keep on fighting.
Believe you can.

00:59:07.080 --> 00:59:08.760
You are never alone.

00:59:15.520 --> 00:59:17.320
Goddamn.

00:59:18.080 --> 00:59:22.400
Mom, I love you so much.

00:59:23.600 --> 00:59:26.160
(somber music)

00:59:32.560 --> 00:59:35.200
(birds chirping)

00:59:57.480 --> 00:59:59.360
- [Pola] How's your mom, how's Odette?

00:59:59.440 --> 01:00:01.880
- Really good, really good now.
- [Pola] Oh, thank God.

01:00:01.960 --> 01:00:04.040
- She's almost coming home.

01:00:04.120 --> 01:00:06.000
- [Pola] What happened to her?

01:00:06.080 --> 01:00:08.200
- Oh, oh, many things.

01:00:08.280 --> 01:00:12.840
She had three lung infections.

01:00:12.920 --> 01:00:16.200
She was in a coma for seven weeks

01:00:16.280 --> 01:00:19.560
and we all cried very hard,

01:00:19.640 --> 01:00:21.160
we almost thought...

01:00:22.160 --> 01:00:25.120
The doctors told us to be prepared

01:00:25.200 --> 01:00:30.480
because it could be the last days
that we could see her.

01:00:30.920 --> 01:00:38.160
So, and now she is sitting
alive, laughing, and crying.

01:00:38.360 --> 01:00:42.160
It brought us all more together.

01:00:42.240 --> 01:00:48.240
We are more than one family

01:00:48.320 --> 01:00:52.520
and we love each other
so much more than before.

01:00:52.600 --> 01:00:53.560
It's really beautiful.

01:00:53.640 --> 01:00:56.240
(gentle music)

01:01:09.720 --> 01:01:10.720
Hello!

01:01:11.440 --> 01:01:14.640
- [Man] Yeah, she's in shape.

01:01:14.720 --> 01:01:18.560
- This really brings tears to my eyes.

01:01:18.640 --> 01:01:21.560
It is beautiful, but at the same time

01:01:22.760 --> 01:01:24.200
it makes me feel very emotional.

01:01:24.280 --> 01:01:26.840
(gentle music)

01:01:27.600 --> 01:01:30.160
You guys did a great job!
Seriously.

01:01:33.480 --> 01:01:34.960
- [Host] Which artwork
was made by your mom?

01:01:35.040 --> 01:01:38.360
- For example, the 3D art in the back.

01:01:38.440 --> 01:01:40.520
- Oh, yes. Those are special to you, right?

01:01:40.600 --> 01:01:44.040
- They mean a lot to me.

01:01:44.120 --> 01:01:45.680
- And is your mom doing better now?

01:01:45.760 --> 01:01:47.880
- Much better. Really.

01:01:47.960 --> 01:01:50.920
(gentle music)

01:01:51.000 --> 01:01:52.320
(audience applauding)

01:01:52.400 --> 01:01:53.840
I am truly grateful

01:01:53.920 --> 01:01:56.960
to Sportimonium
and to the City of Diest.

01:01:58.440 --> 01:02:00.600
Thank you friends and family.

01:02:00.680 --> 01:02:02.560
Thank you for being here.

01:02:02.640 --> 01:02:05.600
(audience applauding)

01:02:05.680 --> 01:02:08.240
(gentle music)

01:02:18.160 --> 01:02:21.000
(Marieke snoring)

01:02:29.560 --> 01:02:32.040
(dog barking)

01:02:42.600 --> 01:02:46.240
- [Odette] You look very pale.

01:02:46.320 --> 01:02:48.880
(somber music)

01:04:26.160 --> 01:04:28.680
(dog barking)

01:04:35.960 --> 01:04:39.000
- [Marieke] Say Pola,
when you do the premiere,

01:04:39.080 --> 01:04:42.360
will you promise to invite my parents

01:04:42.440 --> 01:04:44.680
and some important people?

01:04:44.760 --> 01:04:45.760
- [Pola] Of course.

01:04:46.960 --> 01:04:50.280
- I've just told my psychologist

01:04:50.360 --> 01:04:55.280
I decided to wait for my sister.

01:04:55.360 --> 01:04:57.760
She's gonna have her baby.

01:04:59.160 --> 01:05:01.840
And that's the 19th of September.

01:05:03.080 --> 01:05:05.400
- [Pola] I didn't know your
sister was having a baby!

01:05:05.480 --> 01:05:09.480
- Yeah, and then right after that,

01:05:09.560 --> 01:05:12.280
I'm doing the euthanasia.

01:05:12.360 --> 01:05:14.440
Then I've got everything.

