Noa-Lynn van Leuven is stepping away from darts due to mental health struggles.
The Dutch star became the first transgender player to feature at the World Championship when competing at Ally Pally last month. Van Leuven was knocked out in the first round and subsequently failed to secure a place on the PDC Tour after not making it through European Q-School. The 28-year-old last year spoke of receiving death threats, took social-media stick and rivals even boycotted events due to her participation.
Van Leuven is now stepping back and used her Instagram account to reveal: “Q-School 2025 is over, and unfortunately, I didn’t play my best game. The truth is, my mind hasn’t really been in the right place for a while. I’ve been struggling with my mental health for months, and every time a tournament comes up, I’ve tried to push it aside.
“But this time, it caught up with me. Trying to focus on darts while dealing with old traumas that were triggered last year just doesn’t work, and I’ve realized it’s time to shift my focus. It’s time to prioritise my mental health and work on actually getting better.
“This isn’t the end of my journey, just a step back to move forward. Thanks to everyone who’s supported me along the way. I appreciate it more than I can put into words.”