Maarten Sikking was the goalkeeper of the Dutch national team from 1970 to 1980, playing 127 international matches. Sikking was the man of the match in the final of the 1973 World Cup. Playing India in front of a home crowd, Sikking blocked a penalty shot in overtime, and stopped two more in the penalty series, earning the Netherlands their first international hockey title. Sikking also played the 1978 World Cup final, losing to Pakistan. Considered one of the best goalies of his time, his greatest regret was that he never won an Olympic medal. At the 1972 and 1976 Olympics, the Dutch team placed 4th. Sikking had his hopes pinned on the 1980 Moscow Games, but when the Dutch Field Hockey Federation decided to boycott these Olympics, Sikking decided to retire and burned his outfit. Sikking then started working in insurance, and later owned a beach pavillion. He was also heavily involved in various charities in third world countries. He lived the last few years of his life on the Indonesian island of Bali, where he had met his (third) wife while setting up a school.
Netherlands