Mrs Blankers-Koen did not have her own hurdles to train with, so a kindly competitor lent hers.

ECONOMIST: Obituary in brief

Mrs Blankers-Koen would probably have agreed, which makes one wonder just how many medals she could have won.

ECONOMIST: Obituary in brief

But Mrs Blankers-Koen kept up her fitness, sometimes by competing against men, and even set some unofficial world records.

ECONOMIST: Obituary in brief

Should London win its bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games, it will hope that someone of Mrs Blankers-Koen's prodigious talent will set the track alight.

ECONOMIST: Obituary in brief