Jenny Kemp

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For the Australian playwright, see Jenny Kemp (playwright).
Jenny Kemp
Kemp in 1972
Personal information
Full nameJennifer Jo Kemp
Nickname"Jenny"
National teamUnited States
Born (1955-05-28) May 28, 1955 (age 69)
Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.[1]
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight146 lb (66 kg)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke, freestyle
ClubCincinnati Marlins
College teamUniversity of Cincinnati
Medal record
Representing the United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1972 Munich 4×100 m freestyle
Pan American Games
Bronze medal – third place 1975 Mexico City 100 m backstroke

Jennifer Jo Kemp (born May 28, 1955) is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder.

Kemp did most of her training prior to the 1972 Olympics with the Cincinnati Pepsi Marlins.[2][3] She attended the University of Cincinnati, where she continued to compete in swimming.[4]

1972 Olympic gold

At the 1972 Olympics she won a gold medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay, setting a world record of 355.19. The anchor leg for the relay was swum by Shirley Babashoff who had only a slight lead at the beginning of her 100-meter swim against the last East German swimmer Kornelia Ender. Ender took the lead, but in a close race, Babashoff passed Ender near the end of the race, edging her out by only .36 seconds. In a year when the American women's team had hoped to win more swimming medals, the close win was particularly gratifying for American spectators.[4] Kemp reached the semifinals of the individual 100-meter freestyle event,[5] where she finished in ninth place with a time of 59.93.[4]

Kemp initially specialized in the backstroke before changing to freestyle in 1971. Next year she won the 100 m AAU title.[1][4]

Continuing to compete after the Olympics, in the Midwest Swimming and Diving Championships in Chicago on March 1, 1974, Kemp took a first in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:16.7, and a first in the 50-yard backstroke with a time of 25.5 seconds.[6]

In addition to her Olympic gold medal, Jenny was a 1975 Ciudad de México Pan American Games bronze medalist in the 100-meter backstroke.[4]

Honors

Kemp was inducted into the University of Cincinnati James P. Kelly Athletics Hall Of Fame in 2009.[7]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jenny Kemp.
  1. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Jenny Kemp". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2012-11-13.
  2. ^ "Skip Kenney, International Swimming Hall of Fame". International Swimming Hall of Fame.
  3. ^ Harmon, Pat, "Ann Bradshaw Represents the Marlins", The Cincinnati Post, Cincinnati, Ohio, 21 July 1976, pg. 43
  4. ^ a b c d e "Olympedia Biography, Jennifer Kemp". olympedia.org. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  5. ^ 1972 Olympics – München, Germany – Swimming Archived 2008-08-20 at the Wayback Machine – databaseOlympics.com (Retrieved on May 1, 2008)
  6. ^ "Jenny Kemp Wins Two Firsts", The Cincinnati Post, Cincinnati, Ohio, 2 March 1974, pg. 27.
  7. ^ "University of Cincinati Athletics Hall of Fame". Retrieved 24 September 2024.


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