Jean-Claude Van Damme Trivia: 20 facts about the action movie actor!

Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg, professionally known as Jean-Claude Van Damme and abbreviated as JCVD, is a Belgian actor, martial artist, screenwriter, film producer, and director best known for his martial arts action films. Lets take a look at some cool facts about “The Muscles from Brussels”!

1. His full name is Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg.

2. He was born on 18 October 1960.

3. He was born in Sint-Agatha-Berchem, Brussels.

4. He also has a nickname. It’s “The Muscles from Brussels”.

5. His parents were  Eliana and Eugène Van Varenberg.

6. His father was a florist.

7. His mother was  an accountant.

8. Van Damme’s paternal grandmother was Jewish.

9. At the age of 12, Van Damme joined the National Center of Karate, where he trained for four years and earned a spot on the Belgian Karate Team.

10. Just like Patrick Swayze, he studied classical ballet.

11. He won a court case over a famous martial artist because the evidence against him was lost in an earthquake.

12. His career fight record as a full-contact kickboxer is 19-1.

13. The one time he lost was because he accidentaly kicked his opponent when he was down.

14. He could bench 366 pounds. That’s 166 kg!

15. He is famous for saying and doing outrageous things. He once quoted: “A cookie has no soul, it’s just a cookie. But before it was milk and eggs. And in eggs there’s the potential for life.”

16. After retiring from kickboxing and karate competitions in 1982, Van Damme along with his childhood friend Michael Qissi moved to America with the aim of becoming movie stars.

17. He quickly landed small and mostly non-speaking parts in films such as Breakin’, War and Remembrance, Missing in Action, and No Retreat, No Surrender.

18. He used to spar with Chuck Norris.

19. Van Damme has been married five times to four different women.

20. Known for his splits, he performed the greatest split of all time. Between two Volvo trucks.