Aagje ("Ada") Kok (born 6 June 1947, in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
,
North Holland
North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...
) is a former Dutch swimmer who ranked among the world's best in the
butterfly stroke
The butterfly (colloquially shortened to fly) is a List of swimming styles, swimming stroke swum on the chest, with both arms moving symmetrically, accompanied by the butterfly kick (also known as the "dolphin kick"). While other styles like ...
category during the 1960s.
Her international career started in 1962 when, at the age of fifteen, she took the European title in the 100 m butterfly in Leipzig. She was also part of the silver 4×100 m medley relay team. At the
Tokyo Olympics two years later she finished second in both events. She was also good at
freestyle swimming
Freestyle is a category of swimming competition, defined by the rules of the International Swimming Federation (FINA), in which competitors are subject to a few limited restrictions on their swimming stroke. Freestyle races are the most commo ...
, which showed when she took second place in the 400 metres at the 1966 European Championships in
Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...
. In the same tournament she also won the 100 m butterfly and the 4×100 m relay. She achieved nine world records between 1963 and 1967 in the 100 m and 200 m (not introduced until later).
Kok reached her peak at the
1968 Summer Olympics
The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
in
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. She won the gold medal in the 200 meter butterfly race in a time of 2:24.7, beating the
East German
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
Helga Lindner by 0.1 seconds. The 100 meter butterfly race in that
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
ended in disappointment for her, when she did not feel well beforehand, and finished in fourth place..
In her memoirs written by Henk Lichtenveldt, she stated:
See also
*
List of members of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
The International Swimming Hall of Fame
The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests a ...
*
World record progression 100 metres butterfly
The first world record in the 100 metres butterfly in long course (50 metres) swimming was recognised by the International Swimming Federation (FINA) in 1957, for both men and women. In the short-course (25 metres) swimming events, t ...
*
World record progression 200 metres butterfly
This is a history of the progression of the World Record for the Swimming event: the 200 Butterfly. It is a listing of the fastest-time-ever swum in the event, in both long course (50m) and short course (25m) swimming pool. These records are main ...
References
Dutch Olympic Committee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kok, Ada
1947 births
Living people
Dutch female butterfly swimmers
Dutch female freestyle swimmers
World record setters in swimming
Olympic gold medalists for the Netherlands
Olympic silver medalists for the Netherlands
Olympic swimmers of the Netherlands
Swimmers from Amsterdam
Swimmers at the 1964 Summer Olympics
Swimmers at the 1968 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics
European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming
Olympic gold medalists in swimming
Olympic silver medalists in swimming
People from Hulsberg
Sportspeople from Limburg (Netherlands)
20th-century Dutch women