Inge de Bruijn

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Inge de Bruijn
De Bruijn in 2008
Personal information
Full nameInge de Bruijn
National team Netherlands
Born (1973-08-24) 24 August 1973 (age 50)
Barendrecht, Netherlands
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight60 kg (132 lb; 9 st 6 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesFreestyle, butterfly
Medal record
Women's swimming
Representing the Netherlands
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 4 2 2
World Championships (LC) 5 0 1
World Championships (SC) 1 1 1
European Championships (LC) 3 2 3
European Championships (SC) 5 3 3
Total 18 8 10
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2000 Sydney[1] 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2000 Sydney 100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2000 Sydney 100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2004 Athens[2] 50 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney 4×100 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 2004 Athens 100 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens 100 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens 4×100 m freestyle
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 2001 Fukuoka 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2001 Fukuoka 100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2001 Fukuoka 50 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2003 Barcelona[3] 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2003 Barcelona 50 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place 1991 Perth 4×100 m freestyle
World Championships (SC)
Gold medal – first place 1999 Hong Kong 50 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 1999 Hong Kong 4×100 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1999 Hong Kong 50 m butterfly
European Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 1991 Athens 4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1999 Istanbul 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1999 Istanbul 100 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place 1991 Athens 100 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place 1999 Istanbul 100 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1991 Athens 50 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1991 Athens 4×100 m medley
Bronze medal – third place 1993 Sheffield 50 m freestyle
European Championships (SC)
Gold medal – first place 1991 Gelsenkirchen 50 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 1998 Sheffield 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1998 Sheffield 50 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2001 Antwerp 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2001 Antwerp 100 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 1992 Espoo 50 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place 1998 Sheffield 4×50 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 2001 Antwerp 4×50 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Sheffield 100 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Sheffield 4×50 m medley
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Antwerp 4×50 m medley

Inge de Bruijn (Dutch: [ˈɪŋə ˈbrœyn]; born 24 August 1973) is a Dutch former competitive swimmer. She is a four-time Olympic champion and a former world record-holder.

Personal[edit]

De Bruijn was born in Barendrecht, Netherlands. Inge is the sister of Olympic water polo player Matthijs de Bruijn.

Swimming career[edit]

De Bruijn tried several sports before eventually specialising in swimming. De Bruijn debuted at the World Aquatics Championships in January 1991, winning a bronze medal with the 4×100 m relay team, with which she won the gold medal at the European LC Championships in August of that year.

The following year, de Bruijn made her Olympic debut at the 1992 Summer Olympics, and finished 8th in the 100 m and 4×100 m freestyle events. She did not compete at the 1996 Summer Olympics. In 1999, she won the 50 m freestyle at the European Championships. The following year, after having swum several 50 m freestyle world records, she competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. She won the 50 and 100 m freestyle, and the 100 m butterfly, setting world records in all three events. She also won a silver medal with the 4×100 m freestyle relay team. Her nickname became "Invincible Inky".

She was named by Swimming World as the "Female World Swimmer of the Year" in both 2000 and 2001. She won titles in three events at the 2001 World Championships. At the 2003 World Championships, de Bruijn successfully defended her 50 m freestyle and butterfly titles. At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens she defended her gold medal in the 50 m free, and took silver in the 100 m free, and two bronze: one in the 100 m butterfly and another in the 4×100 m relay. This made her the oldest individual champion in Olympic swimming history. This record was only surpassed by Anthony Ervin at the age of 36, he won the gold medal for the men's 50m freestyle at the Rio 2016 Olympics. De Bruijn's 2004 title retains its place as the oldest female Olympic champion in swimming history.

With an Olympic medal total of four gold, two silver and two bronze, she is the fourth most successful Dutch Olympian of all time. Moreover, her combined nine individual titles won at the Olympics (four) and World Aquatics Championships (five) were a record for female swimmers until Katie Ledecky won her 10th at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

In March 2007, de Bruijn announced her retirement from competitive swimming.

International championships (50 m)[edit]

Meet 50 free 100 free 50 fly 100 fly 4×100 free 4×100 medley
EC 1991 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)
WC 1991 10th 8th 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 4th
OG 1992 8th 9th 5th[a] 8th
EC 1993 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 12th 4th 7th
WC 1994 7th 6th
EC 1995 4th 4th 6th
OG 1996
EC 1997
WC 1998 8th 7th 5th 6th
EC 1999 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 4th 4th
EC 2000
OG 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
WC 2001 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s)
EC 2002
WC 2003 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s)
EC 2004 6th
OG 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6th
a de Bruijn swam only in the heats

Post-swimming career[edit]

De Bruijn resides in Eindhoven, Netherlands, and previously trained in Portland, Oregon.

She was the face for Dutch lingerie brand Sapph, along with kickboxer Remy Bonjasky, the face for the men's line of the brand.[4]

She appeared in a special episode of the Dutch naked dating reality television programme Adam Zkt. Eva VIP.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "ESPN Sydney Swimming". Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  2. ^ "2004 Olympic Games swimming results". CNN. Retrieved 22 July 2007.
  3. ^ "2003 World Championships – Short Course Swim Rankings results". Archived from the original on 22 September 2007. Retrieved 24 July 2007.
  4. ^ "Modellen dansen op het IJs" Archived 7 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine, 4 February 2011, Glamour (in Dutch)

External links[edit]

Records
Preceded by Women's 50 metre freestyle
world record holder (long course)

4 June 2000 – 24 March 2008
Succeeded by
Preceded by Women's 100 metre freestyle
world record holder (long course)

28 May 2000 – 31 March 2004
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Record installed
Women's 50 metre butterfly
world record holder (long course)

18 June 1999 – 1 July 1999
Succeeded by
Preceded by Women's 50 metre butterfly
world record holder (long course)

20 May 2000 – 30 July 2002
Succeeded by
Preceded by Women's 100 metre butterfly
world record holder (long course)

27 May 2000 – 26 July 2009
Succeeded by
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Dutch Sportswoman of the Year
2001
Succeeded by
Preceded by World Swimmer of the Year
2000–2001
Succeeded by
Preceded by European Swimmer of the Year
1999–2001
Succeeded by