Sport in Belgium plays a prominent role in the society. As of 2010, Belgium counted around 17,000 sport clubs with approximately 1.35 million members, or about 13% of the Belgian population. Popular sports in Belgium are, among others: football,

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competiti ...

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

, and

running Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

. Belgium has organized the

1920 Olympic Games The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen van 1920; german: Olympische Sommerspiele 1920), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIe olympiade; nl, Spelen van ...

in Antwerp as well as the

1972 UEFA European Championship The 1972 UEFA European Football Championship final tournament was held in Belgium. This was the fourth UEFA European Championship, held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. The final tournament took place between 14 and 18 June 1972. Only four ...

and the

2000 UEFA European Championship The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, also known as Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Championship, a football tournament held every four years and organised by UEFA, the sport's governing body in Europe. The finals tournament was ...

along with the Netherlands. The Belgium national football team's best result was a 3rd place at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and a second place of the

1980 UEFA European Championship The 1980 UEFA European Football Championship finals tournament was held in Italy. This was the sixth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. It was the first European Championship to feature eight teams i ...

. Belgian football clubs have won 3 times the

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

and twice the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

, plus 3 times the

UEFA Supercup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was originall ...

. Belgium has won 44 gold medals at Summer Olympic Games as well as 2 at Winter Olympic Games for

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are m ...

at the

1948 Winter Olympics The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games (german: V. Olympische Winterspiele; french: Ves Jeux olympiques d'hiver; it, V Giochi olimpici invernali; rm, V Gieus olimpics d'enviern) and commonly known as St. Moritz ...

in St. Moritz and

speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...

at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Among the 44 gold medals at the Summer Olympics, 11 medals were won in archery, seven in cycling, six in athletics, five in

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: * Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes i ...

, three in

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...

and two each in

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cou ...

and

. Well-known Belgian Olympic champions are Hubert Van Innis and Edmond Cloetens (archery),

Gaston Roelants Gaston, Baron Roelants (born 5 February 1937), is a Belgian former elite steeplechaser and cross country runner. He won the 1962 European and 1964 Olympic titles in the 3000 m steeplechase and twice broke the world record. Biography Roelant ...

and

Tia Hellebaut Tia Hellebaut (; born 16 February 1978 in Antwerp) is a retired Belgian track and field athlete, as well as a chemist, who started out in her sports career in the heptathlon, and afterwards specialized in the high jump event. She has cleared 2.05 ...

(athletics), Patrick Sercu and

Roger Ilegems Roger Ilegems (born 13 December 1962) is a retired track cyclist and road bicycle racer from Belgium, who was a professional rider from 1984 to 1991. He represented his native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California ...

(track cycling), Robert Van de Walle and

Ulla Werbrouck Ulla Werbrouck (born 24 January 1972 in Izegem) is a former Belgian politician and judoka. At the 1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 19 ...

(judo),

Bart Swings Bart Swings (born 12 February 1991) is a Belgian long track speed skater and inline speed skater. He is the 2022 Olympic champion on the speed skating mass start. Swings won Belgium's first gold medal in 74 years and is the first Belgian athlet ...

(speed skating), Frédérik Deburghgraeve (swimming), and

Justine Henin Justine Henin (; born 1 June 1982) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. She spent a total of 117 weeks as the world No. 1 and was the year-end No. 1 in 2003, 2006 and 2007. Henin, coming from a country with limited success in tenni ...

(tennis). Other well-known Belgian sport champions are

Roger Moens Roger Moens (born 26 April 1930) is a Belgian former middle-distance runner. In 1955 he broke Rudolf Harbig's long-standing world record over 800 meters. At the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome he won a silver medal in the 800 m. Biography On 3 Augu ...

Ivo Van Damme Ivo Van Damme (21 February 1954 – 29 December 1976) was a Belgian middle-distance runner. Van Damme played football until he was 16, but then switched to athletics. His breakthrough came in 1973, when he placed fourth in the 800 m at th ...

and

Kim Gevaert Kim Gevaert (born 5 August 1978 in Leuven) is a former sprint athlete and Olympic champion from Belgium. Career Her closest brush with a world title came in running 4/100 of a second behind three-time champion Gail Devers at the 2004 IAAF Wor ...

(athletics),

Bart Veldkamp Bart Veldkamp (; born 22 November 1967) is a retired speed skater, who represented the Netherlands and later Belgium in international competitions, including the Winter Olympics. He currently is the national speed skating coach of Belgium. Spe ...

(

), Ingrid Lempereur (swimming),

Gella Vandecaveye Gella Vandecaveye (born 5 June 1973 in Kortrijk, Belgium) is a judoka from Belgium who competed at four Olympic Games. At the 1996 Summer Olympics she won the silver medal in the women's half-middleweight category. Four years later, at the 20 ...

, Heidi Rakels and Harry Van Barneveld (judo),

Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (, ; born 17 June 1945), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer who is among the most successful riders in the history of competitive cycling. His victorie ...

Rik Van Looy Henri "Rik" Van Looy (born 20 December 1933 in Grobbendonk) is a Belgian former professional cyclist of the post- war period, nicknamed the ''King of the Classics'' or ''Emperor of Herentals'' (after the small Belgian city where he lived). He ...

Roger De Vlaeminck Roger De Vlaeminck (; born 24 August 1947) is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist. He was described by Rik Van Looy as "The most talented and the only real classics rider of his generation". Nicknamed “The Gypsy” because he was bo ...

Lucien Van Impe Lucien Van Impe (; born 20 October 1946) is a Belgians, Belgian cyclist, who competed professionally between 1969 and 1987. He excelled mainly as a climbing specialist, climber in multiple-day races such as the Tour de France. He was the winner ...

Johan Bruyneel Johan Bruyneel (born 23 August 1964) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer and a former directeur sportif for UCI ProTour team , and (later known as Discovery Channel), a US-based UCI ProTour cycling team. On 25 October 2018, the ...

Johan Museeuw Johan Museeuw (born 13 October 1965) is a retired Belgian professional road racing cyclist who was a professional from 1988 until 2004. Nicknamed ''The Lion of Flanders'', he was particularly successful in the cobbled classics of Flanders and ...

