You want the first record in the ID order for the same Ref, right? Try

SELECT * FROM myatble mt1 ;
	WHERE NOT EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM mytable WHERE ref = mt1.ref AND id < mt1.id)

>
>Can someone help me find the correct syntax of a SQL statement would eliminate the duplicates?
>
>I have a table: 'mytable'. It has 3 fields: ID, NAME and REF
>
>ID | NAME | REF
>1 | Dupuis | 200817 *
>2 | Durand | 200817
>3 | Michiels | 200818 *
>4 | Dulome | 200819
>5 | Pernut | 200820 *
>6 | Bloquier | 200820
>7 | Moureau | 200820
>8 | Pirotte | 200821 *
>9 | Marchand | 200821
>
>
>I would like the SQL statement to return only the records that are tagged (all fields).
>
>How can I do this?
>
>Thanks to all,
>Pat