Greta Marie Andersen (married names Jeppesen and Sonnichsen and Veress, 1 May 1927 – 6 February 2023) was a Danish swimmer who won a gold and a silver medal in 100 m freestyle events at the
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and officially branded as London 1948, were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus cau ...
. In the mid-1950s she moved to the United States, where she set several world records in marathon swimming in the distances up to 50 miles.
Early life
Andersen was born on 1 May 1927 in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
to Mourits Peter Andersen and Charlotte Emerentze Benedikte Nielsen.
Swimming career
Andersen began swimming in a club aged 16 while also doing gymnastics. In 1947, she won two European medals at her first international competition. The next year she won two more medals at the London Olympics, a gold in the
100m freestyle and a silver in the
4 × 100m freestyle relay.
She failed to finish her
400m freestyle race due to sudden stomach cramps – she fainted and was rescued from drowning by fellow competitors
Nancy Lees and
Elemér Szathmáry
Elemér Szathmáry (1926 – 17 December 1971) was a Hungarian swimmer and Olympic medalist, born in Budapest. He participated in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the U ...
.
[ According to her recollections, an injection the swimming team's medical doctor gave her to delay her period caused her legs to be paralyzed and for her to subsequently faint. In 1949, Andersen set a world record in the 100 yard freestyle at 58.2 seconds, which stood for seven years. She took part in three events at the 1952 Olympics, but could not use one leg due to a recent knee surgery,][ and failed to medal. Her best result at those Games was a fourth place in the 4 × 100m freestyle relay. During her career in Europe, she won nine individual Danish titles, several team titles, and four individual Scandinavian titles.][
In 1953, she immigrated to ]Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...
, and obtained American citizenship in 1959 while still married to her second husband John Sonnichsen in Long Beach. There she switched to marathon swimming and became the first person to swim a major channel both ways (the Santa Catalina Channel in 1958). She also set world records in the 10, 25 and 50 miles. Between 1957 and 1965 she crossed the English Channel
The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
six times, setting a record for most Channel swims by a woman, as well as a speed record for women at 10:59 h in 1958. She also set an unofficial record for the longest Channel swim, while trying for 23 hours to cross the Channel forth and back in 1964.[
In 1969, Andersen was inducted into 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 and serving as the central point for the stu ...
(ISHOF). In 2015, ISHOF honored her with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Personal life
After a previous marriage (Valby, Copenhagen, 1952) to Danish engineer Helge Jeppesen ended in divorce, Andersen married John Sonnichsen in Long Beach
Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...
in 1957. The couple opened a swimming school in Los Alamitos in 1960. The school existed until 1980. Andersen was among the pioneers in baby swimming, and continued as swimming instructor also after the school had closed.[ Andersen and Sonnichsen divorced, and in 1966 in ]Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
she married Hungarian-born doctor Andre Veress; the couple lived for many years in Huntington Beach
Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, United States. The city was originally called Pacific City, but it was changed in 1903 to be named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 as o ...
. In 2017 they moved to Solvang.
Andersen died at her home in Solvang, California
Solvang (; Danish for "sunny field") is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Located in the Santa Ynez Valley, Solvang was founded in 1911 and incorporated as a city on May 1, 1985. The population was 6,126 at the 2020 ...
, on 6 February 2023, at the age of 95.[
]
Books
*
See also
* List of members of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
The International Swimming Hall of Fame is a history museum and hall of fame, serving as the central point for the study of the history of swimming in the United States and around the world.
List of the members of the International Swimming Hall ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andersen, Greta
1927 births
2023 deaths
Danish emigrants to the United States
Danish female freestyle swimmers
Danish female long-distance swimmers
English Channel swimmers
European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming
Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics
Naturalized citizens of the United States
Olympic gold medalists for Denmark
Olympic gold medalists in swimming
Olympic silver medalists for Denmark
Olympic swimmers for Denmark
People from Solvang, California
Sportspeople from Santa Barbara County, California
Swimmers at the 1948 Summer Olympics
Swimmers at the 1952 Summer Olympics
Swimmers from Copenhagen
20th-century Danish sportswomen