"They showed the evidence they had and I basically couldn't do anything" - Wessel Nijman candid about past match-fixing suspension

Wessel Nijman will make his debut at the World Darts Championship on Tuesday, December 19. Last Sunday afternoon, Nijman was a guest on Viaplay Darts, where he talked about his past suspension for match-fixing, among other things.

Wessel Nijman was suspended for 2.5 years in 2020 for matchfixing at an online darts tournament. At the time, he deliberately missed doubles and lost his match on purpose. Meanwhile, Nijman is back on the international darts circuit and managed to qualify for the World Darts Championship via the Development Tour. In his first match at the Alexandra Palace, he will face darts veteran Steve Beaton, who will participate in the World Darts Championship for the 33rd time in a row.

Nijman participated in an online darts tournament during the corona pandemic, with all participants simply playing in their own bedrooms. He tells in the broadcast of Viaplay via social media he was approached for matchfixing. "A friend got a message via Instagram. At first we laughed about it, but eventually we went on it. The contact was through that friend of mine, I didn't want to know too many details about it myself. I had to lose and then I got x amount."

After Nijman deliberately lost 4-0 to David Evans, he was soon told he was suspected of match-fixing. "We ran into it almost immediately. Then I had to go on a kind of interview at the DRA. They showed the evidence they had and I basically couldn't do anything." Nijman admitted immediately, partly on the advice of Dutch contact Jacques Nieuwlaat. "He also immediately said that I had to confess. The punishment will then be lower and I could possibly just start playing darts again in the future."

Nijman received a fine and a suspension of 5 years, of which 2.5 years were suspended. ''If I committed myself to mainly youth players and other darters my punishment would be halved, so to a suspension of 2.5 years. I wanted to do that right away. If you participate in the World Championship now, for example, you have to take an integrity course. Then you see a film in which I tell what I experienced.''

Nijman received and shared with his friend part of the amount he was to receive for his match-fixing. "I did have to pay a fine, so the big part of amount what I got went toward paying that fine."