Axel Merckx Axel Eddy Lucien Jonkheer Merckx (born 8 August 1972) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer and the son of five-time Tour de France champion Eddy Merckx. He is team director of UCI Continental team . In his professional career ( ...

and

Tom Boonen Tom Boonen (; born 15 October 1980) is a Belgian former road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 2002 and 2017 for the and teams and a professional racing driver who currently competes in Belcar, having previously competed in ...

(cycling), Raymond Ceulemans (

three-cushion billiards Three-cushion billiards, also called three-cushion carom, is a form of carom billiards. The object of the game is to the off both while contacting the at least three times before contacting the second object ball. A point is scored for each su ...

Jacky Ickx Jacques Bernard "Jacky" Ickx (; born 1 January 1945) is a Belgian former racing driver who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans six times (second-highest of all time) and achieved eight wins and 25 podium finishes in Formula One. He greatly contributed ...

and

Thierry Boutsen Thierry Marc Boutsen (born 13 July 1957) is a Belgian former racing driver who raced for the Arrows, Benetton, Williams, Ligier and Jordan teams in Formula One. He competed in 164 World Championship Grands Prix (163 starts), winning three rac ...

(

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

), Stefan Everts and

Gaston Rahier Gaston Rahier (1 February 1947 – 8 February 2005) was a Belgian professional motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1967 to 1979, most prominently as a member of the Suzuki factory racing team where he won t ...

(motocross) and Jean-Michel Saive (table tennis),

Kim Clijsters Kim Antonie Lode Clijsters (; born 8 June 1983) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. Clijsters reached the world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles, having held both rankings simultaneously in 2003. She won six major titles, ...

(tennis), Sven Nys ( cyclo-cross) and

Vincent Rousseau Vincent Rousseau (born 29 July 1962 in Mons, Hainaut) is a former long-distance runner from Belgium, who competed in three consecutive Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1984. In 1993, he had his biggest success by winning the ...

(running). In team sports, well-known footballers include

Jean-Marie Pfaff Jean-Marie Pfaff (born 4 December 1953) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper who spent most of his professional career with Beveren and Bayern Munich. Pfaff was capped 64 times playing for Belgium, and partici ...

Eric Gerets Eric Maria Gerets (, born 18 May 1954) is a Belgian football manager and former player who played as a right back. He started his playing career as an amateur for his local team AA Rekem, before achieving success with Standard Liège and PSV. ...

Enzo Scifo Vincenzo "Enzo" Daniele Scifo (; born 19 February 1966) is a retired Belgian football midfielder. He has also managed the Belgium national under-21 football team and several Belgian club sides. He played for clubs in Belgium, France and Italy, ...

Michel Preud'homme Michel Georges Jean Ghislain Preud'homme (born 24 January 1959) is a Belgian retired footballer and manager who played as a goalkeeper. Currently, he is vice-president and sports director at Standard Liège. He was considered one of the world's ...

Franky Van Der Elst Franky Van der Elst (born 30 April 1961) is a Belgian retired professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He later worked as a manager. During a 21-year professional career he played mainly with Club Brugge, being regarded as ...

Luc Nilis Luc Gilbert Cyrille Nilis (born 25 May 1967) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of Belgian Division 2 club Belisia Bilzen. He enjoyed a successful career in his native Belgium and, in particular, ...

and

Jan Ceulemans Jan Anna Gumaar Ceulemans (; born 28 February 1957) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. A prolific goalscorer, Ceulemans was known for his stamina, aerial ability and technique. He was also known ...

and well-known basketball players include

Ann Wauters Ann Hilde Willy Wauters (born 12 October 1980) is a Belgian former professional basketball player and coach, currently serving as an assistant coach for the Chicago Sky in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played for numero ...

, Éric Struelens,

Axel Hervelle Axel Marie Gustave Hervelle (born 12 May 1983) is a Belgian former professional basketball player. He represented the senior Belgian national basketball team. Professional career Hervelle spent the early part of his career in Belgium. He first p ...

and D. J. Mbenga. Former

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

president

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Jacques Rogge Jacques Jean Marie Rogge, Count Rogge (, ; 2 May 1942 – 29 August 2021) was a Belgian sports administrator and physician who served as the eighth President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 2001 to 2013. In 2013, Rogge bec ...

is a Belgian. As a sub-area of culture in Belgium, sport is now considered to fall under the responsibility of the 3 Belgian communities (the Dutch-speaking Community, the

French-speaking Community In Belgium, the French Community (french: Communauté française; ) refers to one of the three constituent constitutional linguistic communities. Since 2011, the French Community has used the name Wallonia-Brussels Federation (french: Fédé ...

and the German-speaking Community). With the exception of football and field hockey, all other major sport federations in Belgium are split into 2 major federations (a French-speaking federation and a Dutch-speaking federation).

Football

The

Belgian Football Association The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA; ; ; ) is the governing body of football in Belgium. It was a founding member of FIFA in 1904 and UEFA in 1954 and was based in Brussels, not far from the King Baudouin Stadium. Since October 2021, ...

, the governing body of football in Belgium, was founded in 1895 and was one of the founding members of the FIFA in 1904. The first Belgian championship was held in 1895 among the 10 founding teams of the Belgian Football Association, and was won by RFC de Liège. A second level was added to the Belgian league in 1905, a

third level Tertiary education, also referred to as third-level, third-stage or post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank, for example, defines tertiary education as including univers ...

in 1926 and a fourth one in 1952. R.S.C. Anderlecht is the most successful Belgian team both at national (32 Belgian champion titles) and international (6 European titles) levels. Other successful clubs include Club Brugge K.V. (13 Belgian champion titles), R. Union Saint-Gilloise (11 national titles),

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most ...

(10 national titles) and K.V. Mechelen (4 national titles and 2 European titles). The club with the most

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (french: link=no, Coupe de Belgique; nl, Beker van België []; german: link=no, Belgischer Fußballpokal) is the main Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in Belgium, run by the Belgia ...

titles is Club Brugge KV (10) followed by RSC Anderlecht (9) and R Standard Liège (6). The 8 European titles won by Belgian clubs were claimed between 1976 and 1988. The Belgian national football team played its first game in 1904 against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. The match ended in a 3–3 draw. Since then, Belgium has qualified for 12 out of 20

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

s, finishing 3rd in 2018, and for 4 out of the 12

UEFA European Football Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...

s in which it entered, finishing second in 1980. At the Summer Olympics, Belgium won the gold medal in 1920 and secured a fourth place in 2008. The most capped player for Belgium is Ben Spector (108 caps), followed by

Axel Witsel Axel Laurent Angel Lambert Witsel (born 12 January 1989) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the Belgian national team. Witsel broke into Belgium's first team as a right-winger, and can also pla ...

(both 96 caps) and

Timmy Simons Timmy Simons (born 11 December 1976) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He was known for his tireless work ethic and penalty-taking ability, having scored 48 competitive goals through penalties, mi ...

(93 caps). Belgium all-time topscorer is

Romelu Lukaku Romelu Lukaku Bolingoli (; born 13 May 1993) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Inter Milan, on loan from club Chelsea, and the Belgium national team. Lukaku began his senior club career playing for Ander ...

with 48 goals. Other past famous players include goalkeepers

and

, René Vandereycken, Wilfried Van Moer,

François François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, Kin ...

and Leo Van der Elst, Raymond Mommens,

Franky Vercauteren François Vercauteren (born 28 October 1956), nicknamed "The Little Prince", is a Belgian former footballer who played as a left winger. He is currently unemployed after most recently managing Antwerp. Club career Vercauteren made his first ...

Erwin Vandenbergh Erwin Vandenbergh (; born 26 January 1959) is a Belgian retired football who played as a forward. Between 1979 and 1991, he finished six times topscorer of the Belgian First Division (a record as of 2020), with three clubs (the first three wit ...

Georges Grün Georges Serge Grün (born 25 January 1962) is a retired Belgian football defender, who currently works as a television presenter for the UEFA Champions League matches at RTL TVI. Club career Grün started his career with Anderlecht in Belgiu ...

, Lei Clijsters (father of Kim Clijsters),

Philippe Albert Philippe Julien Albert (born 10 August 1967) is a Belgian former professional footballer and television pundit. As a player he was a defender. He played for Charleroi, KV Mechelen and Anderlecht in his native Belgium, and for English clubs N ...

and

Marc Wilmots Marc Robert Wilmots (born 22 February 1969) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who recently managed the Iran national team and is now active at Raja CA. During his club career as attacking midfielder, he won trophies w ...

. Current well-known Belgian players are

Eden Hazard Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered o ...

Thibaut Courtois Thibaut Nicolas Marc Courtois (born 11 May 1992) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Real Madrid and the Belgium national team. He is considered one of the best goalkeepers in world football. Courto ...

, Simon Mignolet,

Vincent Kompany Vincent Jean Mpoy Kompany (; ; born 10 April 1986) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who played as a centre-back and is the current manager of EFL Championship club Burnley. He most notably played for Manchester Ci ...

Thomas Vermaelen Thomas Vermaelen (born 14 November 1985) is a retired Belgian professional footballer who is currently an assistant coach for the Belgium national team. Being left-footed, he usually played as a left-sided centre-back and could play at left-bac ...

Jan Vertonghen Jan Bert Lieve Vertonghen (born 24 April 1987) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays for Belgian club Anderlecht and the Belgium national team. Mainly a central defender, he can also play as a left-back. Vertonghen began his senior car ...

Marouane Fellaini Marouane Fellaini-Bakkioui (born 22 November 1987) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chinese club Shandong Taishan. Born in Etterbeek to Moroccan parents, Fellaini played youth football for Anderlecht, R.A.E.C. ...

Toby Alderweireld Toby Albertine Maurits Alderweireld (; born 2 March 1989) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or right-back for Belgian Pro League club Royal Antwerp. Alderweireld began his professional career at Dutch club Ajax, whe ...

Kevin De Bruyne Kevin De Bruyne (born 28 June 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Manchester City and the Belgium national team. He is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world. Pundits have often des ...

and

Christian Benteke Christian Benteke Liolo (born 3 December 1990) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Major League Soccer club D.C. United and the Belgium national team. Benteke began his career at Standard Liège, playing a part in ...

Cycling

Cycling is a very popular sport in Belgium. It is governed by the

Royal Belgian Cycling League The Royal Belgian Cycling League or KBWB/RLVB (in Dutch: ''Koninklijke Belgische Wielrijdersbond'', in French: ''Royale Ligue vélocipédique belge'') is the national governing body of cycle racing in Belgium. It was founded on 11 November 1882 ...

, which is split between the Dutch-speaking WBV and the French-speaking FCWB. Many Belgian cyclists have been successful, and some of the greatest cycle races take place in Belgium, especially in road bicycle racing, though other bicycle racing disciplines such as

mountain bike racing Mountain bike racing (shortened MTB or ATB racing) is the competitive cycle sport discipline of mountain biking held on off-road terrain. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) recognised the discipline relatively late in 1990, when it sanction ...

track cycling Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it ...

also count a number of Belgian champions and races. The best Belgian cyclist of all time,

, nicknamed the Cannibal, has won the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

and Giro d'Italia 5 times each, won the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; en, Tour of Spain) is an annual multi-stage bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia, the ...

once, the UCI Road World Championship 3 times, had many

classic cycle race The classic cycle races are the most prestigious one-day professional road cycling races in the international calendar. Some of these events date back to the 19th century. They are normally held at roughly the same time each year. The five most ...

wins and set the

hour record The hour record is the record for the longest distance cycled in one hour on a bicycle from a stationary start. Cyclists attempt this record alone on the track without other competitors present. It is considered one of the most prestigious reco ...

, among other achievements. Belgium has been one of the most successful countries in road cycling since the origins of the sport, with one of the oldest races being held in Belgium,

Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège, also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Old Lady"), is a one-day classic cycling race in Belgium.Cycling Weekly, UK, 13 March 1993 First run in 1892, it is the oldest of the five '' Monuments'' of the European professional ...

