Rigardus Antonius "Rigard" van Klooster (born April 6, 1989 in Linschoten) is a former Dutch track racing cyclist and speed skater.
Sport career
Speed skating Rigard van Klooster started his sports career with speed skating. He started with speed skating when he was very young, started competing in 2002, and won his first national junior championship in 2006 as a B-junior. Since the season 2007–2008, Van Klooster skated for Gewest Noord-Holland/Utrecht and was a trainee at the APPM-team since the 2008–2009 season. As an elite athlete, Van Klooster competed in 2010 and 2011 at both the Dutch Allround Championships and the Dutch Single Distance Championships. He finished 17th overall at the 2010 KNSB Dutch Allround Championships and 22nd overall at the 2011 KNSB Dutch Allround Championships.
Track cycling 2011 A wingate test in early 2011 showed that van Klooster had the potential for track cycling. After some track cycling sessions, the KNWU offered van Klooster a place in the development team and a room in Papendal, near the velodrome in Apeldoorn. Van Klooster took the offer and quit speed skating. He rode in his first international competition at the Trois Jours d'Aigle, where he finished 13th. Two weeks after riding the two days of Wien, Van Klooster became the Dutch national sprint champion for amateurs in December. Later that month, after getting an elite license, he placed 4th in the 1 km time trial at the Dutch national track championships and 7th in both the keirin and the sprint. 2012 Van Klooster competed in the International Track Grand Prix of Alkmaar, Perth, Colorado Springs, Cottbus and Vienna. In Vienna, he won bronze in the team sprint. Based on his results, he qualified for the 2012 European Track Championships where he finished 6th in the team sprint (together with Hylke van Grieken and Matthijs Büchli) and 12th in the keirin. At the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classic in Glasgow he competed in the keirin. He finished twice in third place and did not reach the second round.
Results in major competitions
Speed skating
2010 24th Dutch Single Distance Championships, 1500 meter 17th Dutch Allround Championships, 500m: 15th, 1500m: 15th, 5000m: 15th 6th Dutch Junior Single Distance Championships, 10.000m (neo-senior) 2011 17th Dutch Single Distance Championships, 500 meter 22nd Dutch Allround Championships, 500m: 6th, 1500m: 21st, 5000m: 24th
Junior period European Junior Games Vikingrace Interland (Ned-Ger-Nor-Swe-Fin) Dutch Junior Championships
Track cycling 2011–2012 Dutch National Amateur Sprint Champion 4th 2011 Dutch National Track Championships, 1 km time trial 7th 2011 Dutch National Track Championships, keirin 7th 2011 Dutch National Track Championships, sprint 2012–2013 Grand Prix Vienna, team sprint 6th 2012 European Track Championships, team sprint 12th 2012 European Track Championships, keirin 19th UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classic – Glasgow, keirin 6th 2012 Dutch National Track Championships, keirin
Personal records Speed skating DistanceTimeDateIce Rink 500 meter36.5119 March 2011Olympic Oval, Calgary 1000 meter1:11.2819 March 2011Olympic Oval, Calgary 1500 meter1:48.7216 March 2011Olympic Oval, Calgary 3000 meter3:56.5615 March 2011Olympic Oval, Calgary 5000 meter6:47.4715 October 2009Thialf, Heerenveen 5000 meter14:30.7221 March 2010De Westfries, Hoorn
Track cycling Discipline Time Date Track Competition Ref Sprint (200m) 10.29725 June 2012Colorado Springs Velodrome, Colorado Springs US Grand Prix of Sprinting Time trial (1000m) 1:05.11413 May 2012Oderland-Halle, Frankfurt
References