Auderghem
Name transcription(s)
• French	Auderghem
• Dutch	Oudergem
Flag Coat of arms
Auderghem Location in Belgium
Coordinates: 50°49′N 04°26′E / 50.817°N 4.433°E / 50.817; 4.433
Country	Belgium
Region	Brussels
Community	Flemish Community French Community
Arrondissement	Brussels
Government
• Mayor	Didier Gosuin (FDF)
Area
• Total	9.03 km2 (3.49 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2011)[1]
• Total	31,408
• Density	3,500/km2 (9,000/sq mi)
Postal codes	1160
Area codes	02
Website	www.auderghem.be
Map of Auderghem

Auderghem (former Dutch spelling, now used in French; pronounced [odəʁˈɡem]) or Oudergem (Dutch: [ˈɔudərʝɛm] ( listen)) is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium.

The Chapel of Saint Anne

Located to the southeast of the capital, along the Woluwe valley and at the entrance to the Sonian Forest (Forêt de Soignes, Zoniënwoud), the municipality has an environmental advantage. Despite large roads slicing through and the increasing traffic, it has been able to preserve a relatively important part of its natural and historic legacy: the creeks, the Abbey of Rouge-Cloître or Rood Klooster (Red Cloister) and its art center, the Priory of Val Duchesse or Hertoginnedal (Duchess Dale), the Château of Trois Fontaines or Drie Fonteinen (Three Fountains), and the remarkable Chapel of Saint Anne.

The Abbey of Rouge-Cloître

Auderghem is adjacent to the municipalities of Etterbeek, Ixelles - Elsene, Woluwe-Saint-Pierre - Sint-Pieters-Woluwe, and Watermael-Boitsfort - Watermaal-Bosvoorde.

The municipality is governed by its 16th mayor, Didier Gosuin (FDF).

History[link]

The Priory of Val Duchesse

Three forest villages (Auderghem, Watermael, and Boitsfort-Bosvoorde), were one for centuries. In 1794, the soldiers of the French Revolution decided to separate these into three distinct municipalities. In 1811, Napoleon decided to reunite the three villages, by imperial decree, into a single administrative entity. But Auderghem was withdrawn from this union by royal act, leaving Watermael-Boitsfort or Watermaal-Bosvoorde on its own. Thus, Auderghem became an independent municipality in 1863, with only 1,600 inhabitants.

With the construction of the rail line linking Brussels and Tervuren as well as, in 1910, the construction of the Boulevard du Souverain or Vorstlaan, modernization came to the municipality and the population grew quickly.

In 1956, Paul Henri Spaak lead the Intergovernmental Conference on the Common Market and Euratom at the Val Duchesse castle in Auderghem, which prepared the Treaties of Rome in 1957 and the foundation of the European Economic Community and Euratom in 1958.

Sights[link]

The Castle of the Valley of the Duchess (Val Duchesse).

The Priory of Val Duchesse or Hertoginnedal, a gift of the king, is unfortunately rarely open to the public. In 1963, Belgium's cabinet ministers met here, planting the seeds of a federalization of the country though at conditions fiercely criticised especially in some extremist Flemish nationalist circles.

Similarly, the Chapel of Saint Anne, whose origins go back to the 12th century, is not open to the public. Decommissioned in 1843, it was sold several times. Its splendid sculptures from the Middle Ages and notable period furniture are still there to admire.

The municipality offers many green spaces.

See also[link]

• Municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site of the Municipality of Auderghem (in French)
• Official site of the Municipality of Oudergem (in Dutch)

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Jean-Michel Saive
Full name	SAIVE Jean-Michel
Nationality	Belgium
Born	17 November 1969
Medal record Men's table tennis Competitor for  Belgium World Championships Silver 2001 Osaka Team Silver 1993 Gothenburg Singles World Cup Silver 1994 Taipei Singles European Championships Silver 2005 Aarhus Singles Gold 1994 Birmingham Singles Silver 1994 Birmingham Doubles Silver 1992 Stuttgart Singles Silver 1990 Gothenburg Mixed Doubles

Jean-Michel Saive (born 17 November 1969) is a Belgian professional table tennis player.

Born in Liège in a table tennis playing family, Saive was predestined to become a very good table tennis player and began playing as a small boy. His father was the tenth ranking Belgian player and his mother won the Belgian ladies' doubles championships when she was pregnant with him.

At the age of thirteen Saive was the fourth ranking Belgian player and joined the national team. In 1985 he was ranked best player in Belgium, a place which he has kept until today (2011) without interruption. In 1994 he made it to world number one for 515 days (from 9 February 1994 to 8 June 1995 and from 26 March 1996 to 24 April 1996).

Jean-Michel Saive has won a total of 130 medals (51 gold, 38 silver and 41 bronze) in international singles tournaments.^[1] Some of his important titles are:

• A European Championship (1994) in Birmingham (United Kingdom)
• A Europe "Top 12" (1994) in Arezzo (Italy)
• Two European leagues with Belgium (1994 and 1995)
• Six European Championship Club Cups with his Club La Villette Charleroi (1994, 1996, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004)
• Nineteen Belgian Championships with his Club La Villette Charleroi
• A victory at the World Pro Tour in 2001
• Two victories at the "Qatar Open" (1996 and 2002)

He was also individual world vice champion in 1993, finalist at the World Cup in 1994 and 2003 and he was finalist at the world championship for teams with Belgium in 2001.

He participated to six consecutive Summer Olympic Games, from 1988, when table tennis became an official Olympic sport in Seoul, to 2008 in Beijing. At the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games 1996 and 2004 he was the flag bearer of the Belgian team. For the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, the 20 highest ranked ITTF players were to be selected for the Olympics. Saive expected to be selected as he was tied in 20th position together with the Swede Jörgen Persson and there was no rule to decide what to do in case of ties. The ITTF decided they needed to play an extra playoff to determine who got the last spot.^[2] However, they refused to play as they agreed they should both get a ticket.^[3] The ITTF then recalculated the rankings and placed Persson in 20th position and Saive in 21st.^[4] It is now unclear if Saive, who still does not want to play in the extra qualification tournaments since he believes he deserves to go, will complain through the Court of Arbitration for Sport for unfair treatment, he gets support from Persson and has asked the ITTF for an explanation in a letter.^[5] Eventually, Saive did play an extra qualification tournament in Budapest, finishing third and thus qualified for his sixth successive Summer Olympics.

Both Saive and Persson, along with Croatian Zoran Primorac, are first only table tennis players to compete at six Olympics, having been at all Games since the sport was introduced in 1988.

His successes made him the best Belgian table tennis player and he is also one of the best sportsmen of Belgium. He was elected Sports Personality of the Year 1991 and 1994. Jean-Michel Saive is known for his victories but also for his sportsmanship. He was awarded the UNESCO World Award of Fair Play in 1989.

His younger brother Philippe Saive is also a table tennis player, albeit less successful.

See also[link]

• List of athletes with the most appearances at Olympic Games

External links[link]

• Biography on Belgium's federal portal

References[link]