Top golf federation slams decision to remove Dutch players from Olympic Games

The International Golf Federation has described the removal of three Dutch athletes from the Paris 2024 Olympics as “unfair” and “unnecessary.”

Reports emerged on Tuesday that Joost Luiten, Darius van Driel and Dewi Weber will not represent the Netherlands in the Olympic golf event in August because there is no “reasonable chance” they can compete for a medal.

The IGF, which recently announced the 60-man and 60-woman fields for the tournaments at Le Golf National in two months, said it was disappointing to see three players earn spots through points they’d earned in the two-year qualifying period, but now taken from the field by the Dutch Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF).

The NOC*NSF overlooked “extensive arguments and data” from the Netherlands Golf Federation which aimed to support the players’ participation in this year’s Olympics, and now only Anne van Dam will represent her nation in the women’s 72-hole stroke play event.

“The International Golf Federation (IGF) is extremely disappointed for our three qualified athletes who will miss out on competing at Paris 2024 due to the decision by the Dutch Olympic Committee and Dutch Sports Federations (NOC*NSF) on Tuesday,” the IGF said in a statement given to NCG.

“Dewi Weber, Joost Luiten and Darius Van Driel all earned the right to compete in the Olympic golf competition at Paris 2024 based on their impressive play over the two-year qualifying period. However, the NOC*NSF created an additional – and, in the opinion of the IGF, unnecessary – criterion that prevented the selection of these three qualified athletes.

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International Golf Federation disappointed with decision of Dutch Olympic Committee

“The IGF is confident that the data and supporting information provided to the NOC*NSF by the Netherlands Golf Federation clearly demonstrated how these three athletes all have the ability to contend for a top-eight finish in the Olympic golf competition.

“Unfortunately, unless the NOC*NSF reverses course, the use of this unnecessary addition to the qualification process – unique to the NOC*NSF – will now unfairly prevent these three athletes from competing in the world’s greatest sporting event, the Olympic Games.”

The IGF is the recognised international federation within the Olympic movement. It promotes golf as an Olympic sport and establishes and enforces the rules concerning playing golf at the Summer Games.

Luiten, a six-time DP World Tour winner, expressed his sadness at the NOC*NSF with a post on Instagram:

“It’s just mindblowing that they say I can not finish top 8 at the @olympics, @nocnsf have absolutely no clue about golf. Also, they have changed the criteria’s in Dec 2023, if they had those criteria’s from the start in June 2023 I would have qualified at 2 seperate events. That’s even more painfull to me!”

Van Driel won the Magical Kenya Open on the DP World Tour back in February and finished 50th in the Olympic Golf Rankings with Luiten 10 places ahead. He also vented his frustrations online.

“No Olympics for Joost Luiten, Dewi Weber and myself although we qualified,” van Driel said on Instagram.” The @nocnsf doesn’t have a clue about golf and it’s a shame we’re suffering now.

“We’re not going because of political reasons. Mistakes were made by the @nederlandse.golf.federatie for agreeing with the absurd demands on the national qualifications. A sad day for Dutch golf.”

Weber finished 58th in the women’s Olympic golf rankings and is ranked 302nd in the women’s world rankings. This is the second Olympics in a row where the Netherlands has held back golfers from competing in this festival of sport.

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