Piet Bleeker
Piet Bleeker (27 August 1928 – 31 January 2018) was a Dutch long-distance runner, specialised in running the marathon. He became Dutch champion four times, and also earned two national titles in the 25 km category. Career. Start of Athletics career. Bleeker was born in Heerhugowaard, and started his athletics career in 1951 by registering with the Alkmaarse Olympus. In 1956 Bleeker was transferred to Av Lycurgus in Krommenie because the athletics facility was better, and because he was employed in the linoleum factory there. He also met his future wife, Jo Dujin, in Krommenie. Due to his  marriage and relocation to Beverwijk, he then had himself transferred to the Beverwijk DEM on 1 January 1962. Reached limit for Olympics, but not selected. Piet Bleeker delivered his first impressive performance in 1955 when he finished second in the 25 km Dutch championship behind Janus van der Zande. In 1956, after he had become Dutch champion in the 25 km and the marathon earlier that year, he ran a marathon in Zaandam on 6 October 1956, which he won in 2:34.16. The remarkable thing about this was that this performance was within the qualification limit of 2:35.00 for the  Olympic Games in Melbourne. Even so, he was not selected for Melbourne, because Bleeker ran this performance after the qualification period had already ended. In retrospect, Bleeker can consider himself fortunate that he was not allowed to travel to Melbourne. As is known, the NOC decided on 7 November 1956 to boycott the Melbourne Olympics in connection with the invasion of the Soviet Union in Hungary, and the subsequent bloody fight in the streets of Budapest. The Dutch delegation, which had since travelled to Melbourne, had to return home due to this measure. Bleeker was spared this disappointment. Marathon title  prolonged by victory in Enschede. In 1957 the Enschede marathon was also the battlefield for the Dutch title. Bleeker not only succeeded in prolonging his national marathon title, but he also won the competition. This made him the first Dutchman to perform at this marathon. Participation in European Championship. In 1958 Bleeker competed in the marathon at the European Championships in Stockholm. In this race won by the Russian Sergej Popov in 2:15.17, he finished 21st in 2:38.45,6. A few weeks earlier he had set the Dutch record for the 10 English miles at 51.50.8 during a 20 km run  in Gouda. In October of that year, he then proved supreme during the NK 25 km in 's-Hertogenbosch, on which occasion he also broke the Dutch record on the 25 km of Janus van der Zande from 1: 21.59,6 to 1: 21.13,4. Two times bronze on Dutch Championship running track. Although Bleeker's greatest strength on the longer distances was evident, he nevertheless managed to reach the podium several times at Dutch track championships. In 1956 and 1959 he became third in the 10,000 m. In 1957 he fell just outside the prizes with a fourth place. After his  sports career, Bleeker started working at DEM as a coach. He died in Beverwijk.