MEET THE RUNNING COLLECTIVE TEAM OF EXPERTS

Hi running fam, I’m Jeroen! I’m the founder of The Running Collective.

Originally from Belgium, but since 2021, I’m living and running in Aotearoa New Zealand. As the son of an athletics couple, I had no other choice than to join an athletics club at age 6. 😉 I quickly found out that running was my real passion.

 

Having sustained a running injury myself, and knowing how it feels to be able to practice the sport that you love, I soon became very interested in rehabilitation and physiotherapy. In 2014, I graduated as a Master in Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy at the University of Ghent. After my graduation, I still wanted to see a bit of the world and I travelled through New Zealand for 4 months, where I met the love of my life and the social media brain of The Running Collective.

 

After my return to Europe, I did a postgraduate in Manual Therapy and gained valuable work experience as a self-employed physiotherapist in my home country. I also travelled Europe to take multiple courses in Neurokinetic Therapy (NKT), a real gamechanger when it comes to treating patients.

 

New Zealand never left our hearts and we decided to start the long process to get registered as a physio in New Zealand right before the big pandemic started. We eventually arrived in March 2021. During my first year here, I ran my first marathon (Auckland, 2h 44’40”), but more importantly, I found a thriving running community. I wanted to provide a platform where (injured) runners have quick access to various health care professionals.

 

As there is nothing that makes me more happy than helping a fellow runner recover from their injuries (besides running myself), the idea for The Running Collective was born!