Who is Pieter van den Hoogenband?

Born 14 March 1978, Pieter van den Hoogenband is the son of Cees-Rein van den Hoogenband who is a team doctor with a professional football club in Geldrop, the southeast Netherlands, and Astrid Verver, a former Dutch 800 meter freestyle silver medalist and former coach of the Dutch swimming team.

After winning six medals in 1999 in the European Championships, Pieter was one of the favourites for the 2000 Olympics held in Sydney, Australia. His competition was tough and he faced the world record holder, Ian Thorpe, for the 200 m freestyle. In the semi-finals, Van den Hoogenband set a new world record, but Thorpe countered with a time only 0.02 seconds slower. In an exciting final, Van den Hoogenband equaled his time from the semi-finals to win the gold medal. In the 100 m freestyle, Van den Hoogenband again set a world record in the semi-finals and won his second gold medal, defeating the 1992 and 1996 champion, Alexander Popov.

Pieter van den Hoogenband is a triple Olympic champion. He is the only swimmer in history who has managed to win both the 100–200 meter freestyle double at the Olympics. His three Olympic Gold are the only three won by a Dutch male swimmer.