When Nelli Cooman won her first of six European indoor 60m titles in Athens in 1985, Athletics Weekly described it as “one of the biggest upsets in recent times.”
This was by no means a hyperbole either. Cooman defeated the overwhelming race favourite Marlies Gohr for the title, 7.10 to 7.13. Gohr hadn’t lost a significant race below 200m at European level since the European Athletics Junior Championships in 1975, winning six European indoor and two outdoor titles in the meantime - not to mention the inaugural world 100m title in 1983.
Cooman proved that win was no fluke by retaining her title the following year in Madrid, pushing Gohr into silver again. Making the most of the favourable sprinting conditions, Cooman also stopped the clock at 7.00 to shave four-hundredths from Marita Koch’s world record but the Dutchwoman proved nearly just as fast at sea-level, winning in Lieven the following year in 7.01.
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Cooman’s only major medal outdoors came in 1986 when she won a bronze medal at the European Athletics Championships in Stuttgart but indoors, even the best of the East Germans were no match for the Surinamese-born sprinter. Not only did Cooman extend her head-to-head against Gohr in 1988, Cooman also pipped their newest find Silke Gladisch - who claimed a sprint double at the 1987 IAAF World Championships in Rome - for her fourth successive title, 7.04 to 7.05.
Cooman’s world indoor record lasted until 1992 when Merlene Ottey clocked 6.96 but her time remains a Dutch record - albeit jointly now with Dafne Schippers who followed in Cooman’s footsteps by claiming the 60m title in Prague two years ago.
Cooman’s eight European indoor medals:
1984 - 1. Bev Kinch (GBR) 7.16, 2. Anelia Nuneva (BUL) 7.23, 3. Nelli Cooman (NED) 7.28
1985 - 1. Cooman 7.10 (NED), 2. Marlies Gohr (GDR) 7.13, 3. Heather Oakes (GBR) 7.22
1986 - 1. Cooman 7.00 (NED), 2. Gohr 7.08 (GDR), 3. Silke Gladisch (GDR) 7.14
1987 - 1. Cooman 7.01 (NED), 2. Nuneva 7.06 (BUL), 3. Gohr 7.12 (GDR)
1988 - 1. Cooman 7.04 (NED), 2. Gladisch 7.05 (GDR), 3. Gohr 7.07 (GDR)
1989 - 1. Cooman 7.15 (NED), 2. Laurence Bily (FRA) 7.19, 3. Sisko Hanhijoki (FIN) 7.23
1990 - 1. Ulrike Sarvari (FRG) 7.10, 2. Bily 7.13 (FRA), 3. Cooman 7.14 (NED)
1994 - 1. Cooman 7.14 (NED), 2. Melanie Paschke (GER) 7.19, 3. Patricia Girard (FRA) 7.24