Tributes paid to Olympic rider fatally injured in loading accident
Olympic showjumper Bert Romp has died following an accident at Middelbeers in the Netherlands where he was teaching.
Bert was a member of the Dutch gold medal-winning team at the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992 and he was due to celebrate his 60th birthday in a few weeks.
The accident happened on 3 October while he was loading a horse into the lorry and was kicked. He was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery but died the following afternoon.
“Equestrian sport has sadly lost a great ambassador and true horseman with the passing of Bert Romp,” said FEI jumping director John Roche.
“His record in the international arena speaks for itself. He will be truly missed by all of us.”
The Dutch Nations Cup squad in the series final in Barcelona at the weekend wore black armbands as a mark of respect.
Bert started competing at the age of 16 and went on to train with Henk Nooren. As well as winning gold in Barcelona alongside Jos Lansink, Piet Raijmakers and Jan Tops, he competed in the 1996 Games and was a member of the silver medal-winning team at the 1997 European Championships in Mannheim, Germany.
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He later become a hugely respected trainer to top riders such at Katharina Offel, Yuri Mansur and Jose Maria Larocca and he was national coach for the Dutch between 2000 and 2004. He acted as chef d’equipe at the Athens Olympics. Bert was due to take over as national coach for Finland later this month.
He was incredibly proud of his three sons, Remon, 30, Ruben, 28, and Jesper, 23, who followed in their father’s footsteps to compete at the top level.
Ruben and Jesper won medals at young rider and junior European Championships and Ruben was a member of the senior Dutch team at the 2017 European Championships in Gothenburg.
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Jennifer is passionate at showjumping and her role as H&H’s showjumping editor has taken her around the world reporting from shows and interviewing riders, connections and those involved behind the scenes. Since joining H&H from BBC Sport in 2005, she has written on every subject across the equestrian sphere — from turnout rugs to stable management — and has interviewed gold medallists, world champions and winners galore. She also has first-hand experience of working in the equestrian industry as a riding instructor and yard manager.