Jennie Fletcher

Jennie Fletcher

Jennie Fletcher, c. 1905
Personal information
Full name Jennie Fletcher
National team  Great Britain
Born (1890-03-19)19 March 1890
Belgrave, Leicester, England
Died 17 January 1968(1968-01-17) (aged 77)
Teeswater, Ontario, Canada
Sport
Sport Swimming
Strokes Freestyle
Club Leicester Ladies SC

Jennie Fletcher (19 March 1890 – 17 January 1968), later known by her married name Jennie Hyslop, was a British competitive swimmer, Olympic gold medallist, and former world record-holder. In 1905 she set a new world record in the 100-yard freestyle that stood for seven years.[1] She was selected for the 1908 Olympics, but the women's swimming events were cancelled due to a shortage of participants. At the 1912 Summer Olympics, she won a gold medal in the 4×100-metre freestyle relay and a bronze medal in the individual 100-metre freestyle race.[2] In 1971 she was inducted to the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer".[3]

Fletcher was born in an underprivileged family of 11 siblings and had to combine swimming with daily 12-hour work.[3] In 1913 she began teaching swimming in Leicester, which ended her competitive career as she turned from an amateur into a professional. In 1917, she married and immigrated to Canada, where she gave birth to a daughter and five sons.[4][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ TIMELINE of Women's Swimming History. International Swimming Hall of Fame
  2. ↑ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Athletes, Jennie Fletcher. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 International Swimming Hall of Fame, Honorees, Jennie Fletcher (GBR). Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Champion swimmer finally honoured", BBC.com (14 December 2004). Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "Leicester's Olympian honoured . . . 100 years after her triumph", Leicester Mercury (24 March 2012). Retrieved 17 March 2015.
Belle Moore, Jennie Fletcher, Annie Speirs and Irene Steer at the 1912 Olympics
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