, which was first held in 1892. At the Olympic Games, Belgium has won four gold medals for road cycling, with two victories for the Belgian men's team in the team time trial (at the 1948 and

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

) and two for André Noyelle and

Greg Van Avermaet Greg Van Avermaet (born 17 May 1985) is a Belgian professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Considered one of the most versatile riders of modern cycling, Van Avermaet is a specialist of the classic cycle races, but has also ...

for the individual race. Belgium has had the most World Championship gold medals (25) with 3 victories by

Rik Van Steenbergen Rik Van Steenbergen (9 September 1924 – 15 May 2003) was a Belgian racing cyclist, considered to be one of the best among the great number of successful Belgian cyclists. Early life Van Steenbergen was born in Arendonk into a poor fami ...

and Eddy Merckx and 2 by

Georges Ronsse Georges Ronsse (4 March 1906, Antwerp - 4 July 1969, Berchem) was a two-time national cyclo-cross and two-time world champion road bicycle racer from Belgium, who raced between 1926 and 1938. In addition to his several national and world ch ...

, Briek Schotte,

and

Freddy Maertens Freddy Maertens (born 13 February 1952) is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist who was twice world road race champion. His career coincided with the best years of another Belgian rider, Eddy Merckx, and supporters and reporters were sp ...

. Belgian cyclists have also performed very well in the 3

grand tours In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the ''Grand Tours'', and all three races are similar in ...

. Ten cyclists have won the Tour de France 18 times between them, making of Belgium the country with the most Tour de France wins behind France. Besides Eddy Merckx,

Philippe Thys Philippe Thys (; nl, Philippe Thĳs; 8 October 1889 – 16 January 1971) was a Belgian cyclist and three times winner of the Tour de France. Professional career In 1910, Thys won Belgium's first national cyclo-cross championship. The foll ...

won the most prestigious tour 3 times while Firmin Lambot and Sylvère Maes won it twice. The last Belgian winner at the Tour de France however was

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

. At the Giro d'Italia, Belgium has had 7 wins, being the second most successful country in terms of wins after Italy.

Michel Pollentier Michel Pollentier (born 13 February 1951 in Diksmuide, West Flanders) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer. He became professional in 1973. The highlight of his career was his overall win in the 1977 Giro d'Italia. Pollentier is ...

and Johan De Muynck (the most recent Belgian to win the Giro in 1978) are with Eddy Merckx the 3 Belgian winners of this tour. Belgium also has had 7 wins at the Vuelta a España, with 2 wins by

Gustaaf Deloor Gustaaf Deloor (24 June 1913 – 28 January 2002) was a Belgian road racing cyclist and the winner of the first two editions of the Vuelta a España in 1935 and 1936. The 1936 edition remains the longest winning finish time of the Vuelta in ...

, the first winner of the race in 1935 and

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

. The last Belgian winner of the Spanish tour was Freddy Maertens in 1977. Many Belgian cyclists have won one of the five monument cycle races. At the

Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders ( nl, Ronde van Vlaanderen), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and orga ...

, Belgium counts 68 wins in 96 editions with 3 wins for Achiel Buysse,

Eric Leman Eric Leman (born 17 July 1946) is a former professional road racing cyclist from West Flanders, Belgium. He won the prestigious Tour of Flanders three times.LaroussTour des Flandres " Les Belges Achille Bruyne, Éric Leman, Johan Museeuw, Tom Bo ...

and

holds the record of wins at

Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the ' Monuments' or classics of th ...

together with Tom Boonen (4), and Belgium is the most successful country in this race with 55 wins in 110 editions.

has been won 59 times out of 98 by Belgian cyclists. Eddy Merckx holds the record of the most individual wins (5). At the

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia ( en, Tour of Lombardy), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five ' Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in ...

, Belgium counts 12 titles in 105 editions, with only Italy performing better. Milan–San Remo was won 7 times by Eddy Merckx, who holds the record of the most wins, and Belgium has won 20 times out of 103, being the second most successful country after Italy in this race. Unlike the grand tours, which have not been won by a Belgian since 1978, cyclists from Belgium are still successful in the monument races. At Paris–Roubaix, Tom Boonen has won 4 times and Johan Museeuw 3 times since 1996, and

Peter Van Petegem Peter van Petegem (born 18 January 1970 in Brakel, Belgium) is a former professional road racing cyclist. Van Petegem last rode for Quick Step-Innergetic, in 2007. He lived in Horebeke. He was a specialist in spring classics, one of ten riders to ...

and

Johan Van Summeren Johan Vansummeren (born 4 February 1981) is a Belgian former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2004 and 2016 for the , , and teams. Biography Vansummeren was born, raised, and resides in Lommel, Flanders, Belgiu ...

have also won the race once each. At the Tour of Flanders, Belgium has 12 wins since 1993, with 3 by Johan Museeuw and Tom Boonen, 2 by Peter Van Petegem and

Stijn Devolder Stijn Devolder (born 29 August 1979) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer, who competed professionally for (2002–2003), (2004–2007), (2008–2010), (2011–2012), (2013–2016), (2017–2018) and (2019). Career Born in ...

and 1 by Andreï Tchmil and

Nick Nuyens Nick Nuyens (born 5 May 1980) is a Belgian former professional road racing cyclist who last rode for in the UCI World Tour. His biggest wins included the semi-classics Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne, Omloop Het Volk, Paris–Brussels and the cla ...

