Basketball is popular in Flanders, but sadly Belgium won’t be represented in the Olympics. Children from six to 14, on the other hand, can come to Hasselt for a free introduction, every weekday from 23 July to 10 August from 14.00 to 17.00. No reservation necessary, just turn up and shoot some hoops – it’s all free.
http://tinyurl.com/HasseltBasketball

Capoeira (pictured) isn’t an Olympic sport but a popular martial art combined with music and dance from Brazil, invented by slaves brought over from Africa. It involves power, speed and awesome moves, and brings fitness and fun. The Brazilian association for the support and development of Capoeira art is offering hour-long lessons for children every Saturday at 12.00 in De Merode school in Berchem in Antwerp and every Wednesday in July and August (except 15 August) at 17.00 in the Kavka youth centre or Parkspoor Noord sports hall. There are also lessons for adults on Saturdays and Wednesdays, and the whole thing is run by instructor Luquinha, who’s taught all over the world for 25 years. The first lesson is free.
www.abadacapoeiraluquinha.be

Shooting may not be what you want your child to grow up being good at, but for some reason it’s impossible to stop boys from seeing a rifle in every stick. A slightly safer variant is paintball, organised for kids from 10 upwards by the youth service of Torhout in West Flanders on 6 August from 9.00 to 17.00. It’s not restricted to boys, of course, so if your own Calamity Jane feels like trying it, she’s more than welcome. There’s also air-rifle shooting and archery (under the strictest supervision, it goes without saying) for those who prefer playing Cowboys and Indians. It costs €11.
www.jeugdtorhout.be/kidsclub

Swimming is well-represented among the athletes heading for London, and if you think you may have a budding Brian Ryckeman or Kimberley Buys, take them to the municipal swimming pool in Tremelo in Flemish Brabant, where the pool has been converted for the day into a playtime paradise, with every sort of floating amusement you can think of. It’s open from 13.30 to 18.00 for €2.50 for adults, €1.25 for kids. Tremelo has other activities planned for the summer, including a supervised playground, an omnisport week from 20 to 24 August and a day of water-skiing and wakeboarding on 28 August.
http://tinyurl.com/TremeloSwimming

Cycling, the Flemish sport par excellence, is only one of the sporting activities laid on by Terra Nova in Antwerp. On 1 August there’s a BMX course in the provincial cycling centre in Wilrijk, an indoor track for cyclists and a parcours for skaters, from 15.00 to 18.00, with races at the end of the initiation. Kids aged eight to 12 pay €4, older kids and adults €6. Long sleeves and long trousers required for the cycle track.
http://tinyurl.com/TerraNovaCycling

Finally, an exhibition at Ghent University’s zoology museum explains how some of our Olympic heroes and heroines would have got on against the athletes of the animal kingdom. It’s open from 15 to 22 July, from 9.00 to 12.00, with a guided tour at 10.50. Our runners, swimmers and jumpers might have met their match, but somehow we think Tom Boonen and Maaike Polspoel would do okay.

More fun kids' activities

Guided tours in English for children in the Musical Instrument Museum in Brussels
www.mim.be/groups

Hunt for clues with Fly through the collections of the Fine Arts Museum in Ghent
www.mskgent.be/en

Spend the day climbing a tower, then spend the night in a tent on the top:
http://terranova.provant.be

An overnight expedition in the woods, with a night’s camping
http://terranova.provant.be

A free introduction to a variety of sports and a hot-air balloon event in Sint-Truiden on 5 August
www.sint-truiden.be

Looking forward to Sochi in 2014 or even Pyeongchang in 2018? Ice skating is still possible at the Poseidon rink in Brussels, Sundays from 10.00 to 13.30 for kids under 1m20:
www.skate-poseidon.be

Contributions to this article were made by Olga Hope