Nico Rienks

Nico Rienks, 1988

Nicolaas "Nico" Hessel Rienks (born February 1, 1962 in Tiel ) is a former Dutch rower . He participated in the Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000 and became Olympic champion in 1988 and 1996.

Rienks finished fifth in the 1986 World Cup with the Dutch double foursome. In 1987 he competed in the single and took first place at the World Cup in Duisburg, while Rienks came third in Lucerne. In 1988 he competed in a double scull with Ronald Florijn at the Olympic Games in Seoul . After the Bulgarian world champions missed the final, there was no clear favorite, Rienks and Florijn won the race relatively clearly in the end, ahead of the Swiss Beat Schwerzmann and Ueli Bodenmann . In 1989 Rienks and Florijn finished second behind the Norwegian boat at the World Cup.

In 1991 Rienks competed with Henk-Jan Zwolle and became world champion in double sculls. At the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, ​​the two won bronze behind the Australians and the Austrians.

After 1992 changed Rienks, Zwolle and Florijn of the Skullern to Riemenruderern and it started a rollercoaster project. In 1994 behind the USA and in 1995 behind the Germany eighth , the Dutch eighth was each runner-up in the world championship. In 1996 the Dutch eighth won the pre-Olympic regattas in Duisburg and Lucerne quite clearly. At the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, the eighth clearly won ahead of the Germany eighth. Rienks and Florijn had won their second Olympic gold medal. Four years later, Nico Rienks and Niels van der Zwan , two members of the 1996 Goldachters were in the boat that missed the A-final at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

Nico Rienks is the most successful Dutch rower ever. He has been awarded honorary membership by the Dutch Rowing Association. In 2004, the World Rowing Federation awarded Rienks the Thomas Keller Medal .

literature

• Volker Kluge : Summer Olympic Games. Chronicle IV. Seoul 1988 - Atlanta 1996. Sportverlag Berlin, Berlin 2002, ISBN 3-328-00830-6 .

Web links

• World championships in double sculls
• World Championships in the eighth
• Nico Rienks in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )