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Dafne Schippers
Dafne Schippers2 London 2017 (cropped).jpg
Dafne Schippers with her gold 200 m medal at the 2017 World Championships in London
Personal information
Born (1992-06-15) 15 June 1992 (age 33)
Utrecht, Netherlands
Height 1.79 m
Weight 68 kg
Sport
Sport Track and field
Event(s) 60 m, 100 m, 200 m, 4 × 100 m relay, long jump, heptathlon
Retired 2023
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)
  • 100 m: 10.81 s (2015, NR)
  • 200 m: 21.63 s (2015, AR)
  • Long jump: 6.78 m (2014)
  • Heptathlon: 6545 pts (2014)
  • Indoors
  • 60 m: 7.00 s i (2016, =NR)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing the  Netherlands
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 0 1 0
World Championships 2 1 2
World Indoor Championships 0 1 0
European Championships 4 3 1
European Indoor Championships 1 1 0
Total 7 7 3
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
60 m 1 2 0
100 m 3 1 2
200 m 3 3 0
4 × 100 m relay 1 2 1
Heptathlon 2 0 1
Long jump 0 0 1
Olympic Games
Silver 2016 Rio de Janeiro 200 m
World Championships
Gold 2015 Beijing 200 m
Gold 2017 London 200 m
Silver 2015 Beijing 100 m
Bronze 2013 Moscow Heptathlon
Bronze 2017 London 100 m
World Indoor Championships
Silver 2016 Portland 60 m
World Relays
Bronze 2021 Chorzów 4 × 100 m relay
Diamond League
2016 200 m
European Championships
Gold 2014 Zürich 100 m
Gold 2014 Zürich 200 m
Gold 2016 Amsterdam 100 m
Gold 2016 Amsterdam 4 × 100 m relay
Silver 2012 Helsinki 4 × 100 m relay
Silver 2018 Berlin 200 m
Silver 2018 Berlin 4 × 100 m relay
Bronze 2018 Berlin 100 m
European Indoor Championships
Gold 2015 Prague 60 m
Silver 2019 Glasgow 60 m
European U23 Championships
Gold 2013 Tampere 100 m
Bronze 2013 Tampere Long jump
World Junior Championships
Gold 2010 Moncton Heptathlon
Bronze 2010 Moncton 4 × 100 m relay
European Junior Championships
Gold 2011 Tallinn Heptathlon
Representing Europe Europe
Continental Cup
Gold 2014 Marrakech 200 m
Silver 2018 Ostrava 200 m
Bronze 2014 Marrakech 100 m

Dafne Schippers (born June 15, 1992) is a retired Dutch track and field athlete. She was known for her amazing speed in sprinting events. She holds the European record for the 200 meters, running it in 21.63 seconds. This makes her the sixth-fastest woman ever at that distance! She also holds Dutch records in the 100 meters and long jump.

Dafne was a two-time world champion in the 200 meters, winning in 2015 and 2017. She also earned a silver medal in the 200 meters at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Throughout her career, she won many medals, including five European titles. She was named European Athlete of the Year in both 2014 and 2015. Dafne announced her retirement from professional athletics in 2023.

Early Life and Start in Athletics

Dafne Schippers was born in Utrecht, Netherlands, on June 15, 1992. She started her journey in athletics at just nine years old. She joined a track and field club called Hellas in her hometown of Utrecht.

Career Highlights

Starting with Heptathlon

Dafne first competed in the heptathlon, which is a competition with seven different track and field events. She won gold medals in the heptathlon at the 2010 World Junior Championships and the 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships. At the 2010 World Junior Championships, she also won a bronze medal in the 4 × 100 metres relay with her teammates.

In 2011, at the World Championships in South Korea, Dafne set a new Dutch national record in the 200 meters. She continued to improve, even though she was still focusing on the heptathlon.

Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics 5001 W heptathlon 100mH heat4
Schippers during the 100 meters hurdles of the heptathlon at the 2012 London Olympics.

In 2012, Dafne competed in the 2012 European Athletics Championships in Finland. Her team won a silver medal in the 4 × 100 meters relay, setting a new national record. A year later, at the 2013 European Athletics U23 Championships, she won gold in the 100 meters and bronze in the long jump.

At the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, Dafne won a bronze medal in the heptathlon. This was a big moment, as she became the first Dutch woman to win a medal in the heptathlon at the World Athletics Championships. In 2014, she set another national record in the heptathlon.

Switching to Sprinting

Dafne's success in 2014, where she won gold medals in both the 100 meters and 200 meters at the European Championships, made her think about focusing only on sprinting. In June 2015, she announced that she would concentrate on sprinting for the upcoming 2015 World Championships in Athletics and the 2016 Summer Olympics.

200m women medalists Beijing 2015
Schippers won her first senior world title in the 200 meters at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing.

The year 2015 was fantastic for Dafne. She won a gold medal in the 60 meters at the European Indoor Championships. Then, at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, she won a silver medal in the 100 meters and a gold medal in the 200 meters. Her 200-meter winning time of 21.63 seconds was a new European record.

In 2016, she continued her winning streak. She won the 100 meters at the European Championships in Amsterdam. Her Dutch team also won the 4 × 100 meters relay with a new national record.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, many people expected her to win a gold medal. She finished fifth in the 100 meters final. She then won a silver medal in the 200 meters. Dafne was disappointed, saying, "I came here for gold."

Changing Coaches

Women's 200m final at London 2017
Schippers (second from left) successfully defended her 200 meters world title at the 2017 London World Championships.

After the Rio Olympics, Dafne decided to make a change. She started working with a new coach, Rana Reider, to try a different approach. Her goal was to defend her world title at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics in London. She won a bronze medal in the 100 meters and then successfully defended her 200 meters title. She was very happy, saying, "It's a great feeling to be world champion for the second time."

In 2018, Dafne competed at the 2018 European Athletics Championships in Berlin. She won a bronze medal in the 100 meters and a silver medal in the 200 meters. Her 4 × 100 meters relay team also won a silver medal.

Later in 2018, Dafne decided to return to her first coach, Bart Bennema. She felt she needed to change her training again to improve her performance. In 2019, she won a silver medal in the 60 meters at the European Indoor Championships. However, she had to withdraw from the 2019 World Championships in Doha due to an injury.

Dafne Schippers officially announced her retirement as a professional athlete in September 2023.

After Retirement

Even after retiring from competing, Dafne Schippers remains involved in athletics. In 2024, she worked as a commentator for World Athletics at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow. In March 2024, she became the tournament director for the 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn, Netherlands.

Key Achievements and Records

Dafne Schippers holds several impressive records:

  • 200 meters: 21.63 seconds (2015), which is the European record.
  • 100 meters: 10.81 seconds (2015), a Dutch national record.
  • Long jump: 6.78 meters (2014), a former Dutch national record.
  • Heptathlon: 6545 points (2014), a former Dutch national record.
  • 60 meters indoor: 7.00 seconds (2016), which is a Dutch national record.
  • 4 × 100 meters relay: 42.04 seconds (2016), a former Dutch national record.

Recognition and Awards

Dafne Schippersbrug wide shot looking north
Dafne Schippersbrug in 2017.

Dafne Schippers received many awards for her achievements:

  • She was named the Dutch Women's Athlete of the Year seven times, from 2011 to 2017.
  • She was the European Women's Athlete of the Year in 2014 and 2015.
  • She was also named Dutch Sportswoman of the Year in 2015 and 2017.

In 2017, a bridge in her hometown of Utrecht was named the Dafne Schippersbrug (Dafne Schippers Bridge) in her honor.

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Dafne Schippers para niños

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