Blankers-Koen, Fanny (1918–2004)
Blankers-Koen, Fanny (1918–2004)
Dutch track-and-field athlete. Name variations: Fanny Koen. Born Francina Elsje Koen, April 26, 1918, Baarn, Soestdyk, Netherlands; died Jan 5, 2004, in Amsterdam, Netherlands; m. Jan Blankers (athlete and coach), Aug 1940; children: Jantje (b. 1941); Fanneke (b. 1946).
Greatest woman track-and-field star of her generation, who won 4 Olympic gold medals, set 13 world records, and won 58 Dutch titles; won every sprinting event in Holland, as well as 2 competitions in Germany; tied for 6th place in the high jump at Berlin Olympics (1936); took 3rd at the European championships (1938); won 80-meter hurdles at European championships (1946); won 4 gold medals at London Olympics—the 100 meters in 11.9 seconds, 200 meters in 24.4, 80-meter hurdles in 11.2 and 4 × 100-meter relay while anchoring the Dutch women's team (1948); competed at Berne, Switzerland, sweeping all 5 1st places in pentathlon and collecting 4,185 points (1951); made a final, unsuccessful appearance at Helsinki Olympics (1952). Voted Female Athlete of the Century by the International Association of Athletic Federations (1999).