Wilhelmina Elizabeth (Mien) van Bree (24 April 1915 – 4 August 1983) was a Dutch

cyclist Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

. She is considered a pioneer of women's cycling in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Early years

Van Bree was the fourth of five children in a horticultural family, the daughter of Adrianus van Bree (1878–1959) and Elizabeth Hendrika van Beek (1884–1952). She grew up in the Tramstraat, in

Loosduinen Loosduinen () is a former village in the Netherlands that was a municipality unto itself until 1923, when it was annexed by The Hague and subsequently became a district of the city. Within the district there is also a neighbourhood (Dutch:wijk) c ...

South Holland South Holland ( ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.8 million as of January 2023 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely populated areas. ...

. Cycling was an early hobby for her. To train and test her speed, she chased after the buses. Her talent was noticed by neighbour Piet Moeskops, five-time sprint world champion (1921–1926). His compliments motivated her to further develop her cycling talent. In 1931, with some girlfriends, she founded the Hague women's cyclist club ''Vooruitgang Is Ons Streven'' (VIOS), one of the first Dutch women's cycling clubs. In the Netherlands in the 1930s, girls riding racing bikes was not considered respectable, but Mien van Bree didn't like that.

Career

The Dutch Cycling Union did not allow bicycle races for women, so van Bree moved to

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, where women could race. In addition, she cycled early in the morning from Loosduinen to Belgium, to ride a race in the afternoon. She participated in sprint, long distance, couple and tandem races on the track. In 1934 she became third during the world cycling championship and in the years 1935–1937 she finished second. She was always beaten by the Belgian Elvire De Bruyne from Erembodegem. Van Bree won her first victory in 1937 during the European Cycling Championships. In 1938, after a race of one hundred kilometers in Rocourt, she became world champion. She also extended her European title. A year later, she also extended her world title. During this time she was in a relationship with another rider, Maria Gaudens, who was also a rider. The outbreak of the Second World War and her recall to Holland in 1940 to care for her ill mother marked the end of her cycling career.

Later life

After the death of her mother in 1952, van Bree cared for her father until his death in 1959. She worked as a psychiatric nursing assistant and was later a patient in the same institution for a time when she was left and betrayed by a girlfriend. On August 4, 1983, she was found dead at her home at the age of 68. She preserved her champion’s jersey until the end of her life.

Legacy

In 2015 (her hundredth year of birth), the municipality of

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

named a cycle path in Loosduinen after her: the "Mien van Breepad". On March 24, 2016 a book ''Mien – A forgotten history'' was published by writer Mariska Tjoelker.

Gallery

File:MienvanBree1935.jpg, Mien van Bree (1935) File:VanBreeGaudens1935.jpg, Mien van Bree with Maria Gaudens, 1935 File:MienvanBree1937.jpg, Mien van Bree 1937 File:Mien_van_Bree_(1938).jpg, Mien van Bree (1938)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:van Bree, Mien 1915 births 1983 deaths 20th-century Dutch sportswomen Dutch female cyclists Cyclists from The Hague LGBTQ cyclists LGBTQ sportswomen Dutch LGBTQ sportspeople