. In the other 3 monuments, Belgians has been less successful recently, with Andreï Tchmil being the only Belgian winner of Milan–San Remo (in 1999) since

Fons De Wolf Alfons ("Fons") De Wolf (born 22 June 1956 in Willebroek) is a retired Belgian road race cyclist, a professional from 1979 to 1990. He represented his country at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was forecast, with Danie ...

in 1981. Philippe Gilbert has been the only Belgian winner of the Giro di Lombardia since Fons De Wolf in 1980, with wins in 2009 and 2010 and only 4 Belgians have won Liège–Bastogne–Liège since

Joseph Bruyère Joseph Bruyere or Bruyère (born 5 October 1948 in Maastricht, Netherlands) is a former Belgian cyclist. Major results ;1969 : Flèche Ardennaise for amateurs ;1971 : Tour of East-Flanders ;1972 : 19th stage Tour de France ;1974 : Omloop Het V ...

in 1978:

Eric Van Lancker Eric Van Lancker (born 30 April 1961 in Oudenaarde) is a Belgian former road bicycle racer. After retiring, he worked as a team manager for several different professional teams. Major results ;1983 : 2nd Flèche Ardennaise : 8th Ronde van Vlaa ...

in 1990,

Dirk De Wolf Dirk De Wolf (born 16 January 1961 in Aalst, East Flanders) is a former professional road racing cyclist from Belgium. Cycling career In 1982 at the age of 23 De Wolf won the Sealink International and finished 8th at the World Road Champions ...

in 1992,

Frank Vandenbroucke Frank Vandenbroucke is the name of: *Frank Vandenbroucke (politician) (born 1955), Belgian politician *Frank Vandenbroucke (cyclist) Frank Vandenbroucke (6 November 1974 – 12 October 2009) was a Belgian professional road racing cyclist. After ...

in 1999 and Philippe Gilbert in 2011. Among the best-known road races in Belgium are two out of the five monuments of cycling: the Tour of Flanders and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Other classic one day races in Belgium include

La Flèche Wallonne La Flèche Wallonne (, French for "The Walloon Arrow") is a men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Wallonia, Belgium. The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is today normally held mid-week betw ...

E3 Harelbeke E3 Saxo Bank Classic, previously known as E3 BinckBank Classic, E3 Harelbeke, Harelbeke–Antwerp–Harelbeke and E3-Prijs Vlaanderen, is an annual road cycling race in Flanders, Belgium. The race starts and finishes in Harelbeke, covering 203 kil ...

and

Gent–Wevelgem Gent–Wevelgem, officially Gent–Wevelgem – In Flanders Fields, is a road cycling race in Belgium, held annually since 1934. It is one of the classic races part of the Flemish Cycling Week, run in late March on the last Sunday before the To ...

, all part of the

UCI World Tour The UCI WorldTour (2009–2010: ''UCI World Ranking'') is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an ann ...

, as well as

Paris–Brussels The Brussels Cycling Classic (known until June 2013 as Paris–Brussels) is a semi classic European bicycle race, one of the oldest races on the international calendar. History Paris–Brussels was first run on 12 August 1893 as an amateur eve ...

Omloop Het Nieuwsblad Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, previously Omloop Het Volk, is a one-day road cycling race in Belgium, held annually in late February. It is the opening event of the Belgian cycling season, as well as the first race of the year in Northwestern Europe, and ...

Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne is an annual single-day road cycling race in Belgium. It is held one day after Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, on the last Sunday of February or the first of March, and completes the opening weekend of the Belgian cycling season ...

, Grand Prix de Wallonie and

Dwars door Vlaanderen Dwars door Vlaanderen ''( en, Across Flanders)'' is a semi-classic road bicycle race in Belgium, held annually since 1945. The race starts in Roeselare and finishes in Waregem, both in West Flanders. Since 2017 the event is included in the UCI ...

. The best-known stage-races in Belgium are the Tour of Benelux, created in 2005, the

Tour of Belgium The Tour of Belgium ( nl, Ronde van België; french: Tour de Belgique) is a five-day bicycle race which is held annually in Belgium, and is part of the UCI ProSeries. It was held annually between 1908 and 1981, except during both world wars. Bet ...

and the Tour of Wallonie. Belgium has currently two professional cycling teams competing in the

UCI ProTour The UCI ProTour was a series of road bicycle races in Europe, Australia and Canada organised by the UCI (International Cycling Union). Created by Hein Verbruggen, former president of the UCI, it comprises a number of 'ProTour' cycling teams, ...

: Etixx-Quick Step and Lotto–Soudal. In mountain biking,

Filip Meirhaeghe Filip Meirhaeghe (born 5 March 1971"Rider Profile: Filip Meiraeghe"

won the 2002 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup and the 2003

UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships The UCI Mountain Bike World Championships are the world championship events for mountain bike racing in the disciplines of cross country, downhill, and four-cross. They are organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the governing ...

and was a silver medalist at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

. In

mountain bike trials Mountain bike trials, also known as observed trials, is a discipline of mountain biking in which the rider attempts to pass through an obstacle course without setting foot to ground. Derived from motorcycle trials, it originated in Catalonia, Sp ...

, Kenny Belaey has won the 26-inch wheel trial World Cup in 2002, 2005 and 2006. In cyclo-cross, Belgian competitors have gained 25 gold medals at the UCI Cyclo-cross Men World Championships since 1950 and 54 medals overall, making it the best country in cyclo-cross, ahead of France with 10 golds out of 34 medals.

Erik De Vlaeminck Erik De Vlaeminck (23 March 1945 − 4 December 2015) was a Belgian cyclist who became cyclo-cross world-champion seven times (in 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973), a record for male riders. Professional career De Vlaeminck missed 1967 ...

has the most world titles in cyclo-cross with 7 World Cup wins between 1966 and 1973. Other multiple Belgian world champions are

Roland Liboton Roland Liboton (born 6 March 1957) is a Belgian former cyclo-cross racer. Liboton won the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in 1980, 1982, 1983, and 1984, was the Belgian national champion for ten successive years from 1980 to 1989. He also ...

(4 titles), Mario De Clercq (3),

Wout van Aert Wout van Aert (born 15 September 1994) is a Belgian professional road and cyclo-cross racer who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the men's elite race at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in 2016, 2017 and 2018. He joined in M ...

(3), Erwin Vervecken (3), Sven Nys (2), and

Bart Wellens Bart Wellens (born 10 August 1978) is a Belgian former professional cyclo-cross and road cyclist. He now works as the team manager of UCI Cyclo-cross Team . Career Wellens was born in Vorselaar. In the Under 23 category, Wellens battled Sven ...

