Marc Theeboom (°1960) holds a PhD in Sport and Movement Sciences and a Master’s degree in Adult Educational Sciences. He works as a full professor at the Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy and at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium (VUB). He is chair of the Research Group Sport and Society (SASO). His research primarily focuses on policy-related and educational aspects of sport in general and in relation to specific target groups in particular (e.g., socially deprived youth, detainees). He has a special interest in the analysis and evaluation of ‘sport-for-development’ programmes in which sport is regarded as a means of personal, social and community development, as well as in martial arts research. His research has been extensively published in international peer-reviewed journals and books and in several languages on these topics. Marc Theeboom has coordinated over 40 policy relevant studies in Flanders with regard to grassroots sport and specific target groups To date, he has supervised 7 defended PhD’s and is currently promoter of 6 ongoing doctoral studies investigating the developmental role of sport or the internationalization of the Chinese martial arts. He has more than 10 years of experience in collaboration of international research projects (EU level) on the contribution of sport on social issues. He has acted as a chair, presenter or co-organiser during international meetings, conferences and working groups on the topic of sport and social inclusion. He has been frequently asked to act as an advisor in steering groups and as a member of scientific committees with regard to the social value of sport and of policy preparation initiatives on different national and international levels. He has been an overseas guest professor at the Shanghai University of Sport.
Marc Theeboom has been involved in martial arts practice since the age of 10. First in Japanese and Indonesian martial arts and later on in wushu. He has founded a wushu school in Antwerp (Belgium) in 1994. He has been involved as an athlete as well as competition organiser. He was the local organiser of the first European Youth Wushu Championships in 2003.