Pat Nielsen

Pat Nielsen was, in 1946, regarded as the “discovery of the season” after winning both the Kent and Southern Counties 100-yard freestyle titles. A very graceful swimmer, she was selected for the 1948 Olympics when just 18, despite missing the 1947 ASA Championships due to entering too late. At the London Games, Nielsen took part in the 100- and 400-metre freestyle events, and the 4 x 100 free relay, finishing fourth. In 1949 she started a three-year course in educational therapy, and that same year, made her début at distance swimming in the Kent One Mile Championship. She won the title in a record time of 18:49, taking almost a staggering 10 minutes off the record … only because she had the tide of the river Medway, in which the race was swum, in her favour. Nielsen finished third in the ASA 100-yards in 1950, and was the Southern Counties 220 champion in 1951 and Kent 220 champion in 1953. The following year she captured the Kent Two Mile title, again on the Medway.