(2). In

Matthew Gilmore Matthew Gilmore (born 11 September 1972 in Ghent) is a Belgian-Australian retired track cyclist, who mostly competed and was most successful on track for Belgium. Although Gilmore was born in and represented Belgium, he is the son of Australian ...

and

Etienne De Wilde Etienne De Wilde (born 23 March 1958 in Wetteren, East Flanders) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer. De Wilde won races on the road and on the track. He won a silver medal in the madison at the 2000 Summer Olympics. Major resu ...

won the gold medal in the Men's Madison event at the 1998 UCI Track Cycling World Championships and the silver medal in the Men's Madison at the

won the gold medal of the Men's points race at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

while Patrick Sercu held several world records and won the gold medal of the Men's 1 km time trial at the 1964 Summer Olympics.

Hockey

Hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

has grown in importance over the recent years. As of April 2019 the national team for men is ranked first in the world, while the national team for women is ranked thirteenth.

Tennis

Tennis in Belgium is governed by the Royal Belgian Tennis Federation, which is split into the French-speaking AFT and the Dutch-speaking VTV. Belgium is well known in tennis for the two champions

and

, who were both WTA World No. 1 ranked player in the 2000s. Both players also retired respectively in 2007 and 2008, before they came back to the competition respectively in 2009 and 2010. Clijsters won 41 WTA titles, including three US Open titles and the Australian Open in 2011. Henin won 43 WTA titles, including seven

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

titles (four French Open titles, two US Open titles and the

2004 Australian Open The 2004 Australian Open was a Grand Slam tennis tournament held in Melbourne, Australia from 19 January to 1 February 2004. Andre Agassi was unsuccessful in defending his 2003 title, being defeated in the semi-finals by Marat Safin. This ended ...

), and a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. The Belgium team won the

2001 Fed Cup The 2001 Fed Cup was the 39th edition of the most important competition between national teams in women's tennis. The World Group was held at the Parque Ferial Juan Carlos I in Madrid, Spain, from 7–11 November. It was reduced from thirteen to ...

and finished runner-up in 2006. The current

Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...

team for

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

is composed of Kim Clijsters,

Yanina Wickmayer Yanina Wickmayer (born 20 October 1989) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals at the 2009 US Open, and a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 12, on 19 April 2010. In doubles, she achieved a career-high of world No. ...

Kirsten Flipkens Kirsten "Flipper" Flipkens (; born 10 January 1986) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 13 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Flipkens has won one singles title on the WTA Tour, winning the 2012 T ...

, Alison Van Uytvanck, and

An-Sophie Mestach An-Sophie Mestach (born 7 March 1994) is a Belgian retired tennis player. In her career, Mestach won two doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as six singles titles and eight doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 14 September 2015, she reac ...

. Belgium hosted each year the Belgian Open from 1987 on, which was replaced by the

Proximus Diamond Games The Diamond Games (due to sponsorship known for the last time as BNP Paribas Fortis Diamond Games and before that Proximus Diamond Games, GDF-Suez Diamond Games and Thomas Cook Diamond Games) was a professional women's tennis tournament organis ...

in 2002. The men's team of Belgium is currently 4th in the ITF rankings. Their best results are second places in the 1904 International Lawn Tennis Challenge and the

2015 Davis Cup The 2015 Davis Cup was the 104th edition of the Davis Cup, a tournament between national teams in men's tennis. It was sponsored by BNP Paribas. Great Britain won their tenth title (their first since 1936), with Andy Murray defeating David Gof ...

. The current

Davis Cup team is composed of

Xavier Malisse Xavier Malisse (born 19 July 1980) is a former Belgian professional tennis player. Born in the north-western Flemish city of Kortrijk and nicknamed ''X-Man'', he is one of only two Belgian men (the other being David Goffin) to have been ranked ...

(3 ATP titles),

Olivier Rochus Olivier Rochus (; born 18 January 1981) is a retired Belgian tennis player. He is the younger brother of Christophe Rochus, also a former top-40 tennis player. Rochus won two singles titles in his career and in 2004 won the French Open doubles ...

(2),

Steve Darcis Steve Darcis (, born 13 March 1984) is a Belgian retired professional tennis player. In his career, he won two ATP titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 38 on 22 May 2017. Personal life Steve Darcis was born in Liège t ...

(2) and

David Goffin David Goffin (; born 7 December 1990) is a Belgian professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7. He is currently the Belgian No. 1, and the first Belgian man to be ranked in the top 10. Goffin has won six ATP titles ...

(4). Former Belgian tennis champions include

Filip Dewulf Filip Dewulf (born 15 March 1972) is a former professional male tennis player from Belgium. In his career, he won two ATP Tour singles titles and one title in doubles. In 1997 he reached the semifinals of the French Open, his best singles resu ...

(2 ATP titles), Christophe Rochus,

Sabine Appelmans Sabine Appelmans (born 22 April 1972) is a former professional tennis player from Belgium. She was Belgium's Fed Cup captain from 2007 until 2011. Career Appelmans started playing at the neighbour's court at the age of seven. Her first traine ...

(7 WTA titles) and Dominique Monami (4 WTA titles).

Athletics

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

in Belgium is governed by three major bodies: the Royal Belgian Athletics League (the Belgian federal association), the Flemish Athletics Liga ( nl, Vlaamse Atletiekliga, the Flemish association), and the Ligue Belge Francophone d'Athlétisme (the French-speaking association). Belgium has hosted a number of major athletics events, beginning with the

1950 European Athletics Championships The 4th European Athletics Championships were held from 23 August to 27 August 1950 in the Heysel Stadium of the Belgian capital Brussels. Contemporaneous reports on the event were given in the Glasgow Herald. Men's results Complete result ...

. It has since hosted the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the Int ...

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

, 2001 and 2004, the

IAAF World Half Marathon Championships The World Athletics Half Marathon Championships is a biennial international half marathon competition organised by World Athletics. The competition was launched as the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in 1992 and held annually until 2010. It ...

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

and 2002 and the 2000 European Athletics Indoor Championships (at the Flanders Sports Arena). Belgium hosts a number of prominent annual competitions across all sections of the sport of athletics. The

Memorial Van Damme The Memorial Van Damme is an annual athletics event at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, that takes place in late August or early September. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now the final event of the Diamond Le ...

, Belgium's foremost

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

competition, began in 1977 and is now part of the

IAAF Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fourteen of the best invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF) one-day mee ...

circuit. Two of the meetings in the Lotto Cross Cup (an annual

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open cou ...

series) are sanctioned by the IAAF and

European Athletics The European Athletic Association (more commonly known as European Athletics) is the governing body for athletics in Europe. It is one of the six Area Associations of the world's athletics governing body World Athletics. European Athletics has 51 ...

. Other significant competitions which are part of the European athletics circuit include the Flanders Indoor meeting in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded i ...

and the KBC Night of Athletics in

Heusden Heusden () is a municipality and a town in the South of the Netherlands. It is located between the towns of Waalwijk and 's-Hertogenbosch. The municipality of Heusden, including Herpt, Heesbeen, Hedikhuizen, Doeveren, and Oudheusden, merged wit ...

. The country has two AIMS-certified marathons: the Antwerp Marathon and the

Brussels Marathon The Brussels Marathon is an annual AIMS-certified marathon held in Brussels, Belgium, first held in 1984, and usually held in the autumn. Races of shorter distances are also held on the same day. History The full race was first held in 1984. ...

. There is also an annual ultramarathon competition called the Nacht van Vlaanderen, a 100 km race which has been held annually since 1980. The meeting has also doubled as the European and

IAU The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...

World Championships on a number of occasions. Other annual races of note are the Warandeloop, Oostende-Brugge Ten Miles, Kust Marathon, Guldensporenmarathon and the

20 km of Brussels The 20 km of Brussels (french: 20 km de Bruxelles, nl, 20 km door Brussel) is a 20.1 km running race that has been held each year in Brussels since 1980, usually in May. It used to have a maximum number of 25,000 entries, which were normally sold o ...

. Four Belgian athletes have won Olympic gold medals:

Nafissatou Thiam Nafissatou "Nafi" Thiam (; born 19 August 1994) is a Belgian Sport of athletics, athlete specializing in multi-event competition. Thiam is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, winning the heptathlon event at the 2016 Summer Olympics, 2016 and 2020 ...

(heptathlon,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

(high jump,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

(3000 m steeplechase,

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

) and Gaston Reiff (5000 m, 1948). The other Belgian Olympic medalists in athletics are Etienne Gailly (bronze for marathon in 1948), Roger Moens (silver for 800m in

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

), Emiel Puttemans (silver for 10,000 m in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

Karel Lismont Karel Lismont (; born 8 March 1949) is a former Belgian long-distance runner. He competed at the 1972, 1976, 1980 and 1984 Olympics in the marathon and 10,000 m events. He won two marathon medals: a silver in 1972 and a bronze in 1976, finishing ...

(silver for marathon in 1972 and bronze in

), Ivo Van Damme (silver for 800 m and 1500 m in 1976) and the Belgium Women's 4 × 100 m led by Kim Gevaert (silver in 2008). Belgium has had three IAAF World Championships in Athletics medals (all bronze medals) since the creation of this competition in 1983: William Van Dijck for 3000 m steeplechase in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

Mohammed Mourhit Mohammed Mourhit ( ar, محمد مُرحيت; born 10 October 1970 in Khouribga, Morocco) is a Belgian top cross country, middle and long-distance runner who holds one European record, in the 3000 m. He is also a former European 10000 m record ho ...

for the 5000m in

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

and the Belgium Women's 4 × 100 m team in 2007. Over the history of the European Athletics Championship, Belgium has had five gold medals, ten silver medals and seven bronze medals. The

Golden Spike The golden spike (also known as The Last Spike) is the ceremonial 17.6- karat gold final spike driven by Leland Stanford to join the rails of the first transcontinental railroad across the United States connecting the Central Pacific Railroad ...

is awarded annually to the season's best Belgian male and female athletes.

Basketball

Basketball is governed by the Royal Belgian Basketball Federation. Their last tournament was the

EuroBasket 2013 EuroBasket 2013 was the 38th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It took place from 4 September until 22 September 2013 in Slovenia. The number of participating teams was 24. France defeated Lithuania in th ...

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, where they won three games. The best result of the Belgium national team was a 4th place at the

EuroBasket 1947 The 1947 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1947, was the fifth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Fourteen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) too ...

. The

Basketball League Belgium The Basketball League Belgium is a governing body for basketball in Belgium. It directs the ten professional Belgian basketball sports clubs of the top-tier Basketball League Belgium Division I. See also *Basketball League Belgium Division I R ...

is the top-flight national division and is played between 8 teams, with the current major clubs being

BC Oostende Basketball Club Oostende, for sponsorship reasons Filou Oostende, is a Belgian professional basketball team. The club is based in Ostend and was founded in 1970. The club competes domestically in the BNXT League and internationally in the Basket ...

(12 Belgian champion titles and 11 Belgian Cups),

Antwerp Giants Antwerp Giants, named Telenet Giants Antwerp for sponsorship reasons, are a Belgians, Belgian professional basketball club based in Antwerp. Their home arena is Lotto Arena. The club plays in the BNXT League, the highest tier of Belgian basketbal ...

(9 national titles and 5 Belgian Cups), Spirou Basket Charleroi (8 national titles and 5 Belgian Cups),

Liège Basket Liège Basket is a Belgian professional basketball club from Liège. The club competes in the BNXT League. Founded in 1967, the team plays at 5,600 seat Country Hall Ethias Liège. History The club was founded in Fléron as the Fléron Basket Clu ...

(3 national titles and 4 Belgian Cups),

Mons-Hainaut Belfius Mons-Hainaut is a Belgian professional basketball club that is based in Mons, Wallonia. The club competes in the highest division of the country, the BNXT League. The club's home arena is the Mons Arena. Founded as Quaregnon in 1959, the c ...

