Bep van Klaveren

Bep van Klaveren

Bep van Klaveren at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics
Personal information
Full name Lambertus van Klaveren
Nickname(s) The Dutch Windmill
Nationality  Netherlands
Born 26 September 1907
Rotterdam, South Holland
Died 12 February 1992 (aged 84)
Rotterdam, South Holland
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight 57 kg (126 lb)
Sport
Sport Boxing
Rated at Featherweight
Club Schilperoord, Rotterdam

Lambertus "Bep" van Klaveren (26 September 1907 – 12 February 1992) was a Dutch boxer, who won the gold medal in the featherweight division at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. Born in Rotterdam as Lambertus Steenhorst, he adopted the name of his stepfather Pieter van Klaveren when he was eight. His nickname was The Dutch Windmill.

Olympic results

Pro career

The 1992 statue for Bep van Klaveren in Rotterdam

In 1931 he became European champion in the lightweight division and in 1938 he won the same title in the middleweight division. During his professional tenure, van Kaveren was able to achieve victories over Ceferino Garcia and Kid Azteca. He also faced Hall of Famers Young Corbett III and Billy Petrolle in defeat. Van Klaveren contested his last match at age 48, on 19 March 1956. His younger brother Piet competed as a boxer for The Netherlands at the 1952 Summer Olympics.

Honours

In 1992, a memorial statue was dedicated for van Klaveren in Rotterdam, which was designed by Dutch sculptor Willem Verbon. To this day, van Klaveren remains the only Dutchman to have ever won an Olympic Gold Medal in boxing.

References

External links