01:05:15.840 --> 01:05:18.440
(gentle music)

01:05:25.640 --> 01:05:28.560
(vehicles revving)

01:05:30.680 --> 01:05:33.440
(leafs rustling)

01:05:37.160 --> 01:05:39.720
Ladies and gentlemen.

01:05:39.800 --> 01:05:43.040
We finally made it back home.

01:05:43.120 --> 01:05:46.360
I'm so happy to be back home again.

01:05:46.440 --> 01:05:51.120
Yesterday, I lost a tooth.

01:05:51.200 --> 01:05:53.160
A stupid Snickers bar.

01:05:53.240 --> 01:05:56.320
I freaking lost a tooth.

01:05:56.400 --> 01:06:01.800
Yes, with this new pretty face
I have to give crooked smiles.

01:06:01.880 --> 01:06:03.240
(dog barks)

01:06:03.320 --> 01:06:05.080
When people want
to take a picture with me.

01:06:05.160 --> 01:06:08.160
I kind of need to smile like this now.

01:06:08.680 --> 01:06:12.720
It's also a very happy reunion
with the dogs.

01:06:12.800 --> 01:06:16.440
Those two together are incredible.

01:06:16.520 --> 01:06:19.280
Mazzel's little eyes...

01:06:19.760 --> 01:06:23.880
I can't resist them.
I fall in love immediately.

01:06:23.960 --> 01:06:25.480
I'm simply in love.

01:06:26.480 --> 01:06:28.880
Mazzel, Mazzel!

01:06:28.960 --> 01:06:30.720
There is Mazzel!

01:06:30.800 --> 01:06:32.360
Yeah.

01:06:32.440 --> 01:06:34.120
Yes. Hey, honey.

01:06:34.200 --> 01:06:35.920
And Zenn, as well.

01:06:36.000 --> 01:06:37.720
Hey, Zenn and Mazzel.

01:06:37.800 --> 01:06:41.200
Zenn is a little jealous.
Mazzel...

01:06:41.280 --> 01:06:47.280
Mazzel and Zenn give me
a lot of joy in life.

01:06:47.960 --> 01:06:48.960
(dog grunting)

01:06:49.040 --> 01:06:50.440
Say hello.

01:06:50.840 --> 01:06:52.680
Hey. Good job.

01:06:52.920 --> 01:06:54.840
Good girls.

01:06:54.920 --> 01:06:57.080
(upbeat music)

01:06:58.560 --> 01:07:02.000
One important thing that you have to know

01:07:02.080 --> 01:07:06.880
is that I'm gonna race
with the Lamborghini.

01:07:07.000 --> 01:07:08.080
- [Pola] Wait, say that again?

01:07:08.160 --> 01:07:10.160
(Marieke mimicking a racing car)

01:07:10.240 --> 01:07:11.400
Wait, you're gonna race with--

01:07:11.480 --> 01:07:13.400
- [Marieke] With a Lamborghini car!

01:07:13.480 --> 01:07:14.760
- [Pola] With a what kind of car?

01:07:14.840 --> 01:07:18.480
- With a professional Lamborghini racer.

01:07:18.560 --> 01:07:20.400
- [Pola] Oh my gosh.

01:07:20.480 --> 01:07:21.960
(upbeat music)

01:07:22.040 --> 01:07:24.600
(engines revving)

01:07:24.680 --> 01:07:26.480
- Hello.
- [Jos] We're here to drive a Lamborghini.

01:07:26.560 --> 01:07:28.760
- Just follow the road.

01:07:28.840 --> 01:07:31.160
It will automatically take you
to the boxes.

01:07:31.240 --> 01:07:34.640
- Got it. We've got to go to the boxes.
Thank you.

01:07:34.720 --> 01:07:36.920
- [Pola] So what's the name of the team?

01:07:37.000 --> 01:07:40.480
- [Marieke] I don't know,
I just know that I'm gonna race

01:07:40.560 --> 01:07:42.200
in a Lamborghini!

01:07:42.280 --> 01:07:43.880
(Marieke laughing)

01:07:43.960 --> 01:07:45.680
- [Jos] The VRT is here.

01:07:45.760 --> 01:07:47.000
- VRT News.

01:07:47.080 --> 01:07:48.720
(upbeat music)

01:07:48.800 --> 01:07:50.520
- Hey, there.
- Hi.

01:07:50.600 --> 01:07:52.960
- Finally, I get to meet you.

01:07:53.040 --> 01:07:54.480
- Everything okay?
- Totally!

01:07:54.560 --> 01:07:57.760
I am really looking forward to it.
- It will be cool.

