Sophie-Marie 'Sophie' Kumpen (Hasselt, October 30, 1975) is a Belgian former karter and racing driver who competed in the World Championships for five years in Formula A, K and Super A classes.[1]
Personal life
Kumpen was born in Hasselt and grew up as the daughter of the former chairman of KRC Genk, Robert Kumpen. Sophie's uncle Paul Kumpen and his son Anthony Kumpen were both rally drivers and racing drivers. Because racing was in the family, Kumpen also started karting at the age of eleven.[2] She had a successful career in karting, where she competed against former drivers such as Jenson Button, Nick Heidfeld, Jarno Trulli and Giancarlo Fisichella, among others. She was known internationally as a top competitor[3] in karting and she was known for having a fluid driving style and for her ability to set consistent times[4]. Her biggest victory was winning the Andrea Margutti Trophy in 1995. [5][6]
She married former Formula 1 racing driver Jos Verstappen in 1996[7], and she retired from the sport in the same year to focus on raising their two children and assisting her husband in his career as a racing driver.[8] Both children, Max and Victoria, also took up karting and son Max Verstappen would eventually become a Formula 1 world champion.[9][10] Kumpen and Verstappen divorced in 2008. In 2013 Kumpen returned for a short time as a driver in the Formido Swift Cup. During the final races in 2013, at the Zandvoort circuit, she crashed in her Suzuki Swift and broke a vertebra. This was the definitive end of her career as a racing driver.
After her sporting career, Kumpen started working as a social worker at the OCMW in Maaseik.[11]
Results
- 1991: 9th Formula A World Championship
- 1992: 26th Formula K World Championship
- 1993: 29th Formula Super A World Championship
- 1994: 17th Formula Super A World Championship
- 1995: Andrea Margutti Trophy - Formula A