Olympic speed skating champion Stien Kaiser passed away in the night from Wednesday to Thursday. The South Holland woman, who is considered a pioneer in women’s skating, has turned 84.
Kaiser had its heyday in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1967 she became the first Dutch female skater to become world champion all-round, after which she was named Sportswoman of the Year.
Five years later, at the age of 33, Kaiser experienced her peak with Olympic gold in the 3,000 meters in Sapporo, Japan. She also took silver in the 1,500 meters. Four years earlier she had won Olympic bronze in both distances in Grenoble.
“This is a great loss for skating in the Netherlands,” said director Herman de Haan of the KNSB skating association. “Stien is an icon of women’s skating who has promoted the empowerment of women in the sport through her achievements and who she was.”
Stien Kaiser crosses the line with joy after winning gold in the 3K at the 1972 Olympics.
Stien Kaiser crosses the line with joy after winning gold in the 3K at the 1972 Olympics. Photo: AP
Kaiser was opposed by KNSB
In the early sixties, Kaiser had to fight a big battle with the skating association to be able to ride at all. In 1964 she was passed over by the board members for the Olympic Games in Innsbruck because she was too old, like Carry Geijssen. Kaiser was 25 years old at the time.
According to the directors, that was an age for women to become housewives. The 22-year-old Willy de Beer was allowed to go to the Games. At that time, skating was still seen as a typical men’s sport. At the time, women mainly participated in figure skating, such as Sjoukje Dijkstra, the first Dutch Olympic champion (1964).
In the end, Kaiser persevered and she stringed together the medals: she took four slices at the Olympic Games, won two world titles and became Dutch all-round champion six times. She had long suffered from pulmonary fibrosis, a rare and serious lung disease.