"Is this all worth it to me?": Noa-Lynn van Leuven did think about quitting darts amid torrent of abuse

Noa-Lynn van Leuven will make darts history at the World Darts Championship on Tuesday by becoming the first transgender person to take the stage at the Alexandra Palace. On her debut in London, she will take on compatriot Kevin Doets.

"It's mighty nice to be able to compete and I'm really looking forward to it, but somewhere I think it's also exciting," Van Leuven told De Telegraaf in a preview.

Her baptism of fire at the World Darts Championship comes after an eventful year, in which there was much discussion about Van Leuven's admission to the ladies' circuit. However, the PDC stands firm and sees no evidence that Van Leuven has an advantage with the ladies.

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''I was very shocked by what was coming out on social media and I took a lot of that too,'' Van Leuven says of this difficult period. She decided to seek professional help to make sure she could better deal with these reactions.

''I really haven't had the best time, again over six months now. I don't want to say I'm on top of it, but I read a lot less and can laugh better these days. It's much of the same. An average reaction like "nice cock!", no one is the first with that anymore and certainly not the last. Fun is different, but you notice that more and more people are also turning against certain reactions."

Whether Van Leuven ever thinks about quitting darts because of all those reactions? ''You have that sometimes,'' she acknowledges. ''That you think: is this all worth it to me? It only creates hassle. But I like the game way too much and somewhere it gives me strength to row against that current. At some times that is more difficult than others. Apparently, here we are in terms of acceptance in the world and I hope to do my part to help move that acceptance forward. Fortunately, there are plenty of people who do support me and like what I'm doing."

Noa-Lynn van Leuven will make her first appearance on the Ally Pally stage this afternoon.