Gladys Portugues

Gladys Portugues (born September 30, 1957) is an American former professional female bodybuilder and actress. As a bodybuilder, she twice placed in the top 10 in the Ms. Olympia contest. She is married to Belgian actor and martial artist Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Personal life
Born of Puerto Rican parents, Portugues has said that she was inspired to start her own bodybuilding and weight training regimen while attending Marymount Manhattan College, when she saw Rachel McLish on television winning the Ms. Olympia title.

In 1987, at the age of thirty, Portugues married Belgian martial artist and actor Jean-Claude van Varenberg. The couple divorced in 1992, but remarried in 1999. They have two children: Kristopher van Varenberg (b. 1987) and Bianca Brigitte (b. 1990). Her husband is professionally known as Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Books

 * Hard Bodies Express, Portugues, Dell; Reissue 1988, ISBN 0-440-53426-7
 * Hard Bodies, Portugues and Vedral, Dell; Reissue edition 1986, ISBN 0-440-53424-0