Marieke van den Ham (born 21 January 1983 in Wierden

Wierden

Wierden is a town and a municipality in the eastern Netherlands, in the province of Overijssel.The municipality of Wierden also includes the following towns, villages and townships:Enter, Hoge Hexel, Ypelo, Notter, Rectum, Zuna....

, Overijssel

Overijssel

Overijssel is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The region has a NUTS classification of NL21. The province's name means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle and the largest city is Enschede...

) is a water polo

Water polo

Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...

 player of the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 who represents the Dutch national team

Netherlands women's national water polo team

The Netherlands women's national water polo team is the national team of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was one of the leading teams in the world during the 1980s and 1990s. More recently they claimed the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics...

 in international competitions.

van den Ham was part of the team that became 10th at the 2005 World Aquatics Championships

2005 World Aquatics Championships

The 2005 World Aquatics Championships or the XI FINA World Championships were held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada from July 16 to July 31, 2005...

 in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

. At the 2006 FINA Women's Water Polo World League

2006 FINA Women's Water Polo World League

The 2006 FINA Women's Water Polo World League was the third edition of the annual event, organised by the world's governing body in aquatics, the FINA...

 in Cosenza

Cosenza

Cosenza is a city in southern Italy, located at the confluence of two historic rivers: the Busento and the Crathis. The municipal population is of around 70,000; the urban area, however, counts over 260,000 inhabitants...

 and the 2006 Women's European Water Polo Championship

2006 Women's European Water Polo Championship

The 2006 Women's European Water Polo Championship was the eleventh edition of the now tri-annual event, organised by the Europe's governing body in aquatics, the Ligue Européenne de Natation...

 in Belgrade

Belgrade

Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...

 they finished in fifth place. She was not selected for the 2007 World Aquatics Championships

2007 World Aquatics Championships

The 2007 World Aquatics Championships or the XII FINA World Championships were held in Melbourne, Australia from 17 March to 1 April 2007...

 in Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

, but returned for the Dutch team that finished in fifth place at the 2008 Women's European Water Polo Championship

2008 Women's European Water Polo Championship

The 2008 Women's European Water Polo Championship was the twelve edition of the bi-annual event, organised by the Europe's governing body in aquatics, the Ligue Européenne de Natation...

 in Malaga

Málaga

Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...

 and they qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics

2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

 in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

. There they ended up winning the gold medal on 21 August, beating the United States

United States women's national water polo team

The United States women's national water polo team represents the United States in international women's water polo competitions and friendly matches. It is one of the leading teams in the world since the late 1990s....

 9-8 in the final

Water polo at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament

The women's water polo tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing was held from 11 August to 21 August at the Beijing's Ying Tung Pool....

.