History
On the 6th of July 1981 the first edition of the Fanny Blankers-Koen Games (FBK-Games) was held at the FBK-Stadium in Hengelo. From this moment on this yearly recurring event has grown to become the most important athletics event in The Netherlands and therefore has an unique status.
In 1983 the Games were officially recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
In 1994 the event reached the Grand Prix ll status and was among the 24 world’s best athletics events.
Since 2003 the Games are part of the World Athletics Tour from the IAAF. Starting from 2010 the Games are part of the IAAF World Challenge.
Name
The original name for the event was the Fanny Blanker-Koen Games in honor of the best Dutch athlete who won four gold medals at the 1948 Olympics.
In the period from 1987 until 2000 the name Adriaan Paulen Memorial (APM) was used. This was done in memory to the former IAAF chairman Adriaan Paulen. He was also a former athlete who represented The Netherlands at multiple Olympic Games.
Fanny Blankers-Koen in action on the 100m Hurdles.
In 1998 Fanny Blankers-Koen was honored for her contribution to sport of athletics. At that moment the idea was born that there was only one way to give her the credit that she deserved. When in 2000 Fanny Blankers-Koen was crowned athlete of the 20th century by the IAAF the last doubt was taken away. From 2001 and on the event in Hengelo was returned to its original name the Fanny Blankers-Koen Games.
During the period 2003 – 2008 the name of the event was changed to the Thales FBK-Games because of the main sponsorship of Thales. After 5 years of great partnership the main sponsorship of Thales has ended. From 2008 and on the event was changed back to the FBK-Games.
To comply with the demands that come with organizing an IAAF event the FBK-Games needs outstanding international top athletes to compete. The FBK-Games also wants to create the ideal conditions for the Dutch top athletes. This is why the FBK-Games decided to join forces with a specialized athletes representatives bureau. Global Sports Communications (GSC) is led by former top athlete Jos Hermens. Since a couple of years Ellen van Langen, Olympic gold medal winner at the 800 meters, and former participant of the FBK-Games is in charge of arranging the national and international participants on behalf of GSC. At the FBK-Games participants can earn the set winnings per event but also they can gain points for the international ranking. Next to the good international name the Games in ‘Hengelo’ have, this ranking is also important for getting World, European and Olympic champions to the event. Because of these athletes every year world best performances are realized in Hengelo.
Records
National and international records are regularly broken during the FBK-GamesSince 1994 Haile Gebrselassie has scored various world records, on the 5K, the double mile and even twice on the 10K. In 2003 Gertjan Liefers improved the Dutch record and the 18-year-old Kenyan James Kwalia broke the junior world record on the English mile. All this to an increase of the (inter)national fame of the games.
In 2004 Kenenisa Bekele broke the world record on the 5K. This world record is still standing! In 2008 Pamela Jelimo broke the world junior record on the 800 meters. The list of international athletes that have competed in Hengelo over the years is impressive. Next to the athletes mentioned above some of the top athletes that also competed are Carl Lewis, Sebastion Co, Leroy Burrell, Sergey Bubka, Marion Jones and Merlene Ottey. In 2010 Abubaker Kaki, the current world junior record holder on the 800 meters competed at the FBK-Games.
For an overview of the stadium records and a feel for the illustrious history of the FBK-Games please go here.