(1 Belgian Cup) and Verviers-Pepinster. The clubs of Racing Mechelen (15 national titles and 9 Belgian Cups between 1964 and 1994), Royal IV Brussels (7 national titles and 5 Belgian Cups between 1939 and 1973) and Semailles (6 national titles and 4 Belgian Cups between 1946 and 1958) have been successful but are now defunct. Belgium has organized the

EuroBasket 1977 The 1977 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1977, was the twentieth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. Venues Group stage Group A – Liège Group B – Ostend ...

. The biggest venues for basketball in Belgium are the Spiroudome in Charleroi (7,560 seats), the Country Hall Ethias Liège in Liège (5,600), the

Lotto Arena Lotto Arena is an arena in Antwerp, Belgium. It has a seating capacity for 8,050 people for concerts and 5,218 for sporting events. The arena opened on March 10, 2007, after nine months of construction.

in Antwerp (5,218) and the Sea'Arena in

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

(5,000).

Table tennis

Table tennis in Belgium is governed by the Royal Belgian Table Tennis Federation, which is split into the French-speaking AFFRBTT and the Dutch-speaking VTTL. The probably best-known Belgian table tennis player is Jean-Michel Saive who won his 21st Belgian champion title in 2009. At the international level, a victory at the 1994

Table Tennis European Championships The European Table Tennis Championships is an international table tennis competition for the national teams of the member associations of the European Table Tennis Union (ETTU). First held in 1958, the ETTU organised the European Championships ever ...

, a victory in the

Europe Top-12 The Europe Top 16, also known as the Europe Top 16 Cup and previously known as the Europe Top 12, is a table tennis tournament organised annually by the European Table Tennis Union (ETTU), featuring the highest-ranked players in Europe. History ...

in 1994 and a 2nd place at the

World Table Tennis Championships The World Table Tennis Championships are table tennis competitions sanctioned by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). The World Championships have been held since 1926, biennially since 1957. Five individual events, which include m ...

in 1993 are his best single results. Jean-Michel also finished 2nd at the team event of the World Championships in 2001. His brother Philippe Saive was also a renowned player in Belgium. At the club level, the best known Belgian club is certainly Royal Villette Charleroi where the brothers Saive have played, as well as Zoran Primorac,

Petr Korbel Petr Korbel (born 6 June 1971 in Havířov, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech table tennis player who has competed in five Olympics from 1992 to 2008. His best performance was in 1996 when he came fourth in the singles, losing to Germany's Jörg Roßkop ...

Dimitrij Ovtcharov Dimitrij Ovtcharov (russian: Дмитрий Овчаров) or Dmytro Ovtcharov ( uk, Дмитро Овчаров; born 2 September 1988) is a Ukrainian-born German table tennis player. His father Mikhail (or Mikhaylo), a Soviet table tennis cha ...

Oh Sang-Eun Oh Sang-eun (; ; born April 13, 1977, in Daegu, South Korea) is a South Korean table tennis player. He is currently sponsored by the table tennis product company, Butterfly. His World Ranking had been in the top 10 since the 2005 World Champio ...

and Vladimir Samsonov among others. La Villette Charleroi has won 1 World Champion title and 7 European Club Cup of Champions since 1994, among which 5 victories in the new

European Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competiti ...

, making it the most successful club in this competition.

Volleyball

Volleyball in Belgium is organized by the Royal Belgian Volleyball Federation which is split into the Dutch-speaking VVB and the French-speaking AIF. The Belgium men's national volleyball team best result at the European Volleyball Championship was in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

(4th on 16) after they lost the bronze medal game against Serbia (2-3). In

, Belgium finished 7th. Since then, Belgium only reached the finals in 2007 and finished 10th. The Belgium women's national volleyball team best result is a 7th place at the 2007 Women's European Volleyball Championship. The Belgium men's volleyball League is the highest level championship for men's clubs in Belgium. Noliko Maaseik (12 national titles and 11 Belgian Cups) and

Knack Randstad Roeselare Knack Roeselare is a Belgian professional men's volleyball club based in Roeselare. They compete in the Euro Millions Volley League and the CEV Champions League. Honours Domestic * Belgian Championship :Winners (13): 1988–89, 1999–2000, 2 ...

(5 national titles and 6 Belgian Cups) are the most successful clubs in the last years. Roeselare is the only Belgian club to have won a European cup, namely the CEV Top Teams Cup in 2002. They also have 2 second places at the Challenge Cup. Maaseik best results at international level are 2 lost finals of the

CEV Champions League The CEV Champions League is the top official competition for men's volleyball clubs from the whole of Europe. The competition is organised every year by the European Volleyball Confederation. Formula (2018–19 to present) Qualification A tot ...

in 1997 and 1999 and a lost final of the CEV Top Teams Cup in 2008. In the Belgium women's volleyball Division of Honour, the most successful clubs in the last years are Datovoc Tongeren (7 national titles),

Asterix Kieldrecht Asterix Avo is a Belgian women's volleyball club based in Kieldrecht (Beveren). The team was founded in 1969 as . By the end of the 1980s, the team climbed to the highest level of women's volleyball in Belgium. The club won its first trophy in ...

(4 national titles) and Dauphines Charleroi (2 national titles). Kieldrecht is the only club to have a European title (the 2001 Women's CEV Top Teams Cup). Belgium featured a men's national team in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018–2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup.

Rugby union

2009-05-17 Kituro Rugby Club RC Frameries

Rugby union is a growing sport in Belgium which, due to the growing mediatisation around the sport, especially during the 2003 and 2007 World Cup, is enjoying a rise in popularity. The game is formally organised by the Belgium Rugby Federation and has a surprisingly long history. Belgium has 57 clubs and 10,071 players according to the International Rugby Board who currently rank Belgium as tier two nation ranked at twenty-sixth in the world.

Rally

Rally is popular sport in Belgium and although no money prizes can be won, many talented drivers participate in the Belgian Championships. The rally sport is overseen by the RACB organization. Belgium is known for its technical special stages on narrow tarmac roads and steep ditches.

References

{{Sport in Europe