Netherlands Antilles at the Olympics

The Netherlands Antilles participated at the Olympic Games from 1952 until 2008. As a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it supported the Netherlands' boycott of the 1956 Games and also joined the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics. The Netherlands Antilles participated in the Winter Olympic Games twice.

Netherlands Antilles at the
Olympics
Flag of the Netherlands Antilles
IOC codeAHO
NOCNederlands Antilliaans Olympisch Comité
Websitewww.sports.an (in English)
Medals
Ranked 134th
Gold
0
Silver
1
Bronze
0
Total
1
Summer appearances
Winter appearances
  • 1988
  • 1992
Other related appearances
 Independent Olympic Athletes (2012)
 Aruba (2016–)
 Netherlands (2016–)

The National Olympic Committee for the Netherlands Antilles was created in 1931 and recognized by the International Olympic Committee from 1950 until 2011 upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles. At the 2012 Olympics, participants from the five islands competed as independent athletes under the Olympic flag.

History

Consisting entities

  • Aruba (until 1986)
  • Curaçao
  • Sint Maarten
  • Bonaire
  • Sint Eustatius
  • Saba

The Netherlands Antilles was established on 15 December 1954 from the former Dutch Colony of Curaçao and Dependencies. However, the Netherlands Antilles Olympic Committee was founded earlier, on 23 March 1931. It joined the Central American and Caribbean Sports Organization in 1938 and the Pan American Sports Organization in 1951. Recognized by the International Olympic Committee in 1950, the Netherlands Antilles debuted at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki two years later.

Aruba left the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 to become a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Since then, their athletes have competed separately under their own Olympic banner. The Netherlands Antilles first competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada, without notable success. A similar outcome followed at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville.

After the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on 10 October 2010, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba became part of the Netherlands as special municipalities of the Netherlands. Curaçao and Sint Maarten became separate constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In 2016, athletes from these five islands will have the choice to compete either with the Netherlands Olympic team or Aruba's.

All the above are collectively called "Dutch Caribbean".

Flags

Three participants from the five islands of the former Netherlands Antilles can compete as independent athletes at the 2012 Summer Olympics. They used the Olympic Flag.

Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles

Following the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, the Netherlands Antilles Olympic Committee was no longer recognised as a National Olympic Committee. At the 2012 Olympics, participants from the five islands competed as independent athletes under the Olympic flag. Three athletes from the former Netherlands Antilles participated as part of the team of Independent Athletes: Liemarvin Bonevacia in the men's athletics (400m), Philipine Van Aanholt in the women's sailing (laser radial class) and Reginald de Windt in the men's judo (81kg). All three are from Curaçao. Churandy Martina competed for the Netherlands. At the 2016 Olympics, Martina, Bonevacia, Hensley Paulina and Jean-Julien Rojer competed for the Netherlands while Van Aanholt competed for Aruba.

Participation

Timeline of participation

Date Team
1900–1948  Netherlands
1952–1984  Netherlands Antilles
1988–2008  Netherlands Antilles  Aruba
2012 as part of  Netherlands /
 Independent Olympic Athletes (2012)
2014–  Netherlands

Overview of Olympic participation

Medals by Summer Games

Medals by Winter Games

Calgary 1988

At the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada, the Netherlands Antilles was represented by two male athletes. They competed in two of the thirteen sports included in the International Olympic Committee's program. Bart Carpentier Alting and Bart Drechsel participated in bobsleigh in the men's two-man event, finishing 29th. Carpentier Alting also competed in luge in the men's singles event, placing 36th – the lowest ranked among classified competitors.

Albertville 1992

At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, Bart Carpentier Alting returned, joined by Dudley den Dulk in the men's two-man bobsleigh event. They placed 37th out of 46 teams.

This marked the Netherlands Antilles' final Winter Olympics appearance.

Flag bearers

During the opening ceremony of the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, bobsledder Bart Carpentier Alting served as the Netherlands Antilles' flag bearer. At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, bobsledder Dudley den Dulk carried the flag.

Year and location Flag bearer Discipline
Calgary 1988 Bart Carpentier Alting Bobsleigh
Albertville 1992 Dudley den Dulk Bobsleigh

Statistics by discipline

The Netherlands Antilles competed in bobsleigh at both Winter Olympics, represented by three athletes: Bart Drechsel, Dudley den Dulk, and Bart Carpentier Alting (twice). Their best bobsleigh result was 29th place at the 1988 Winter Olympics. They entered luge once, with Carpentier Alting finishing 36th in Calgary in 1988.

Discipline Event Athlete Placement
Calgary 1988 Albertville 1992
Bobsleigh Men's two-man Bart Carpentier Alting 29th
Bart Drechsel
Bart Carpentier Alting 37th
Dudley den Dulk
Luge Men's singles Bart Carpentier Alting 36th

Medals by sport

SportGoldSilverBronzeTotal
 Sailing0101
Totals (1 entries)0101

List of medalists

Jan Boersma was the only Netherlands Antillean athlete to win an Olympic medal, a silver medal in sailing in 1988. They nearly earned another silver in men's 200m in Beijing 2008. Churandy Martina finished second, behind Usain Bolt but was disqualified after an American protest due to his running outside of his lane during the race. Martina's disqualification was appealed but was rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on March 6, 2009.

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Jan Boersma 1988 Seoul Sailing Men's Division II

See also

  • Aruba at the Olympics
  • Category:Olympic competitors for the Netherlands Antilles
  • Tropical nations at the Winter Olympics

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