National Sports Commemoration for equestrian sports on May 4, 2026

This year, the National Sports Commemoration on May 4, 2026, at the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam is dedicated to equestrian sports. With poignant stories of Olympians who did not survive the Second World War, the commemoration draws attention to an often overlooked chapter in Dutch sports history. Four Dutch Olympians from equestrian sports and modern pentathlon never returned from the war: Alexander van Geen, Pierre Versteegh, Eddy Kahn, and Tjeerd Pasma. The remarkable life story of Cavalry Captain and four-time Olympic champion Charles Pahud de Mortanges will also be highlighted.

Sports Commemoration: Tradition

In 1947, a statue of Prometheus was placed on the second tier of the Olympic Stadium as a war memorial for the victims of Dutch sport. The statue, created by Fred Carasso, now stands on the square in front of the stadium.

Little is known among the general public about the role of sport during the war, which is why the National Sports Commemoration takes place every year at the Olympic Stadium. On May 4, 2026, at 12:30 PM, representatives from the Olympic and sports worlds will lay five colored wreaths at the statue of Prometheus. Together, the wreaths form the Olympic rings. Prior to this ceremonial commemoration, there is a substantive program. The National Sports Commemoration has grown into a tradition for both the sports and commemoration worlds. The commemoration has been organized by the National Sports Commemoration Committee since 2005.

 

World War II: Equestrianism

Equestrian sports have been chosen for 2026. During the substantive meeting, the life stories of the Olympians listed below will be highlighted, among others.

Charles Pahud de Mortanges Captain and four-time Olympic champion Charles Pahud de Mortanges survived the war, but lost his only son in the process. During the first years of the war, he managed Huize Kareol in Aerdenhout, a care facility where sport was used to help severely wounded soldiers and civilians reintegrate into society. Two years after the start of the war, he was deported with other Dutch professional soldiers to the Stanislaw prisoner-of-war camp. During a transport, Pahud de Mortanges escaped, after which he joined the Princess Irene BrigadeFour Dutch Olympians lost their lives during the Second World War, who had previously participated in various equestrian events.

 

Alexander van Geen was killed on February 27, 1942, during the Battle of the Java Sea. In 1936, he had participated in the modern pentathlon in Berlin. The Battle of the Java Sea took place on February 27, 1942, between an Allied squadron led by Rear Admiral Karel Doorman and the Japanese Imperial Navy under Rear Admiral Takeo Takagi. During the battle, Doorman signaled the famous words 'All ships follow me'. The Combined Striking Force of fourteen Dutch, American, British, and Australian ships was defeated. The blow was particularly severe for the Royal Netherlands Navy. Besides Doorman himself, 900 Dutchmen lost their lives in the blue waters of Indonesia.

 

Pierre Versteegh was born on May 3, 1942 Sachsenhausen murdered because of his resistance work. At the 1928 Games in Amsterdam, he won a bronze medal with the men's team. Eight years later, he was a participant in Berlin. Sachsenhausen was a concentration camp in Nazi Germany during the Second World War. The camp was located 35 kilometers from Berlin and was built by prisoners in 1936 prior to the Olympic Games in Berlin. The camp was situated in the Sandhausen district (now Sachsenhausen, just like the camp itself) in the city of Oranienburg. It was intended as a 'model camp' and was later also used as a training camp for SS members and camp guards. Approximately 200.000 people were imprisoned in Sachsenhausen from 1939 to 1945. There are no reliable figures for the period from 1936 to 1939. According to official figures, approximately 30.000 to 50.000 people perished. Among the prisoners were political opponents of Adolf Hitler, prisoners of war, so-called "asocials," Roma, Sinti, Jews, homosexuals, and Jehovah's Witnesses. The causes of death varied: disease, starvation, exhaustion, torture, and execution.

 

Eddy Kahn was killed in action on August 18, 1944, in France. He was also part of the Dutch team of 1936. Kahn ran a fashion business. He lived and worked in The Hague until September 1940 and then in Amsterdam until May 1941. He married an American woman in Pittsburgh in 1931 and had one child. Before the war, he was a successful dressage rider and one of the few civilians to participate in national and international competitions. At that time, equestrian sports were practiced almost entirely by army officers. Kahn participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics, where he finished thirteenth in the eventing event with 'Espoir'. In 1941, he managed to flee to the United States with his family. He later enlisted in the British Army and, as a temporary reserve 1st Lieutenant of the 6th (Royal Welch) Parachute Battalion, participated in Operation Dragoon, during which he was killed in action in France on August 19, 1944. Kahn is buried at the British War Cemetery in Banneville-la-Campagne.

 

Tjeerd Pasma was killed in his own home in Ede on December 28, 1944, when it was hit by a V1 weapon. The V1 was the first German so-called V-weapon of the Second World War and also the world's first unmanned jet aircraft. It carried an explosive charge, making it a 'flying bomb'. It was the precursor to later cruise missiles, although these are usually equipped with a rocket engine. In total, more than 30.000 V1s were produced. They were initially launched mainly from Northern France and later in the war from the Netherlands. Both London and Antwerp were heavily affected by them.

 

<strong> More info: </strong>

The National Sports Commemoration for equestrian sports on May 4, 2026:

https://www.olympischstadion.nl/sportherdenking/

Stamps in equestrian sports (selection): https://www.archiefndr.nl/MusZegels.htm

Previous World War II blogs:

https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/tweede-wereldoorlog/