Dutch · Sappemeer, Netherlands · Born 3 October 1974Dutch speed skater and the first Netherlands skater to win Olympic gold at two different Winter Games, whose surprise double gold at Nagano 1998 launched a career spanning three Olympics.
Maria Aaltje 'Marianne' Timmer was born on 3 October 1974 in Sappemeer, Netherlands, and broke through with bronze at the 1994 Junior World Championships before narrowly missing qualification for that year's Olympics. Her senior breakthrough came in 1997, when she won the 1,000m world title in difficult outdoor conditions in Warsaw, aided by the newly introduced clapskate technology that was reshaping the sport. Going into the 1998 Nagano Olympics, with all competitors now using clapskates for the first time, Timmer was not considered a top favorite. She stunned the field by breaking the world record to win gold in the 1,500m, then added a second gold in the 1,000m - a double victory that made her the first Dutch woman to win multiple golds at a single Winter Games, beating rivals including Gunda Niemann and Chris Witty. She struggled at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, finishing well outside the medals in all three of her events. Eight years after her Nagano breakthrough, at the 2006 Turin Olympics, Timmer - disqualified from the 500m for a disputed false start and considered an outsider - narrowly beat favorites Cindy Klassen and Anni Friesinger to reclaim 1,000m gold, becoming the first Dutch speed skater ever to win Olympic gold at two different Games. She won the World Sprint Championship title in 2004, the first Dutch woman to do so, and set a Dutch record ten national sprint titles between 1997 and 2008. A severe heel fracture sustained in a 2009 World Cup collision ended her hopes of a fourth Olympics, and she retired in December 2010, later becoming an honorary member of the Dutch skating federation.
Becoming the first Dutch speed skater to win Olympic gold at two different Winter Games, with surprise victories at Nagano 1998 and Turin 2006
How They Played
Technically sharp middle-distance specialist known for producing career-best performances under pressure, often as the outsider rather than the favorite
Lasting Impact
Remembered as one of the Netherlands' most successful middle-distance sprinters, whose two separate Olympic gold medal cycles eight years apart demonstrated remarkable longevity and consistency
Career Honours
- 3x Olympic Gold Medalist (1998x2, 2006)
- First Dutch skater to win Olympic gold at two different Winter Games
- 2004 World Sprint Champion (first Dutch woman to win the title)
- Record 10x Dutch National Sprint Champion
Dutch Athletes