Rosemarie Gabriel Kother was the supreme women's flyer of her time.  She broke the 200 Fly World Record five consecutive times between 1973 and 1976.  Holder of all world records, she had to settle for a 1976 Montreal Olympic bronze in her usually dominant race, the 200 Fly.  She had come out of retirement to swim this and the two relay preliminaries.  Her greatest achievements were in the World Championships and European Championships between Olympics where she won four golds and two silvers swimming during the same period as her teammate Kornelia Ender. Rosemarie won two golds and a silver in the first World Championships at Belgrade, (1973), in what was one of the Games outstanding performances.

Doping Disclaimer:  In a German court of law, after this swimmer was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, team officials confessed to administering performance enhancing drugs to this swimmer, who therefore obtained an illegal and unfair advantage over other athletes.  For more information, click here.