Jennie Fletcher
British swimmer
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Jennie Fletcher (19 March 1890 – 17 January 1968), later known by her married name Jennie Hyslop, was a British competitive swimmer, Olympic gold medallist, and former world record-holder.[1] In 1905 she set a new world record in the 100-yard freestyle that stood for seven years.[2] She was selected for the 1908 Olympics, but the women's swimming events were cancelled due to a shortage of participants.[3] At the 1912 Summer Olympics, she won a gold medal in the 4×100-metre freestyle relay and a bronze medal in the individual 100-metre freestyle race.[4] In 1971 she was inducted to the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer".[5]
Jennie Fletcher, c. 1905 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jennie Fletcher | |||||||||||||||||
| National team | Great Britain | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 March 1890 Belgrave, Leicester, England | |||||||||||||||||
| Died | 17 January 1968 (aged 77) Teeswater, Ontario, Canada | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Freestyle | |||||||||||||||||
| Club | Leicester Ladies SC | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Fletcher was born in an underprivileged family of 11 siblings and had to combine swimming with daily 12-hour work.[5] In 1913, she began teaching swimming in Leicester, which ended her competitive career as she turned from an amateur into a professional. In 1917, she married and immigrated to Canada, where she gave birth to a daughter and five sons.[6][7]
