Mary Kok

Who is Mary Kok?

Mary Kok is a former Dutch swimmer. Between 1954 and 1957 she set nine world records in various freestyle, butterfly and medley events, six of them within one year. She could not compete in the 1956 Summer Olympics due to the boycott of those games by the Netherlands. She was also not selected for the 1958 European Championships and switched to marathon swimming, becoming the first Dutch woman to cross the English Channel in 1960.

In 1955, she became the Dutch Sportsman of the year and in 1980, inducted to the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

On 28 December 1962, she married Kees Oudegeest, and later became a swimming coach. She is not related to other famous swimmers of her era, the sisters Ada and Gretta Kok.