Date of birth (location): 18 October 1960,  Berchem-Sainte-Agathe, Brussels, Belgium

Birth name :   Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg

Height:  5' 10" (1.78 m)

 Born on Oct 18 1960, Jean-Claude Van Damme is the son of Eugene Van Varenberg and Eliana Van Varenberg. "The muscles from Brussels" started martial arts at the age of 11. His father Eugene Van Varenberg introduced him to martial arts when he saw his son was physically weak. Jean-Claude started with Shotokan Karate and later studied Kickboxing, Taekwon-Do, and Muay Thai.

 Jean-Claude is twelve years old when his father takes him to Claude Goetz, graduate trainer of karate. The courses of Goetz are effective but hard and reserved to adults. The young teenager is not gifted, he is stiff and apprehensive. But he wants to progress at all costs and his savage determination does not escape to his trainer.

 The young Van Varenberg suffers a lot; he gives up several times but he feels an inexorable strength in him which binds him to his future. Body-building for hours and hours, repeating jabs in the air with weights in his hands, stretching and splits, endurance, karate moves: training with Goetz is almost like hell!

 At seventeen, Jean-Claude has developed physically and has more self- esteem. Sensible to classical music, he takes dancing lessons during four years (classic ballet), but karate remains his main priority. He succeeds in controlling his fear and takes part in many demanding fights. His opponents fear his speed and the strength of his legs.

 After having won the European in teams in 1979, Jean-Claude takes part in the World Championship in Wako, Florida. Amazed by the USA, that he discovers for the first time, our young karateka skips training. He gets defeated by the Belgian Patrick Teugels who becomes Vice-Champion of the World.

 A few months later, Jean-Claude takes his revenge and beats Teugels in less then two minutes. A strenuous training and a rage to win: the young Van Varenberg will remember the lesson.

 His goal was to be number one but got sidetracked when he left his hometown of Brussels. He discovers the famous Gold Gym in California and meets the one who will become his first wife : Maria Rodriguez. Back in Belgium, he decides to open a Bodybuilding gym in Brussels : the California Gym. The bodybuilding gym is a big success. Jean-Claude trains for hours, he muscles up naturally till he weights 99 kg and he lifts 166 kg at the bench! Even if his gym became a well-known one, Hollywood was calling him!

 He came to Hong Kong at the age of 19 for the first time and felt insured to do action movies there. So in 1981 Van Damme moved to Los Angeles (after previously divorcing), where he was trying to succeed for 5 years. He took English classes while working as carpet layer, pizza delivery man, limo driver, and thanks to Chuck Norris he got a job as a bouncer at a club. His original stage name was the very strange Frank Cujo, which more likely sounded like a dog name. Norris gave Van Damme a small role in the movie 'Missing in Action', but it wasn't enough to get anybody's attention. Then, in 1984 he got a role as a villain named Ivan in the low-budget movie No Retreat, No Surrender (1985).

 1986 finds Jean Claude desperate and lonely in Hollywood. All of a sudden, he decides to push his luck in a way he would be proud of for the rest of his entire life! As Menahem Golan, the famous producer, leaves a restaurant, Jean-Claude performs a lightning roundhouse kick, inches from his face. The bodyguards were about to intervene, but the producer, impressed, invites him to his office the next morning. Jean-Claude will have to wait for six hours before being received and convincing Golan to take him on. He said: “I am cheap, I am free, karate is all I know!”  The answer: “You want to be famous?! Here!” and he threw the script of Bloodsport into his hands! Dazzled, Jean Claude asked: “What part should I play?” “What part?! The leading part!” The movie, filmed in Hong Kong was thought to be that bad, as when it was completed they shelved it for almost two years. Afterwards, they wanted a direct-to-video release, but the ambitious Jean Claude had a higher plan! He recut the film, on his own, and begged producers to release it in theatres, without any advertising. They finally released the film, first in Malaysia and France and then into the U.S. and at last the miracle happened. 'Bloodsport', shot on a meager 1.5 million dollar budget, became a U.S box-office hit in the spring of 1988. It made about 30 million world and audiences supported this film for its new sensational action star Jean-Claude Van Damme.

 His martial arts assets, highlighted by his ability to deliver a kick to an opponent's head during a leaping 360-degree turn (yoko-tobi-ushi-geri), and his good looks led to starring roles in higher budgeted movies like Cyborg (1989), Lionheart (1990), Double Impact (1991) and Universal Soldier (1992).

 Back in the early to mid 90's he was huge. Everyone knew all his movies, had posters, searched for his fan clubs, rented his flicks. People were pretending to be him and imitate his behavior. Children used to role-play and the one called himself Jean Claude Van Damme always won!  Van Damme was like a household name, even older people knew him. He was starting to bring interest to martial arts type movies again; no one else succeeded that since Bruce Lee!

 Van Damme played legendary Frank Dux in Bloodsport and coincidentally became a legend, at his turn! Satisfying the fans, staying the best, but still trying to preserve his own private life became the new challenge of Jean-Claude Van Varenberg.