Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster
The 140-page Dutch-language book Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster (or Rigors of a marathon swimmer in English) was released in 2015 and authored by Monique Blok-Wildschut, an open water swimmer from the Netherlands who was inducted in 1993 as an Honour Swimmer in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame and in 2016 as a marathon swimmer in the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Contents
English Version
Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster was released in English as Hardships Of A Marathonswimmer in 2018.
2018 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year Nomination
The book was nominated for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year by the World Open Water Swimming Association:
Monique Blok-Wildschut was the greatest professional marathon swimmer of her generation. She was the six-time World Professional Marathon Swimming Federation champion between 1983 and 1988. The longer, the colder, the rougher the conditions, the tougher, the stronger, the faster the Dutch swimmer became. A typical race saw her go head-to-head against the best men in her era including at the Traversée internationale du lac St-Jean in Canada where she placed second overall in the 64 km Traversée in 17 hours 28 minutes. Although she made the swims look easy, her efforts were anything but. Her 2015 autobiography Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster (Rigors of a marathon swimmer) has been translated from Dutch into English and published as Hardships Of A Marathonswimmer. For dramatically retelling her challenges and successes in a 140-page well-written book, for sharing her inner thoughts about her victories and difficulties in both turbulent and tranquil conditions, for remaining a humble, eloquent ambassador of the open water swimming community, Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster / Hardships Of A Marathonswimmer by Monique Blok-Wildschut is a worthy nominee for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year.
Monique Wildschut Open Water Swimming Career
- Wildschut dominated the women’s marathon swimming professional circuit from the mid-1980’s to the early 1990’s when she was the six-time World Professional Marathon Swimming Federation champion from 1983-1988.
- In 1979, she won overall the 22 km IJsselmeer Zwemmarathon from Stavoren to Medemblik, Netherlands in 4 hours 58 minutes 49 seconds.
- In 1980, she finished 2nd overall in the 22 km IJsselmeer Zwemmarathon from Stavoren to Medemblik, Netherlands in 4 hours 48 minutes 44 seconds.
- In 1981, she finished 2nd overall in the 22 km IJsselmeer Zwemmarathon from Stavoren to Medemblik, Netherlands in 4 hours 49 minutes 50 seconds.
- On 31 August 1982, she completed the 33.8 km English Channel from England to France in 8 hours 44 minutes.
- In 1982, she finished 2nd overall in the 22 km IJsselmeer Zwemmarathon from Stavoren to Medemblik, Netherlands in 5 hours 2 minutes 13 seconds.
- On 24 July 1983, she finished 5th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Newport, Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 9 hours 41 minutes 11 seconds, setting a new world's record.
- On 31 July 1983, she finished 4th overall in the 32 km Traversée Internationale du lac St-Jean in lac St-Jean in Quebec, Canada in 7 hours 46 minutes 48 seconds.
- On 22 July 1984, she finished 9th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 8 hours 21 minutes 7 seconds.
- On 29 July 1984, she finished 4th overall in the 32 km Traversée Internationale du lac St-Jean across lac St-Jean in Quebec, Canada in 8 hours 21 minutes 7 seconds.
- On 21 July 1985, she finished 8th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 9 hours 37 minutes 20 seconds.
- On 28 July 1985, she finished 3rd overall in the 64 km Traversée Internationale du lac St-Jean across lac St-Jean and back in Quebec, Canada in 19 hours 5 minutes.
- On 20 July 1986, she finished 4th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 9 hours 33 minutes 1 second.
- On 7 September 1986, she finished 3rd overall in the 36 km Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli in Italy in 9 hours 10 minutes 35 seconds.
- On 19 July 1987, she finished 10th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 11 hours 58 minutes 21 seconds.
- On 24 July 1988, she finished 7th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 10 hours 55 minutes 32 seconds.
- On 23 July 1989, she finished 9th overall in the 42 km Traversée Internationale du lac Memphrémagog across lac Memphrémagog from Vermont, USA to Magog, Quebec, Canada in 10 hours 22 minutes 28 seconds.
- On 10 July 1988, she finished 15th overall in the 36 km Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli in Italy in 9 hours 24 minutes 43 seconds.
- On 20 July 1989, she finished 2nd overall in the 64 km Traversée Internationale du lac St-Jean across lac St-Jean and back in Quebec, Canada in 17 hours 28 minutes 7 seconds.
- On 9 July 1989, she finished 13th overall in the 36 km Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli in Italy in 7 hours 26 minutes 30 seconds.
- She completed the fastest swim of the year in 1984 across the English Channel in 8 hours 19 minutes.
- She won the 1983 Atlantic City Marathon Swim in Absecon Island in New Jersey.
- On 3 September 1989, she finished 8th overall in the 16 km Faros Marathon Swim in Croatia in 4 hours 9 minutes 16 seconds.
External links
- Books by Honorees in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame
- Monique Wildschut On Swimming Smart On WOWSA Live
- Nominate Your Favorite Product, Event, Movie Or Book For The 2019 World Open Water Swimming Offering Of The Year
- Ontberingen van een marathonzwemster - Rigors of a marathon swimmer
- Monique Wildschut blog
- International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame website
- Open Water Swimming website
- Falling In Love With The Ocean
- What A Year Doug Northway Had In 1984
- Monique Wildschut, Dutch Heroine
- The Perfect Female Open Water Swimmer
- The Perfect Ideal Of A Female Swimmer
- Swim Through The Night To Become A Knight
- World Open Water Swimming Association
- Monique Wildschut Inducted In Swimming Hall Of Fame
- Monique Blok Wildschut Doubles Up In English And Dutch
- Monique Blok-Wildschut's Two-Way In Dutch And English
