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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 February 1954 |
| Died | 29 December 1976 (aged 22) Orange, Vaucluse, France |
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Athletics |
Event(s) | 800 m, 1500 m |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personalbest(s) | 800 m – 1:43.86 (1976) 1500 m – 3:36.26 (1976) |
Medal record | |
Ivo Van Damme (21 February 1954 – 29 December 1976) was aBelgian middle-distance runner.
Van Damme playedfootball until he was 16, but then switched toathletics. His breakthrough came in 1973, when he placed fourth in the 800 m at the European Junior Championships.[2]
He suffered frommononucleosis the following season, but returned strong beatingRoger Moens's 1955 national 800 m record. The record stood for 48 years and was finally bettered byEliott Crestan in 2024.[3] In 1976, he won the European indoor title over this distance, and was one of the favourites for a medal at the1976 Summer Olympics inMontreal. He eventually ended up second in both the 800 and 1500 m, finishing behindAlberto Juantorena andJohn Walker, respectively.[4]
These were his last successes, as Van Damme was killed in a car accident later that year while travelling home fromMarseille in southern France.[4] He was to marryRita Thijs in 1977.[1] Since 1977, a memorial competition has been held in Brussels to remember him, theMemorial Van Damme, which is now the championship final for selected disciplines of theDiamond League athletics tour.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
