Fons Brijdenbach

Alfons " Fons " Brijdenbach ( born October 12, 1954 in Vorselaar; † 8th May 2009) was a Belgian athlete who twice reached the Olympic finals in the 400 -meter run.

In 1973, Brijdenbach the short sprint to the 400 - meter course and won at the Junior European Championships in Duisburg in 45.86 seconds. In 1974 he won at the European Indoor Championships in Gothenburg in 46.60 seconds, after he had walked a short time before in Sofia in 45.9 seconds a Hallenweltbestleistung. In the outdoor European Championships 1974 in Rome, he retired as a fifth of his semi-final in 45.43 seconds from. At the Olympic Games in Montreal in 1976 succeeded Brijdenbach to qualify in the semifinals in second behind the eventual Olympic champion Alberto Juantorena for the final. There he ran in 45.04 seconds Belgian national record and missed the bronze medal in fourth place at nine hundredths of a second. 1977 won the European Indoor Championships in Brijdenbach in San Sebastian in 46.53 seconds his second major title. In the outdoor season in 1977, he won at the Universiade. After two weak years Brijdenbach reached at the 1980 Olympic Games once again the finale; fifth in 45.10 seconds he was a hundredth of a second behind Juantorena, which this time was fourth.

In 1981 Brijdenbach with three teammates in 3:03,68 minutes a new Belgian national record on. This record was improved in 2008 after 27 years, a member of this squadron, Cédric Van Branteghem had, in 2003 after 27 years also undercut Brijdenbachs record over 400 meters.

With 28 years Brijdenbach ended his athletic career after persistent Achilles tendon complaints. At a height of 1.85 meters his competition weight was 77 kilograms.

Brijdenbach had studied during his career at the Catholic University of Leuven and worked as a teacher. Later he joined the industry and worked at Janssen Pharmaceutica in PR. 2005 Brijdenbach diseased prostate cancer. In 2009, he succumbed to this disease.