Van der Zandt grew up in the Boeimeer neighborhood of Breda. From the age of eleven to thirteen, he created radio programs with his older brother for the Breda hospital radio station Studio Audio, He was the face of the
Paralympic Summer and Winter Games coverage for NOS. In early 2015, he temporarily took over hosting duties from Prinsen. Later that year, he became the permanent host. In late 2015, he transitioned from NOS News to
NOS Sport. He presented
NOS Studio Sport,
Langs de Lijn, and
Langs de Lijn En Omstreken.
Mart Smeets considered him a suitable successor for
De Avondetappe, and Van der Zandt had already done some segments in 2014. During the
2016 Summer Olympics, he co-hosted
Rio Live. He also co-hosts a popular cycling podcast called "Tweewielers". Leading up to the
2021 Dutch general election, Van der Zandt joined
Xander van der Wulp and
Marleen de Rooy in the weekly political series
Rondje Binnenhof. He continued until autumn 2023 when he left NOS.
Gerri Eickhof succeeded him. In December 2022, he was announced as co-presenter of the
Top 2000 à Go-Go, replacing
Matthijs van Nieuwkerk after his controversy. In July 2023, it was announced that he would leave NOS in October after 23 years, to join
KRO-NCRV in 2024. In September 2023, it was announced that he would succeed
Philip Freriks in 2025 as host of
De slimste mens. From 2024, he also took over the show
Het Gevoel van de Vierdaagse from
Fons de Poel. Because KRO-NCRV did not allow side projects with other broadcasters, he had to stop presenting
Met het Mes op Tafel, which was taken over by
Sjoerd van Ramshorst. In the summer 2024 season of
De slimste mens, he appeared as a contestant, winning the grand finale against
Max Terpstra and
Maartje van de Wetering after five daily wins. He returned again in the 25th season (winter 2024/25) but lost in the quarterfinals to
Donny Ronny. == Personal life ==