01:07:57.880 --> 01:07:58.880
- Yeah.

01:08:01.040 --> 01:08:02.480
Yes, Mazzel.

01:08:07.640 --> 01:08:09.560
- Let 'er rip.

01:08:09.640 --> 01:08:11.880
(engine revving)

01:08:11.960 --> 01:08:14.760
(upbeat music)

01:08:14.840 --> 01:08:16.640
(Marieke screaming)

01:08:16.720 --> 01:08:19.480
(engine revving)

01:08:40.120 --> 01:08:42.360
- Oh my God!

01:08:42.440 --> 01:08:44.160
You know what happened?

01:08:44.240 --> 01:08:46.840
Every time when we needed to brake,

01:08:48.000 --> 01:08:50.360
I went flying forward.

01:08:50.440 --> 01:08:54.480
The wound is back open
here on my portable catheter,

01:08:54.560 --> 01:08:56.400
all because of the race.

01:08:56.480 --> 01:08:59.040
I had a lot of pain afterwards.

01:09:00.240 --> 01:09:02.160
I had to be in the hospital

01:09:02.240 --> 01:09:04.800
because with the car racing,

01:09:04.880 --> 01:09:08.400
I had a yellow catheter coming out.

01:09:08.480 --> 01:09:10.480
They had to pull it out.

01:09:10.560 --> 01:09:14.760
And now I have a special catheter here

01:09:14.840 --> 01:09:19.240
so that they don't have to put
needles in my skin anymore.

01:09:21.200 --> 01:09:24.000
(birds chirping)

01:09:24.080 --> 01:09:26.720
(phone ringing)

01:09:29.040 --> 01:09:30.960
(Marieke screaming)

01:09:31.040 --> 01:09:33.160
- Marieke. Sshh.

01:09:37.120 --> 01:09:38.280
- Hang on.

01:09:39.840 --> 01:09:44.280
- No, no, stay calm, Marieke.
Calm down, calm down.

01:09:46.040 --> 01:09:47.680
Just try to remain calm.

01:09:47.760 --> 01:09:50.960
- I don't want this anymore.

01:09:51.040 --> 01:09:53.080
- Try to relax. Then it will pass.

01:09:53.160 --> 01:09:54.160
(Marieke groaning)

01:09:54.240 --> 01:09:55.400
- Shh.

01:09:56.040 --> 01:09:57.040
- Marieke.

01:09:58.840 --> 01:10:01.560
- Yesterday she was not doing well.
That I know.

01:10:01.640 --> 01:10:03.080
- Yesterday evening?

01:10:03.160 --> 01:10:05.400
- Yesterday during the day.

01:10:05.640 --> 01:10:07.760
- Last night she was relatively okay.

01:10:07.840 --> 01:10:09.640
(Marieke chokes)

01:10:10.720 --> 01:10:13.160
Hey, Marieke, wake up.

01:10:28.200 --> 01:10:31.440
- [Marieke] I decided
it was really difficult

01:10:31.520 --> 01:10:33.320
that my parents...

01:10:33.400 --> 01:10:38.240
I allowed them to be with me when I die.

01:10:38.960 --> 01:10:43.440
And my mother started to cry very hard,

01:10:43.520 --> 01:10:45.440
and she was very happy.

01:10:49.560 --> 01:10:55.280
And I know the date now for my euthanasia.

01:10:55.880 --> 01:10:57.720
- [Pola] So what date is it?

01:10:57.800 --> 01:11:00.840
- 22, a Tuesday.

01:11:00.920 --> 01:11:02.680
- [Pola] October 22nd.

01:11:02.920 --> 01:11:03.920
- Yeah.

01:11:05.640 --> 01:11:08.160
Yeah, it's coming close now.

01:11:08.240 --> 01:11:10.840
(somber music)

01:11:52.360 --> 01:11:54.840
(car revving)

01:12:00.200 --> 01:12:02.360
- [Jos] Marieke.
- Yeah?

01:12:02.440 --> 01:12:04.280
- Mom and I really didn't know

01:12:04.360 --> 01:12:06.880
that you were inviting
people for Tuesday.

01:12:06.960 --> 01:12:09.760
- I said that a long time ago, didn't I?

01:12:09.840 --> 01:12:13.880
- On Tuesday, we're saying goodbye

01:12:13.960 --> 01:12:16.720
and we're not expecting
any more visits on Tuesday.

01:12:16.800 --> 01:12:18.760
- I said that on Tuesday

01:12:18.840 --> 01:12:24.320
I would like to have one more drink
with my closest friends

01:12:25.120 --> 01:12:27.440
before it happens

01:12:27.520 --> 01:12:31.360
and they should leave the room at 7:45 PM.

