Maret Balkestein-Grothues

Maret Balkestein-Grothues, née Maret Grothues (Dutch pronunciation: [maˈrɛt ˈbɑlkəstɛin ˌɣrɔtˈhys], born 16 September 1988) is a Dutch volleyball player who plays as a wing spiker. She is a member of the Netherlands women's national volleyball team, and is the current team captain.[1] Since the summer of 2019 she plays for the Turkey team Aydın Büyükşehir Belediye Spor Kulübü

Maret Balkestein-Grothues
Grothues at the 2013 world championships
Personal information
Nationality	Dutch
Born	(1988-09-16) 16 September 1988 Almelo, Netherlands
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Weight	68 kg (150 lb)
Spike	304 cm (120 in)
Block	286 cm (113 in)
Volleyball information
Position	Wing spiker
Current club	Aydın Büyükşehir Belediyespor
Career
Years Teams 1996–2004 2004–2006 2006–2008 2009–2011 2011–2012 2012 2012–2013 2013–2015 2015–2016 2016-2017 2017–2017 2018 2018-2019 2019- Krekkers VV Pollux Longa '59 Lichtenvoorde TVC Amstelveen Parma Volley Cuatto Giaveno Volley Lokomotiv Baku RC Cannes Atom Trefl Sopot Fenerbahçe Chemik Police Volleyball Casalmaggiore CSM București Aydın Büyükşehir Belediye Spor Kulübü
National team
0000 Netherlands
Honours Women's volleyball Representing the  Netherlands World Grand Prix 2016 Bangkok European Championship 2009 Poland 2015 Belgium/Netherlands 2017 Azerbaijan/Georgia

Grothues started playing volleyball with the Dutch club Krekkers in 1996, inspired by the male national team winning the Olympic gold in Atlanta 1996.[2] She made her international debut in the Dutch national team at the opening match of the Montreux Volley Masters against Cuba in June 2008. Grothues did not play in the national team in 2014, due to an Achilles heel injury. At the 2010 World Championship she won the "best server" trophy. She played at the European Championships in 2012, 2013 and 2014. In 2015, she was promoted to team captain prior to the 2015 European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan. As of 2016 she has 244 caps.[1]

During the 2016 Summer Olympics, where the Dutch women made their Olympic return after 20 years, Balkestein-Grothues injured her ankle during the second game of the group stage.[3] Thus she only returned for the knockout rounds, seeing limited minutes as the Netherlands finished fourth.[4]