Michael van Gerwen Shows Resilience at World Darts Championship Amid Father's Tough Cancer Fight

MICHAEL VAN GERWEN is bravely carrying on at the World Darts Championship despite his father’s harrowing cancer battle.

The in a first-round opener against Mitsuhiko Tatsunami.

Van Gerwen has endured a torrid year on the oche by his usual standards.

And fans are eager to see whether the Dutchman can regain the form and former world No1 Luke Humphries.

Indeed, it was less than 12 months ago that Van Gerwen reached the last WDC final where he lost to Littler and missed out on a fourth title.

But the ace’s bad year was only just beginning.

Van Gerwen is currently in the , the mother of his two children.

The pair had been together 17 years, 11 of them married.

Yet Van Gerwen has also been struggling with another major setback.

Dad Henri has been in the midst of a

He has undergone months of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

But Van Gerwen reckons Henri will keep a close watch on his fortunes in north London, and will even “tell me off” for any bad performances.

MvG told The Guardian : “Not too good, he is sick. They amputated his nose one-and-a-half years ago, and two months ago they cut away all his lymphs.

“They cut them everywhere so he can’t taste any more, he can’t swallow any more. He has tubes so it’s not going too good.

“His quality of life is bad – but he still tells me off when I don’t do well. He’ll be watching me in the Worlds.

“He was always a strong man and now…”

On his marriage ending, Van Gerwen added: “We were 17 years together, nearly 11 years married.

“You need to give yourself time to let it go. Sometimes you get thrown back to reality and then you need to try to move out of it again. I can do it.”

Eze Chidiebere Paul

I'm dedicated to creating high-quality content that informs, inspires, and delights. If you have any questions or suggestions, don't hesitate to get in touch. Happy reading!