Belgium at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Belgium sent a delegation to compete at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from 7–22 February 1998.[1] The only Belgian representative to qualify for Nagano was speed skater Bart Veldkamp, who had previously won medals in the 10,000 metres race in both Albertville and Lillehammer.[2] Due the fact that Veldkamp was scheduled to compete in the 5,000 meter event the following day, and was the only athlete from Belgium at the games, his coach Conrad Alleblas, was chosen as the flag bearer for the opening ceremony.[4] Although Veldkamp was born in the Netherlands, he chose to take Belgian nationality in 1996 to make it easier to qualify for major competitions.[9] On 12 February, despite being a distance specialist, he participated in the 1,500 metres, and finished 17th with a time of 1 minute and 51.73 seconds.