Netherlands Antilles at the Olympics facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Netherlands Antilles at theOlympics |
|||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() Flag of the Netherlands Antilles
|
|||||||||
IOC code | AHO | ||||||||
NOC | Nederlands Antilliaans Olympisch Comité | ||||||||
Website | |||||||||
Medals Ranked 134th |
|
||||||||
Summer appearances | |||||||||
|
|||||||||
Winter appearances | |||||||||
|
|||||||||
Other related appearances | |||||||||
![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Netherlands Antilles was a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Athletes from these islands took part in the Olympic Games from 1952 until 2008.
The Netherlands Antilles was part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Because of this, they supported the Netherlands' decision not to go to the 1956 Games. They also joined the boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics, meaning they did not send athletes. The Netherlands Antilles also competed in the Winter Olympic Games two times.
The National Olympic Committee for the Netherlands Antilles was set up in 1931. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) officially recognized it from 1950 until 2011. This recognition ended when the Netherlands Antilles officially broke up. At the 2012 Olympics, athletes from the five islands competed as independent athletes. They marched under the official Olympic Flag.
Contents
History of the Netherlands Antilles at the Olympics
The Islands of the Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles was made up of several islands. These included:
Aruba (until 1986)
Curaçao
Sint Maarten
Bonaire
Sint Eustatius
Saba
In 1986, Aruba left the Netherlands Antilles. It became its own country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Since then, athletes from Aruba have competed separately. They use their own Olympic flag.
The Netherlands Antilles officially dissolved in 2010. After this, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba became special municipalities of the Netherlands. Curaçao and Sint Maarten became separate countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. From 2016 onwards, athletes from these five islands can choose to compete with the Netherlands Olympic team or Aruba's team.
All these islands are sometimes called the "Dutch Caribbean".
Flags Used by the Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles used different flags over time.
After the Netherlands Antilles dissolved, some athletes competed as independent athletes. For example, at the 2012 Summer Olympics, three athletes from the former Netherlands Antilles competed. They used the Olympic Flag instead of a country flag.
End of the Netherlands Antilles Olympic Committee
After the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, the Netherlands Antilles Olympic Committee was no longer recognized by the IOC. This meant it could not send its own team to the Olympics anymore.
At the 2012 Olympics, athletes from the five islands competed as independent athletes. They used the Olympic flag. Three athletes from the former Netherlands Antilles were part of the Independent Athletes team. These were Liemarvin Bonevacia (men's 400m athletics), Philipine Van Aanholt (women's laser radial class sailing), and Reginald de Windt (men's 81kg judo). All three were from Curaçao.
Another athlete, Churandy Martina, competed for the Netherlands in 2012. At the 2016 Olympics, Martina, Bonevacia, Hensley Paulina, and Jean-Julien Rojer competed for the Netherlands. Philipine Van Aanholt competed for Aruba.
Olympic Participation Timeline
How the Islands Competed Over Time
This table shows how athletes from these islands competed at the Olympics over the years.
Date | Team | ||
---|---|---|---|
1900–1948 | ![]() |
||
1952–1984 | ![]() |
||
1988–2008 | ![]() |
![]() |
|
2012 | as part of ![]() ![]() |
||
2014– | ![]() |
Netherlands Antilles Olympic Performance
Netherlands Antilles at the Summer OlympicsThis table shows how the Netherlands Antilles performed at the Summer Olympic Games.
|
Netherlands Antilles at the Winter OlympicsThis table shows how the Netherlands Antilles performed at the Winter Olympic Games.
|
Medals by Sport
The Netherlands Antilles won its only Olympic medal in sailing.
Sport | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sailing | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Totals (1 entries) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
List of Medalists
Jan Boersma was the only athlete from the Netherlands Antilles to win an Olympic medal. He won a silver medal in sailing in 1988.
Another athlete, Churandy Martina, almost won a silver medal in the men's 200m race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He finished second, right after Usain Bolt. However, he was disqualified after a protest because he ran outside of his lane during the race.
Medal | Name | Games | Sport | Event |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
Jan Boersma | ![]() |
![]() |
Men's Division II |
See also
In Spanish: Antillas Neerlandesas en los Juegos Olímpicos para niños
- Aruba at the Olympics
- Category:Olympic competitors for the Netherlands Antilles
- Tropical nations at the Winter Olympics