Lieven Maesschalck (born 1964 in

Zele Zele () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders, around 20 km east of Ghent. The municipality only comprises the town of Zele proper. In 2021, Zele had a total population of 21,333. The total area is 33.06 km2 ...

) is a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

physiotherapist who worked among others with the Belgian national football team. As a physiotherapist he also treats multiple sportsmen.

Biography

In 1987 he took over the private practice of his father in

Lebbeke Lebbeke () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the towns of , Lebbeke proper and . In 2021, Lebbeke had a total population of 19.560. The total area is 27.31 km². ...

. In 1996 he was hired by the cycling team

Mapei Mapei S.p.A. () is an Italian limited company founded in 1937 in Milan that manufactures chemical products for the building industry. History Innovation and research The company was founded and originally called ''Materiali Autarchici per ...

. In the same year he went to the Atlanta Summer Olympics with the national judo and swimming federations. In 1998 he opened a second practice in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. In 2001 Maesschalck started the concept "Move To Cure" and in the same year he was hired by the national football team of Belgium (''the Red Devils''). In 2006 also the Italian team

AC Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...

asked for his services. From 2010 on he became the head of the medical staff of the Belgian national football team. In 2013 Maesschalck received a doctorate ''honoris causa'' from

Hasselt University Hasselt University (Dutch: ''Universiteit Hasselt or UHasselt'') is a public research university with campuses in Hasselt and Diepenbeek, Belgium. It has more than 6,700 students and 1,660 academic, administrative and technical staff (2022). The ...

. He treated many top sporters among which racecar drivers, jockeys, cyclists, athletes, football players, tennis players and golfers. These include

Luc Van Lierde Luc Van Lierde (born 14 April 1969 in Bruges) is a former athlete from Belgium, who has been competing in triathlon since 1990 and who has been a professional triathlon coach since 2009. Athletic career Van Lierde's international career started ...

Christophe Impens Christophe Impens (born 9 December 1969 in Ghent) is a retired Belgian athlete who competed in middle-distance events. He represented his country at the 1996 Summer Olympics, as well as two outdoor and two indoor World Championships. His biggest ...

Johan Museeuw Johan Museeuw (born 13 October 1965) is a retired Belgian professional road racing cyclist who was a professional from 1988 until 2004. Nicknamed ''The Lion of Flanders'', he was particularly successful in the cobbled classics of Flanders and No ...

Justine Henin Justine Henin (; born 1 June 1982) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. She spent a total of 117 weeks as the world No. 1 and was the year-end No. 1 in 2003, 2006 and 2007. Henin, coming from a country with limited success in te ...

Marc Wilmots Marc Robert Wilmots (born 22 February 1969) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who recently managed the Iran national team and is now active at Raja CA. During his club career as attacking midfielder, he won trophies w ...

Gella Vandecaveye Gella Vandecaveye (born 5 June 1973 in Kortrijk, Belgium) is a judoka from Belgium who competed at four Olympic Games. At the 1996 Summer Olympics she won the silver medal in the women's half-middleweight category. Four years later, at the 20 ...

Nicolas Colsaerts Nicolas Colsaerts (born 14 November 1982) is a Belgian professional golfer currently playing on the European Tour and previously on the PGA Tour. Early life Colsaerts, also known as "The Belgian Bomber", was born in Schaerbeek, Belgium. Coming ...

Xavier Malisse Xavier Malisse (born 19 July 1980) is a former Belgian professional tennis player. Born in the north-western Flemish city of Kortrijk and nicknamed ''X-Man'', he is one of only two Belgian men (the other being David Goffin) to have been ranked i ...

Yanina Wickmayer Yanina Wickmayer (born 20 October 1989) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals at the 2009 US Open, and a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 12, on 19 April 2010. In doubles, she achieved a career-high of world No. ...

and

Frank Vandenbroucke Frank Vandenbroucke is the name of: *Frank Vandenbroucke (politician) (born 1955), Belgian politician *Frank Vandenbroucke (cyclist) Frank Vandenbroucke (6 November 1974 – 12 October 2009) was a Belgium, Belgian professional road racing cyclis ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maesschalck, Lieven 1964 births Living people Belgian physiotherapists People from Zele