Education
VWO, Colegio Arubano; Antillean Law, University of the Netherlands Antilles; Masters Degree in Dutch Law, specialised in International Law, University of Leiden (Netherlands)
Career
Legal advisor, Department of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Aruba (1991-1994); Deputy Permanent Secretary to the Council of Ministers of Aruba – first woman in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to be appointed to this position (1994-1996); legal advisor to the Prime Minister of Aruba (1997-2001); legal advisor, Department of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Aruba (2002-); Permanent Secretary to the Council of Ministers of Aruba (2009-)
Sports career
Synchronised swimmer: multiple Aruban and Antillean championships, participant in several regional and international championships (1973-1984); participant in the duet during the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games; synchronised swimming coach, ad honorem (1984-1998); coach of the Aruban solo and duet team participating in the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games
Sports administration
Board member of “The Barracudas” synchronised swimming club (1983-2002) then honorary member (2003-); Secretary General of the Aruban Swimming Federation (1991-); co-founder and legal advisor of the Aruban Sports Medicine Foundation, ARUMEDE (1991-); Second Secretary General of the Aruban Olympic Committee (Comite Olimpico Arubano) (1997-1998) then Secretary General (1998-); member of the Special Commission of the Pan-American Sports Organisation (PASO) for the Pan-American Games of Winnipeg, 1999 (1998-1999); member of the Executive Board of the Pan-American Sports Organisation (PASO) – first woman to occupy this position in the history of PASO (1998-); President of the PASO Women and Sports Commission (1998-); Chancellor of PASO (1999-); member of the PASO Coordination Commission for the Pan-American Games of Santo Domingo, 2003 (2000-2003)
Awards and distinctions
Governor Leito Youth Trophy for “The Barracudas” synchronised swimming club (1986); “The Outstanding Young Person” Award of the Jaycees Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles organisation (1991); Aruba Sports Award for synchronised swimming duet, formed by twin sisters Hellen and Eline Leydekkers (1993); Diploma of the International Olympic Committee for work as a volunteer in sport, on the occasion of International Year of Volunteerism in Sport (2001); Governor Felipe Tromp Youth Trophy for “The Barracudas” synchronised swimming club (2002); recipient of the “Paragon Award” from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for outstanding dedication to the development of synchronised swimming at national and regional level (2004); named “Woman of the Year 2007” by the Caribbean Speed Printers
IOC History
Member of the following Commissions: Women and Sport (2003-2015), International Relations (2009-2015), Coordination for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro (2010-), Coordination for the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in 2020 in Tokyo, Juridical (2014-2015), Sport and Law (2014-2015), Legal Affairs (2015-), Olympic Solidarity (2015-); Member of the Audit Committee (2015-)