Marguerite Ruygrok was born on June 3, 1947, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She migrated with her family to Australia at a young age. She began swimming at an early age and showed considerable talent for the sport, particularly in breaststroke events. Ruygrok first came to national attention when she won Read more…
Henk (Hendricus) Vogels (Haarlem, 1 November 1942 – 9 August 2019) was a Dutch professional cyclist who immigrated to Australia with his parents and siblings in 1955. His father, a plumber, settled the family in Riverton, Western Australia. His father supported him in establishing his cycling career and this resulted eventually Read more…
Nelleke (Nelleck) Jol is a former Dutch Australian gymnast and coach who has made significant contributions to the sport of gymnastics in Western Australia. Jol was born in the Netherlands and moved to Australia in the 1970s. She represented Australia as a gymnast in the 1979 World Championships held in Read more…
Benjamin Hielke de Roo was a renowned Australian gymnast who was born on 11 February 1940 in Enschede. His family emigrated to Australia in 1957, and he became an Australian citizen in 1960. De Roo started his gymnastics career in the Netherlands and continued his passion for the sport when Read more…
Hilbert van Dijk was born on 24 September 1918 in the Netherlands, and he grew up in Amsterdam. He learned to fence at a young age and became one of the top epee fencers in the country, consistently ranked among the top six. Van Dijk immigrated to Australia in 1948, Read more…
Paul Couvret OAM JP (5 June 1922 – 5 July 2013) was born in Batavia, Netherlands East Indies, he signed up for the Royal Netherlands Navy when World War II came to the Netherlands East Indies in 1942. He was send to Pearce in Western Australia to complete his pilot Read more…
Peter Spyker was a Dutch Australian who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) in the Victorian Legislative Assembly from 1982 to 1992. During his time in parliament, he held various ministerial portfolios, including Minister for Ethnic Affairs and Minister for Consumer Affairs. Spyker was born ion the 7th of Read more…
Hyam van der Sluice (sometimes spelled “Sluys”) was born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in 1855 and arrived in Adelaide, Australia, in 1882. He married Amelia (nee Barnett)in Adelaide in 1886, and they had seven children. Hyam was of Dutch-Jewish heritage, while Amelia was of English-Jewish heritage. Hyam passed away in Read more…
In the 1820s the Dutch Colonial naval vessel Doerga (Dourga) the Dutch was sent by Netherlands East indies Government to northern Australia to establish Dutch claims to the region and to investigate the trepang trade. The voyages of the Dutch brig of war Dourga, were recorded by its Captain Dirk Read more…
Rids van der Zee was a Dutch-born magician who immigrated to Australia in 1954. He was born in the Frisian town of Franeker, in 1923. Van der Zee was a skilled magician who specialised in close-up magic and sleight of hand. He performed under the stage name “Rids the Flying Read more…