Maria Lenk
Maria Emma Hulga Lenk Zigler (born January 15, 1915 in São Paulo , † April 17, 2007 in Rio de Janeiro ) was a Brazilian swimmer . She was the first South American woman to compete in the Olympics and held several world records during her career.
As a child of German immigrants, her parents allowed her to compete in the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles at the age of 17 . She also took part in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin , where she reached the semi-finals and was the first woman to demonstrate the butterfly swimming style in an official competition. In 1939, she swam both the 100 m chest and the 200 m chest world record . The outbreak of World War II prevented her from achieving success at the Olympic Games.
In 1942 she ended her career and then later started again in Masters swimming competitions. Her last competition was in 2000. She died of a heart attack in April 2007 after complaining of difficulty breathing during her daily swimming exercises. Until her death, she completed up to 1.5 km in the pool every day and was the reigning five-time world champion in her age group.
In 1988 she was inducted into the international swimming pool 's hall of fame .
Maria Lenk is the namesake of the Parque Aquático Maria Lenk water sports center, which opened on the occasion of the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro and where the water polo and water jumping competitions for the 2016 Olympic Games were held.
Web links
- Maria Lenk in the International Swimming Hall of Fame (English)
- Maria Lenk in the database of Sports-Reference (English; archived from the original )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Lenk, Maria |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Lenk Zigler, Maria Emma Hulga (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Brazilian swimmer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 15, 1915 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | São Paulo |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 17, 2007 |
| Place of death | Rio de Janeiro |