Hein Vergeer
Henricus Coenradus Nicolaas "Hein" Vergeer (born 2 May 1961) is a Dutch former speed skater who became both European and World Allround Champion in both 1985 (in which year he also became National Sprint Champion) and 1986 (in which year he also became National Allround Champion). Hein Vergeer was a dominant allround skater, but after recovering from an injury, he was never able to reach that same level again. Because of this, he was unable to fulfil his wish of winning an Olympic medal – at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Vergeer competed in the 500 m, the 1,000 m, and the 1,500 m, but his best result was a mere fifteenth place. He had also competed in those same three distances at the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo four years earlier, but did not do much better than with a tenth place as his best result. His best years were in between those two Winter Olympics.
Hein Vergeer in 1985 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Birth name | Henricus Coenradus Nicolaas Vergeer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Dutch | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 2 May 1961 Haastrecht, Netherlands | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 75 kg (165 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Netherlands | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Speed skating | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turned pro | 1980 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Henk Gemser | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 1988 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 500 m: 37.79 (1987) 1000 m: 1:14.62 (1988) 1500 m: 1:53.88 (1987) 3000 m: 4:01.21 (1987) 5000 m: 6:54.91 (1986) 10 000 m: 14:39.05 (1986) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Despite his dominance, Vergeer never managed to skate any world records. This could label him as a "true" all-round skater – very good at all distances, but never the best in any single distance.
Vergeer lived during his skating years in Haastrecht, a town where Leo Visser, another former World Champion speed skating, also used to live. Both skaters used to train at the skating club STV Lekstreek.
Back in the days of Vergeer's dominance, speed skating was not very lucrative, so Vergeer did what many other top skaters in those days did – he used his fame as a stepping stone to a career in marketing and communication. Vergeer currently is an advisor of several ventures and he organises events.
In 2006 and 2007, Vergeer participated in the Holiday on Ice show called Fantasy.