Barbara Jensen

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Barbara Jensen
Jensen in 1946
Personal information
Full nameBarbara Jayne Jensen
National team United States
Born(1929-09-15)September 15, 1929
San Francisco, California, U.S.
DiedDecember 20, 2018(2018-12-20) (aged 89)[1]
Ravalli, Montana, U.S.
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke
ClubAthens Athletic Club

Barbara Jayne Jensen (later Reeve, later Jackson, September 15, 1929 – December 20, 2018) was an American competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. She competed in the semifinals of the 100-meter backstroke and finished fifth with a time of 1:19.1.[2]

Early life and education[edit]

Jensen was born in San Francisco, California and raised in Colma,[3] the daughter of Mattrup Jay Jensen and Edna Quinn Jensen. Her father managed a cemetery in Colma.[4] Her Danish-born grandfather was the first mayor of Colma.[5] She learned to swim at the Jewish Community Center in San Francisco and started competing around the age of 12. She then trained at the Athens Athletic Club in Oakland, and returned to San Francisco in 1949.[6] At age 44, she earned a master's degree in sociology from Saint Xavier University in Chicago.[2]

Swimming careers[edit]

In 1945, aged 15, she broke the national record in the 100 m backstroke. She represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London.[7]

Jensen was a member of the national team in 1949–50. In 1949 she won the AAU titles in the 110-yard and 220-yard backstroke outdoors, and in the 220-yard backstroke indoors.[8][9] The same year she was runner-up for the James E. Sullivan Award.[10][11] and placed fifth in the voting for female Athlete of the Year in the annual Associated Press poll of sports writers.[12]

In the early 1950s, after she married, Barbara Jensen Reeve was a swimmer with the Chicago Town Club.[13] In 1972 she began competing in masters swimming. Between 1972 and 1979 she won 42 national titles and set eight national or world records in the backstroke.[14] She semi-retired in 1980 for health reasons, but resumed competing in 1997, winning her national titles in the 50m, 100m, and 200m backstroke.[10] She was active in the U.S. Masters Swimming organization as a volunteer and attended the 1975 and 1999 national conventions.[3]

Personal life[edit]

Jensen married twice and had four children.[3] She survived cancer in the 1980s. She died in 2018, at the age of 89, in Ravalli, Montana.[2]

References[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Barbara Jensen.
  1. ^ Barbara Jensen's obituary
  2. ^ a b c "Obituary for Barbara (Jensen) Jackson". Whitesitt Funeral Home & Cremation Service. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Profiling Barbara Jensen Reeve Jackson". US Masters Swimming. November 24, 2002. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
  4. ^ "M. Jay Jensen is Dead at 62". The Times. February 12, 1964. p. 61. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Colma's First Mayor Dies". The San Francisco Examiner. September 13, 1957. p. 8. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Barbara Jensen, Swim Star, Quits Oakland for S.F." The Oakland Post Enquirer. November 9, 1948. p. 17. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
  7. ^ "Barbara Jensen, Nat'l. Swim Star, Enters Championship Meet Here". Daily Independent Journal. May 12, 1949. p. 10. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Miss Jensen Wins Two Swim Titles; Takes 200-Yard Back-Stroke and 300-Yard Medley at National A. A. U. Meet". The New York Times. April 23, 1949. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
  9. ^ "Barbara Jensen Twin Swim Wins". Nevada State Journal. April 23, 1949. p. 8. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Barbara Jensen". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  11. ^ "Skater Named Top Amateur Athlete". The Ponca City News. January 4, 1950. p. 7. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Talbot, Gayle (January 13, 1950). "Golfer Bauer Named 1949 Gal Athlete". Victoria Advocate. p. 8. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Angelopolous, Angelo (July 1, 1952). "Ripple Becoming Town Club Home". The Indianapolis News. p. 17. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Maxine Merlino adds two records". The Spokesman-Review. August 28, 1977. p. 2. Retrieved May 3, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
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