Gratia, Baroness Schimmelpenninck van der Oye

Gratia Schimmelpenninck van der Oye is the daughter of Baron Schimmelpenninck van der Oye, who was a member of the IOC for 18 years. She was the first Dutch Alpine skier to achieve international success, and her performances are still unmatched nationally. Her best World Championship performance is a 6th position, but victories in important ski races in St. Anton and Kitzbühel made her an outside favorite for the 1936 Olympics. These victories perhaps prompted a call to Schimmelpenninck on the night before the Olympics, incorrectly informing her of disqualification because of violation of amateur regulations. Highly distressed, she sought help with her father who soon settled the matter when the accusations appeared to be unknown to the organization.

Following her Alpine skiing career, she became an administrator with the International Ski Federation (FIS) and was a skiing official at two Olympics. In the 1970s, she started the “Gratia Club voor Slankblijvers”, a successful dieting association which was later incorporated by Weight Watchers.