Life and Career
Born in Ghent, Belgium, under the Nazi-occupation, Rogge is by profession an orthopedic surgeon and was educated at the University of Ghent. Rogge competed in yachting in the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics, and played on the Belgian national rugby union team. In yachting (Finn-class) he won the world championships once and took second place twice, and was crowned Belgian champion sixteen times. He also won the Yachting World Cadet Trophy and took part in the regatta Ton Cup.
Rogge served as President of the Belgian Olympic Committee from 1989 to 1992, and as President of the European Olympic Committees from 1989 to 2001. He became a member of the IOC in 1991 and joined its Executive Board in 1998. He was knighted in 1992, and in 2002 made a Count in the Belgian nobility by King Albert II.
In his free time, Rogge is known to admire modern art and is an avid reader of historical and scientific literature. He is married to Anne; they have two adult children. His son Philippe was the delegation leader of the Belgian Olympic Committee for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Read more about this topic: Jacques Rogge
Famous quotes containing the words life and/or career:
“The train was crammed, the heat stifling. We feel out of sorts, but do not quite know if we are hungry or drowsy. But when we have fed and slept, life will regain its looks, and the American instruments will make music in the merry cafe described by our friend Lange. And then, sometime later, we die.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)
“In time your relatives will come to accept the idea that a career is as important to you as your family. Of course, in time the polar ice cap will melt.”
—Barbara Dale (b. 1940)