Henk Visser (23 March 1932 – 13 November 2015) was a

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

er from the Netherlands. He competed at the 1952 and 1960 Summer Olympics and finished seventh in 1960.

Records

On 17 September 1956, during the international competitions in

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, he jumped 7.98 m, setting a national and European record. This was the longest jump in 1956 and one of the best jumps ever in Europe by that time. However, Visser could not take part in the 1956 Olympic Games due to their boycott by the Netherlands. Besides the long jump, he also competed in the high jump and sprint, with the best achievements of 10.5 s in 100 m, 20.3 s in 200 m and 1.82 m in high jump.

Olympics

In early 1959 Visser, who then worked as a clerk in a shipping company, left for the United States, where he obtained a study scholarship. He started at San José College, but then moved to Bakersfield College. At athletic competitions in Texas, he jumped 8.05 m, but overstepped the plank, and the jump was discounted. Nevetherless, he had registered 7.97 m in April 1960 in

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, and was considered a candidate for a medal at the 1960 Olympics. However, he finished in seventh place with a humble result of 7.66 m. He retired soon after the Games and later ran a sportswear and footwear export business from his home in Santa Barbara."Henk Visser wil iets terug doen", De Atletiekwereld nr. 6: KNAU (1968). In the 1990s he returned to the Netherlands.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Visser, Henk 1932 births 2015 deaths Athletes (track and field) at the 1952 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics Dutch male long jumpers Olympic athletes for the Netherlands Athletes from Willemstad 20th-century Dutch sportsmen