Lien Gisolf


Carolina Anna "Lien" Gisolf was a Dutch high jumper. She won a silver medal at the 1928 Summer Olympics and finished fourth in 1932.
Her talent was discovered during school competition in 1926, when it turned out that she jumped 30 centimetres higher than her classmates. On 3 July 1928 she set an unofficial Dutch record by jumping 1.465 metres, which was followed by a new world record of 1.582 metres. The same year she became the first Dutch female athlete to win an Olympic medal. She improved her world record twice: to 1.608 metres in 1929 and 1.623 metres in 1932. During the 1930 Women's World Games Gisolf became second. When she had to jump a barrage with her only opponent left, German Inge Braumüller, she tore a muscle, ruining her chances for the first place.
After finishing fourth at the 1932 Summer Olympics Gisolf lost interest in athletics and turned to field hockey.