Robert Van de Walle

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Robert Van de Walle (born 20 May 1954) is a retired Belgian judoka. He was the first judoka to ever compete at five Olympics, from 1976 to 1992. Competing in the half-heavyweight category he won the gold medal in 1980 and a bronze in 1988 at the age of 34. Van de Walle won European titles in 1980, 1985 and 1986.[2] Together with Ingrid Berghmans he was the face of Belgian judo in the late 1970s and 1980s. After retiring from competitions he ran a coaching company together with his wife.[3] He was the head of the Belgian delegation at the 2004 Summer Olympics.[4] In summer 2021, 14 years after obtaining the rank of black belt 8th dan; Van De Walle, currently a member of Judo Club Crossing Schaerbeek, accepted his promotion to 9th dan from the International Judo Federation.[5]

Robert Van de Walle
Van de Walle (2nd left) at the 1980 Olympics
Personal information
Born (1954-05-20) 20 May 1954 (age 70)
Ostend, Belgium
OccupationJudoka
Height1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Sport
CountryBelgium
SportJudo
Weight class–95 kg, Open
Rank     9th dan black belt[1]
ClubCrossing Schaerbeek
Achievements and titles
Olympic GamesGold (1980)
World Champ.Silver (1979, 1981)
European Champ.Gold (1980, 1985, 1986)
Profile at external databases
IJF8904
JudoInside.com4760
Updated on 18 June 2023

Bibliography

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  • (1993) "Pick-ups" Judo Masterclass Techniques Ippon Books

References

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  1. ^ "IJF Dan Grades Awardees" (PDF). International Judo Federation. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 February 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. ^ Robert Van De Walle (Belgium). realjudo.net
  3. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Robert Van de Walle". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 4 December 2016.
  4. ^ Betere resultaten door uw energiepotentieel te optimaliseren. resourcementcentre.be
  5. ^ "IJF Dan Grades Awardees" (PDF). International Judo Federation. 7 July 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
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