01:12:33.760 --> 01:12:35.200
So you guys will still have time.

01:12:35.280 --> 01:12:37.880
You will have the whole day!

01:12:37.960 --> 01:12:39.360
- [Jos] Marieke.

01:12:41.360 --> 01:12:44.360
- Daddy, we are not going to fight
about this, are we?

01:12:44.440 --> 01:12:47.000
- I don't get it.

01:12:48.360 --> 01:12:50.840
- Daddy, these are people
who are very close to me.

01:12:50.920 --> 01:12:53.320
- Yeah, but... Okay.

01:12:54.760 --> 01:12:55.920
Officially, I don't know anything.

01:12:56.000 --> 01:12:59.520
- At 8 PM, the deed will be done.

01:12:59.600 --> 01:13:02.040
- I didn't know that.

01:13:02.120 --> 01:13:03.520
- Now you do.

01:13:03.600 --> 01:13:08.320
- This is the first time that I'm hearing
that it will be done at 8:00.

01:13:12.240 --> 01:13:14.840
(gentle music)

01:13:33.240 --> 01:13:34.440
- [Marieke] At the end of the movie

01:13:34.520 --> 01:13:37.360
the good things have to come.

01:13:37.440 --> 01:13:39.520
The winning the gold medal,

01:13:39.600 --> 01:13:42.640
the bungee jump, a white light,

01:13:42.720 --> 01:13:44.200
and then it's done.

01:13:46.080 --> 01:13:51.040
I'm released out of this painful body.

01:13:51.120 --> 01:13:52.880
Isn't that beautiful?

01:13:56.640 --> 01:13:59.800
(indistinct chatters)

01:14:04.040 --> 01:14:05.400
[Marieke] You are in my heart

01:14:05.480 --> 01:14:08.840
and you will stay in my heart forever.

01:14:08.920 --> 01:14:11.000
I am so glad to know you.

01:14:14.360 --> 01:14:16.680
- See you tomorrow.

01:14:16.760 --> 01:14:18.720
I won't say bye-bye.

01:14:18.800 --> 01:14:21.040
- No, we don't say goodbye.

01:14:22.120 --> 01:14:24.160
We say see you soon.

01:14:25.640 --> 01:14:28.280
The euthanasia is for Tuesday.

01:14:28.360 --> 01:14:30.120
- So I heard.

01:14:30.200 --> 01:14:33.520
- But I can't handle it here.

01:14:33.600 --> 01:14:34.840
It's too much.

01:14:34.920 --> 01:14:35.920
- I can tell.

01:14:36.480 --> 01:14:38.440
- Don't forget to say everything

01:14:38.520 --> 01:14:40.520
you still wanted to say
to Mom and Dad, okay?

01:14:40.600 --> 01:14:43.760
(indistinct chatters)

01:14:46.640 --> 01:14:49.040
- Here, let them see this.
- What?

01:14:49.120 --> 01:14:51.800
- [Odette] Her sister and the baby.

01:14:53.640 --> 01:14:58.920
These days now are very precious to us.

01:14:59.040 --> 01:15:01.520
And we don't get the chance to be with her.

01:15:01.600 --> 01:15:06.800
In the hospital it was very calm,
very pleasant.

01:15:06.880 --> 01:15:08.160
We could talk.

01:15:08.240 --> 01:15:11.120
And now, Marieke is exhausted.

01:15:11.200 --> 01:15:12.200
- She is.

01:15:12.280 --> 01:15:15.280
- So, hopefully, we'll have our moments

01:15:15.360 --> 01:15:17.040
together at the hospital.

01:15:17.640 --> 01:15:19.680
And on Tuesday, too. Right, Marieke?

01:15:19.760 --> 01:15:22.200
Sweetheart? We will, right?

01:15:22.400 --> 01:15:25.400
Because that's really important,
eh, darling?

01:15:25.480 --> 01:15:26.480
- Yeah.

01:15:29.520 --> 01:15:32.000
Hey, my sweet darling.

01:15:32.080 --> 01:15:35.240
(indistinct chatters)

01:15:39.080 --> 01:15:41.760
- Marieke. My sweet girl.

01:15:43.520 --> 01:15:46.920
- It will happen at 8:00.

01:15:47.000 --> 01:15:48.400
So, come before that.

01:15:48.480 --> 01:15:49.480
- Okay. At night?

01:15:49.560 --> 01:15:55.080
- Before that, I'd like to have a drink

01:15:55.160 --> 01:15:56.760
with family and close friends.

01:15:56.840 --> 01:16:01.120
- Sure. I will come over, for sure.

