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John Heymans

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Heymans
Personal information
NationalityBelgian
Born (1998-01-09) 9 January 1998 (age 26)
Sport
Country Belgium
SportTrack and field
Event(s)1500 metres, 3000 metres, 5000 metres
ClubRoyal Excelsior Sports Club Brussels [nl]
Coached byWim Wouters
Achievements and titles
Personal bests

John Heymans (born 9 January 1998) is a Belgian long-distance runner. He has won two national titles (3000 metres indoor and cross-country in 2021). He is a member of Royal Excelsior Club Brussels.[1] After finishing his MSc in Bioengineering and Nanotechnology from the KU Leuven in September 2022, he decided to become a professional athlete.

Early life

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John Heymans was born in Vilvoorde, Belgium on January 9, 1998. He grew up in the town of Rossem, province of Flemish Brabant. As a teenager Heymans played national-level hockey[2] but took up competitive running in 2016. In his first year in college he combined both sports, but soon decided to focus completely on running.

Running career

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On December 10, 2017, at the age of 19, Heymans participated as a junior in the European Cross Country Championships[3] in Samorín, Slovakia. He finished 24th,[4] 31 seconds behind winner Jakob Ingebrigtsen from Norway. Team Belgium got 4th place in the Junior team ranking that year.

In 2019, Heymans returned to the European Cross Country Championships,[5] held on December 8, 2019 in Lisboa, Portugal. He finished in 24th position[5] in the Umder-23 race, 1'13" behind winner Jimmy Gressier from France. Team Belgium ranked 6th in the U-23 category. On August 16, 2020, Heymans finished 6th[6] in the 1500m at the Belgian National Championships in Brussels, Belgium in a time of 3:51.51.

Heymans took his first national title[7] on February 20, 2021, when he won the 3000m race at the Belgian National Indoor Championships in 7:51.57. With his winning time Heymans qualified for the European Championships in Torun, Poland, where he finished 7th in the heats in a time of 7:58.13.

Only one week later, on February 28, 2021, Heymans won his second national title[8] at the Belgian National Championships cross country in Laken, Belgium.

Heymans had a difficult 2021 season with stress fractures[9] and COVID-19 infections. Nevertheless, without much preparation Heymans managed to place 6th at the 2022 Belgian National Cross Country Championships[10] in Brussels on March 6, 2022.

After he finished his studies in September 2022, Heymans turned professional.[11]

Heymans returned to the European Cross Country Championships in Torino, Italy on December 11, 2022. In the first couple of laps, Heymans stayed close to the front runners. In the middle part of the race Heymans lost some ground, but came back strong in the final lap, passing three competitors to finish in 14th place,[12] his best European Cross Country Championships ranking up to that date. Team Belgium ranked 4th in the teams competition.

On 5 February 2023 at the IFAM Gent Indoor[13] in the Topsporthal Vlaanderen, Heymans finished second in a time of 7:45.48 in the 3000 metres,[14] six seconds faster than his personal best from 2021.

At the Meeting Metz Moselle Athlelor[15] on 11 February 2023, Heymans finished third in 7:42.55 in the 3000 metres[16] beating his best from the week before by another three seconds. With this time, Heymans qualified for the 2023 European Indoor Championships, held from 2 to 5 March 2023 at the Ataköy Arena in Istanbul.

At the BU John Thomas Terrier Classic in Boston, USA on 26 January 2024, Heymans broke the national indoor record for the 5000 metres in a time of 13:03:46, beating the Olympic entry standard of 13:05.00, and qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[17][18] At those Olympic Games, he finished 11th in the final of the men's 5000 metres.[19]

Heymans at the John Thomas terrier Classic in 2024.

Achievements

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International competitions

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Year Competition Venue Position Event Time
Representing  Belgium
2017 European Cross Country Championships Šamorín, Slovakia 24th U20 race (6 km) 19:10
2019 European Cross Country Championships Lisboa, Portugal U23 race (8 km) 25:30
2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships Torun, Poland N/A 3000 m DQ
2022 European Cross Country Championships La Mandria Park 14th Senior race (10 km) 30:21
2023 European Athletics Indoor Championships Ataköy Arena 17th (h) 3000 m 7:57.87
World Championships National Athletics Centre 26th (h) 5000 m 13:39.67
European Cross Country Championships Brussels, Belgium 8th Senior race (10 km) 30:34
2024 World Indoor Championships Commonwealth Arena 8th 3000 m 7:48.18
Olympic Games Stade de France 11th (f) 5000 m 13:19.25

Sources:[20][21][22]

Personal bests

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References

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  1. ^ "Royal Excelsior Sports Club Brussels" (in French). Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  2. ^ https://www.atni.be/2021/04/01/john-heymans-maakt-terugkeer-in-hockeywereld-wil-graag-naar-de-spelen-van-parijs-met-red-lions/ (article in Dutch)
  3. ^ "European Cross Country Championships Athletics 2017 - Results Men". www.the-sports.org.
  4. ^ "John Heymans (Athletics) : Prize list and results". www.the-sports.org.
  5. ^ a b "European Cross Country Championships Athletics 2019 - Results Men". www.the-sports.org.
  6. ^ "Belgian National Championships Athletics 2020 - Results Men". www.the-sports.org.
  7. ^ https://www.hln.be/sport-in-de-buurt/john-heymans-pakt-titel-en-ek-limiet-noor-vidts-en-anne-zagre-bevestigen~a42faf00/ (article in Dutch)
  8. ^ https://www.hln.be/sport-in-de-buurt/nationaal-kampioen-john-heymans-blijft-verbazen-je-moet-het-ijzer-smeden-wanneer-het-heet-is~a7c8229e/ (article in Dutch)
  9. ^ https://www.atni.be/2021/11/04/john-heymans-moet-kruis-over-veldloopplannen-maken-door-blessure/ (article in Dutch)
  10. ^ "2022CCBrusselResultsEN / Resultaten | Running Results". www.runningresults.be.
  11. ^ https://sporza.be/nl/2022/10/20/john-heymans-wil-met-stage-in-kenia-stap-hogerop-zetten-lopen-eten-en-slapen-zalig~1666274839858/ (article in Dutch)
  12. ^ "European Cross Country Championships Athletics 2022 - Results Men". www.the-sports.org.
  13. ^ "IFAM Indoor Gent 2 / IFAM Outdoor Oordegem / IFAM / Kalender | Maspoe". www.maspoeshop.be.
  14. ^ "IFAM Gent Indoor | Results | World Athletics". worldathletics.org.
  15. ^ "Accueil". Meeting Metz Moselle Athlélor.
  16. ^ "John HEYMANS | Profile | World Athletics". worldathletics.org.
  17. ^ "Fenomenale John Heymans verpulvert BR op 5.000m in Boston en haalt olympische limiet". www.sporza.be (in Dutch). 27 January 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  18. ^ "John Heymans pulvérise le record de Belgique du 5000m indoor et se qualifie pour les Jeux". www.rtbf.be (in French). 27 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  19. ^ "John "Hey mom, I made it" Heymans: "Dude, ik ben 11e van de wereld! Dat is zot"" (in Dutch). Sporza. 10 August 2024. Retrieved 17 August 2024.
  20. ^ <https://worldathletics.org/athletes/belgium/john-heymans-14793417>
  21. ^ <https://www.the-sports.org/athletics-heusden-zolder-results-2020-men-epm108247.html#478951>
  22. ^ <https://www.statletik.eu/db/resultsd.php?CID=12968402&Season=2020#1.110.000000.-999>
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