[1] In her Belgian family, which lived at Wevelgem in West Flanders,[3] she grew up with two sisters, Lieke and Auke, who were born in Ethiopia and were also adopted.

[1] In 1999 Aagje took advantage of a new programme for talented gymnasts and began to train with the Dutch coach Gerrit Beltman in Opmeer (North Holland).

[1] Aagje's first success at senior international level came in 2003 with World Cup bronze medals in the vault in Rio de Janeiro and on the uneven bars in Thessaloniki.

In 2004, she represented Belgium at the Athens Olympics, qualifying for the all-round final, and was voted the most promising Belgian youngster of the year.

Also that year Aagje won gold on the beam and uneven bars and silver on the floor in a domestic competition in Ghent.