01:16:01.520 --> 01:16:02.680
- Very good.

01:16:05.480 --> 01:16:08.080
- I love you.
- Me too.

01:16:08.160 --> 01:16:10.560
You'll still have all the good memories.

01:16:10.640 --> 01:16:11.680
- Yes.

01:16:14.880 --> 01:16:18.240
(Marieke crying)

01:16:30.360 --> 01:16:31.720
- We're still not married.

01:16:31.800 --> 01:16:33.600
- No. You stupid dog.

01:16:33.680 --> 01:16:36.200
(both crying)

01:16:39.560 --> 01:16:42.120
(somber music)

01:17:03.200 --> 01:17:05.720
(dog barking)

01:17:20.960 --> 01:17:24.000
(indistinct chatters)

01:17:24.080 --> 01:17:25.600
(dog barking)

01:17:25.680 --> 01:17:28.240
(somber music)

01:18:34.200 --> 01:18:35.280
- Pola.

01:18:42.400 --> 01:18:45.160
(Marieke crying)

01:19:00.640 --> 01:19:03.200
(gentle music)

01:19:35.280 --> 01:19:37.200
- [Jan] The doctor asked Marieke

01:19:37.280 --> 01:19:40.200
if she was really sure
she wanted to continue.

01:19:40.280 --> 01:19:42.960
And she said,
"Yes, I still want to continue."

01:19:43.040 --> 01:19:45.360
(somber music)

01:19:45.440 --> 01:19:48.000
And it went really quickly.

01:19:48.800 --> 01:19:52.640
Eight shots,
and at that moment I wanted to say,

01:19:52.720 --> 01:19:55.000
"Please stop, you're killing her."

01:19:56.120 --> 01:19:58.680
(somber music)

01:19:59.720 --> 01:20:02.880
But we all know it's the best for her.

01:20:04.720 --> 01:20:07.320
(somber music)

01:20:12.320 --> 01:20:15.080
(birds chirping)

01:20:29.080 --> 01:20:30.320
- [Jos] Marieke.

01:20:30.400 --> 01:20:33.880
One thing, as parents,
we have never understood

01:20:33.960 --> 01:20:36.840
is that you had so much difficulty

01:20:36.920 --> 01:20:39.400
sharing your pain with us
for such a long time.

01:20:39.840 --> 01:20:44.440
For whatever reason,
you wanted to spare us from that.

01:20:44.520 --> 01:20:46.880
That really was not necessary.

01:20:47.640 --> 01:20:50.760
Our family will never be whole again.

01:20:51.360 --> 01:20:53.480
But "we don't give up."

01:20:54.120 --> 01:20:55.120
Never.

01:20:56.880 --> 01:21:00.240
♪ Soon ♪

01:21:00.320 --> 01:21:05.320
♪ I will get there soon ♪

01:21:09.360 --> 01:21:14.360
♪ And we'll meet again ♪

01:21:15.240 --> 01:21:20.240
♪ We'll get together like we used to ♪

01:21:22.160 --> 01:21:27.160
♪ Like we should ♪

01:21:27.280 --> 01:21:32.280
♪ Like I said I would ♪

01:21:34.240 --> 01:21:39.040
♪ Soon ♪

01:21:39.120 --> 01:21:43.320
♪ It would all be over ♪

01:21:43.400 --> 01:21:48.640
♪ After seeing what I saw ♪

01:21:48.720 --> 01:21:52.240
♪ Soon ♪

01:21:52.320 --> 01:21:57.480
♪ I'm not afraid anymore ♪

01:22:00.320 --> 01:22:03.720
♪ Of what is coming soon ♪

01:22:03.800 --> 01:22:06.400
(upbeat music)

01:22:11.000 --> 01:22:14.920
♪ If that means being with you ♪

01:22:17.880 --> 01:22:20.880
(Marieke screaming)

01:22:23.200 --> 01:22:26.120
(Marieke screaming)

01:22:26.200 --> 01:22:27.480
(fireworks cracking)

01:22:27.560 --> 01:22:30.120
(all laughing)

01:22:32.200 --> 01:22:35.120
(Marieke laughing)

01:22:35.960 --> 01:22:37.080
(Marieke screaming)

01:22:44.560 --> 01:22:47.560
(Marieke screaming)

01:22:51.760 --> 01:22:54.520
(waves whirling)

01:23:08.680 --> 01:23:11.240
(somber music)

01:23:18.120 --> 01:23:20.800
(somber music)

01:25:47.080 --> 01:25:48.200
(Marieke kisses)

01:25:48.280 --> 01:25:49.760
- I love you.