Nelli Cooman

Cornelli "Nelli" Antoinette Hariëtte Cooman (born 6 June 1964) is a former Dutch athlete of Surinamese origin. At the 60 metres, she is two-time World indoor champion, six-time European indoor champion and former world record holder, running 7.00 secs in 1986. She also won 19 national titles.

Nelli Cooman

Nelli Cooman in 1986
Personal information
Born	(1964-06-06) 6 June 1964 Paramaribo, Suriname
Height	1.59 m (5 ft 3 in)
Weight	60 kg (132 lb)
Sport
Sport	Sprint
Club	Atletiek- en Trimclub '75, Haren
Medal record Representing the Netherlands World Indoor Championships 1987 Indianapolis 60 m 1989 Budapest 60 m European Championships 1986 Stuttgart 100 m European Indoor Championships 1985 Piraeus 60 m 1986 Madrid 60 m 1987 Lievin 60 m 1988 Budapest 60 m 1989 The Hague 60 m 1994 Paris 60 m 1984 Gothenburg 60 m 1990 Glasgow 60 m

Cooman grew up in Suriname in a family together with four sisters and one brother. When she was eight, the family moved to Rotterdam in the Netherlands. She started to play soccer and soon got the nickname "Miss Pele". At sixteen, she was discovered to be a very good sprinter during a sporting event at school; thus she began a career in athletics. Three months later, she competed in the European Junior Championships in Utrecht and finished seventh in the 100 m sprint. At seventeen, she won the silver medal in the National Championships. After graduating secondary school she turned professional with Henk Kraaijenhof as trainer.

During her time as a professional athlete from 1984 to 1995 she was twice world indoor champion in the 60 m (1987 and 1989), and six times European indoor champion. At the 1986 European Indoor Championships she won in a time of 7.00 seconds, setting a world record. Because of that achievement she was elected Dutch Sportswoman of the year. Her world record lasted until February 1992 and still stands as national record. Cooman took part twice in the Summer Olympics for the Netherlands: in 1988 in the 100 metres and 4 × 100 m relay and in 1992 in 100 metres.

In 1995, Cooman ended her career as a professional athlete.

International competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing Netherlands
1984	European Indoor Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	3rd	60 m	7.23
1985	European Indoor Championships	Piraeus, Greece	1st	60 m	7.10
1986	European Indoor Championships	Madrid, Spain	1st	60 m	7.00
	European Championships	Stuttgart, West Germany	3rd	100m	11.08
			7th	4 × 100 m relay	44.38
1987	European Indoor Championships	Lievin, France	1st	60 m	7.01
	World Indoor Championships	Indianapolis, United States	1st	60 m	7.08
	World Championships	Rome, Italy	13th (sf)	100 m	11.21
1988	European Indoor Championships	Budapest, Hungary	1st	60 m	7.04
	Olympic Games	Seoul, South Korea	12th (sf)	100 m	11.13
			8th (sf)	4 × 100 m relay	43.48
1989	European Indoor Championships	The Hague, Netherlands	1st	60 m	7.15
	World Indoor Championships	Budapest, Hungary	1st	60 m	7.05
1990	European Indoor Championships	Glasgow, Scotland	3rd	60 m	7.14
1991	World Indoor Championships	Seville, Spain	9th (sf)	60 m	7.28
1992	Olympic Games	Barcelona, Spain	17th (qf)	100 m	11.55
1993	World Indoor Championships	Toronto, Canada	7th	60 m	7.29
1994	European Indoor Championships	Paris, France	1st	60 m	7.17
	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland	5th	100 m	11.40
1995	World Indoor Championships	Barcelona, Spain	6th	60 m	7.17

Trivia

Since 1997 the Nelli Cooman Games are organised in the city of Stadskanaal. At first these games were only for youth-category competitors but they grew to be a national A-status KNAU (Royal Dutch Track and Field Union) event. Cooman is the 'honorary chairwoman' of this event.

Dutch singer Gerard Cox wrote a song about Nelli Cooman to a tune by Stevie Wonder.

External links

• Nelli Cooman Games
• Nelli Cooman at World Athletics