Wim Peters

Wim Peters dominated the triple jump in the Netherlands for the best part of two decades, winning 16 national titles in the discipline. He won his first national title in 1924, which earned him a place on the Olympic team. At the Paris Games, however, Peters only finished 11th with a best effort of 13.860 metres. Despite this he continued to excel at the event back home where he won six consecutive titles from 1925 to 1930. During this time, he made his second appearance at the Olympics where he placed seventh at the 1928 Amsterdam Games. Peters returned to the Games four years later, but an Olympic medal remained elusive for him when he finished fifth in Los Angeles.

Two years after his final Olympic appearance Peters was triumphant at the 1934 European Athletics Championships in Torino when he won gold with a jump of 14.89 metres, just six centimetres ahead of Eric Svensson of Sweden. From 1934 to 1942 Peters went on an unprecedented streak of winning nine consecutive triple jump titles at the Dutch championships. He also had amazing success in England, winning six titles in the event at the AAA Championships (1927–30, 1935, 1937). In 1924 he set a Dutch record, which he improved on several times by 1927, with the mark not being improved upon until 1963.

Personal Best: TJ – 15.48 (1927).