Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen

Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen (née Olsen; February 11, 1931 – September 23, 2017)[1][2] was an American diver. She competed in the 3 m springboard at the 1948 and 1952 Olympics and won a silver and a bronze medal, respectively. During her career Olsen won 12 AAU diving titles, starting from 1945 as a 14-year-old. In 1949 she married the football and baseball player Jackie Jensen,[3] and divorced him in 1968.[4]

Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen
Olsen in 1952
Personal information
BornFebruary 11, 1931
Council Bluffs, Iowa, U.S.
DiedSeptember 23, 2017(2017-09-23) (aged 86)
Stuart, Florida, U.S.
Sport
SportDiving
ClubAthens Athletic Club, Oakland
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1948 London 3 m springboard
Bronze medal – third place 1952 Helsinki 3 m springboard

Early years

Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa,[5] Olsen-Jensen is the daughter of Art Olsen and Norma Bragstad Olsen.[6] Her father was a coach and school principal; her mother taught swimming and was described as "a pioneer of synchronized swimming."[5]

She attended La Porte School in La Porte City, Iowa,[7] but she and her mother moved to Oakland, California, when her father enlisted for military service in World War II.[5] In 1949, she graduated from Oakland High School, where she was president of her senior class and an honor student.[8]

Swimming

When she was 9 years old, Olsen-Jensen won first place in girls' and women's diving in open swimming and diving competition in Neenah, Wisconsin. Olsen-Jensen won over 16 women divers and was the youngest of more than 100 participants in the Fox River Valley meet.[9]

At age 11, Olsen-Jensen was the only two-event winner in Iowa's state Amateur Athletic Union swimming meet, finishing first in diving and the 40-yard freestyle junior race.[10] When she was 12, she finished third in the national junior AAU championship competition.[11]

In 1948, Olsen-Jensen won her first Olympic medal in springboard diving in London.[5]

Personal life

On October 16, 1949, Olsen-Jensen married Jackie Jensen, a member of the Boston Red Sox baseball team, in Oakland, California.[12] They had a daughter and two sons.[5] Olsen and Jensen divorced on May 18, 1963. They remarried on July 11, 1964, but divorced again on January 17, 1968.[13] On September 18, 1972, she married Don Bramham.[5]

Recognition

Olsen-Jensen is a member of the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame. In three years, she was nominated for the James E. Sullivan Award, which goes to "the nation's outstanding amateur athlete, woman or man."[14]

See also

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen.
  1. Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen's obituary
  2. Zoe Ann Olsen - Ancestry
  3. File:Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen and Jackie Jensen 1949.jpg
  4. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Zoe Ann Olsen-Jensen". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2010-12-16.
  5. Cornelius, Brenda (November 13, 2004). "Where are they now: Zoe Ann Olsen". The Courier. Iowa, Waterloo. p. 2. Retrieved May 10, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  6. "Maybe You've Heard ..." Argus-Leader. South Dakota, Sioux Falls. May 21, 1938. p. 4. Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  7. "Vinton Students Best Judges At Community Fair". The Courier. Iowa, Waterloo. November 15, 1936. p. 25. Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  8. "Jackie Jensen and Zoe Ann Are Engaged -- It's Official Now". Oakland Tribune. California, Oakland. June 5, 1949. p. 14. Retrieved May 10, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  9. "Swimmers from Cedar Falls Win at Neenah, Wis". The Courier. Iowa, Waterloo. August 25, 1940. p. 21. Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  10. "LaPorte City Girl, 11, Tops State Swim". The Des Moines Register. Iowa, Des Moines. April 5, 1942. p. 16. Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  11. "Iowan Gets Advice". The Des Moines Register. Iowa, Des Moines. January 31, 1943. p. 18. Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  12. "Yanks' Jackie Jensen Weds Zoe Ann Olsen". Arizona Republic. Arizona, Phoenix. United Press. October 17, 1949. p. 8. Retrieved May 10, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  13. "Sporting couples work hard to keep marriages intact". Longview News-Journal. Texas, Longview. June 20, 1985. p. 23. Retrieved May 10, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  14. White, Maury. "Zoe Olsen". DataCentral. Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on 11 May 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
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