Approximately 5 million of the 17 million people in the Netherlands are registered to one of the 35,000 sports clubs in the country. About two thirds of the population older than 15 years participates in sports weekly.
Inge de Bruijn is a Dutch former competitive swimmer. She is a four-time Olympic champion and a former world record-holder.
The Netherlands competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. Dutch athletes have competed in every Summer Olympic Games since its official debut in 1908. Netherlands, however, boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, because of the Soviet invasion of Hungary. The Netherlands National Olympic Committee sent a total of 210 athletes to the Games, 134 men and 76 women, to compete in 21 sports. Baseball, field hockey, and men's volleyball were the only team-based sports in which the Netherlands had its representation at these Games. There was only a single competitor in women's fencing.
Charles Frederick "Karch" Kiraly is an American volleyball player, coach, and broadcast announcer. He was a central part of the U.S National Team that won gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games. He went on to win the gold medal again at the 1996 Olympic Games, the first Olympic competition to feature beach volleyball. He is the only player to have won Olympic medals of any color in both the indoor and beach volleyball categories. He played college volleyball for the UCLA Bruins, where his teams won three national championships under head coach Al Scates.
Robert Jan "Bob" Ctvrtlik is a retired American volleyball player who is a three-time Olympian, Olympic gold medalist, and a former member of the International Olympic Committee. He is a 1985 graduate of Pepperdine University.
Mark Jan Hendrik Tuitert is a retired Dutch speed skater. He won gold at the 1500 m at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Alyson Regina Annan is an Australian field hockey coach and retired field hockey player, who earned a total number of 228 international caps for the Women's National Team, in which she scored 166 goals. Until January 2022, Annan was the head coach of the Netherlands women's national field hockey team; she led the team to a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil and a gold medal at 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo as well as gold medals at the 2017 and the 2021 Women's EuroHockey Nations Championship in The Netherlands. During 2013 Annan gained the prestigious award of becoming a member of Sport Australia Hall of Fame.She is currently head coach of the China Women's National team.
Sebastiaan Jacques Henri "Bas" van de Goor is a retired volleyball player from the Netherlands who represented his native country at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996. He was elected twice as the most valuable player of the Olympic (1996-2000).
Doug Beal is an American former volleyball player and coach, a former USA Volleyball CEO, and a member of the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Peter Blangé is a retired volleyball player from the Netherlands who represented his native country in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. Blangé won the gold medal with the Dutch national volleyball team at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta by defeating Italy in the final. His final Olympic appearance as an athlete was in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. He was a setter.
Misha Jonas Emanuel Latuhihin is a retired volleyball player from the Netherlands, who represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia under the guidance of coach Joop Alberda. There he was the stand-in for Peter Blangé in the Dutch National Volleyball Team that won the gold medal by defeating rivals Italy in the final (3-2).
Hugh Donald McCutcheon, a native of Christchurch, New Zealand, is a former volleyball coach. He previously coached the US men's and women's national volleyball team, and was the head coach for the University of Minnesota's women's volleyball team from 2012–2022. Starting in January 2023, McCutcheon is the assistant athletics director/sport development coach at Minnesota, after announcing his resignation from the volleyball team at the conclusion of the 2022 season.
Lloy James Ball is an American volleyball player, a member of American national team in 1993–2008, a participant of the Olympic Games and gold medalist of Olympics Beijing 2008, gold medalist of the NORCECA Championship 2007 and World League 2008, silver medalist of the Pan American 1995, bronze medalist of the World Championship 1994 and 2015 inductee to the International Hall of Game. When not on the court actively playing the game, Ball operates Team Pineapple, a volleyball clinic that also features his father, Arnie Ball.
Jeffrey Malcolm Stork is a former American volleyball player and coach. He is also a three-time Olympian. He was a member of the United States national teams that won the gold medal in the 1988 Summer Olympics and the bronze medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics, and also competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics. He is regarded as one of the best setters of all time, and was known to play well under pressure.
The Netherlands men's national volleyball team represents the Netherlands in FIVB tournaments. Volleyball is the most popular indoor sport in the country, with over 125,000 associates. The team had their most successful phase beginning in the 1990s under coaches Arie Selinger and Joop Alberda, reaching various finals for international tournaments and winning both the Olympic Games and the World League in 1996. Netherlands in World Championship won silver medal 1994 in Greece.
The Netherlands competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. This was announced in an official statement on the NOC*NSF website. In the statement they named the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games as a highlight in sports to which a lot of sportspeople, coaches and the Dutch sports fans would look forward. The Netherlands aimed for a top 10 nations ranking in the Olympics as well as a top 25 ranking in the Paralympics; they ended up ranking 12th at the Games.
The Netherlands competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. Dutch athletes have competed in every Summer Olympic Games since their official debut in 1908, with the exception of the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, which the Netherlands boycotted because of the Soviet invasion of Hungary. The Netherlands National Olympic Committee sent the nation's smallest delegation to the Games since 1988. A total of 175 athletes, 95 men and 80 women, competed in 18 sports.
Jacob Jorrit Bergsma is a Dutch speed skater and marathon skater. At the 2014 Winter Olympics, he won the gold medal in the 10,000 m. His coach is Jillert Anema.
The Netherlands competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Since the nation's official debut in 1900, Dutch athletes had competed at every edition of the Summer Olympic Games in the modern era, with the exception of the sparsely attended 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis and 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, which the Netherlands boycotted because of the Soviet invasion of Hungary.
The Netherlands competed at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, between 9 and 25 February 2018. Speed skater Jan Smeekens was appointed as flag bearer for the opening ceremony, which was attended by King Willem Alexander, Queen Máxima and Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who also observed the sporting events that featured Dutch competitors.
