From a poor home, van Dantzig worked for several years before entering U Amsterdam in 1923, where his interest was algebraic topology. In 1927 he joined the faculty at Delft Technical U, leaving in 1940 following the German invasion. In 1946, on his appointment at U Amsterdam, he changed his field of interest to mathematical statistics. The Netherlands Society for Statistics and Operations Research awards a prize in his honour every five years.
http://projecteuclid.org/DPubS?service=UI&version=1.0&verb=Display&handle=euclid.aoms/1177705893 Fuller biography.