Background
De Bruijn was born in Barendrecht, Netherlands, and tried several sports before eventually specializing in swimming.
De Bruijn was born in Barendrecht, Netherlands, and tried several sports before eventually specializing in swimming.
The following year, de Bruijn made her Olympic debut at the 1992 Summer Olympics, and finished 8th in the 100 m and 4×100 m freestyle events.
She did not compete at the 1996 Summer Olympics. The following year, after having swum several 50 m freestyle world records, she competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Her nickname became "Invincible Inky".
She was named by Swimming World as the "Female World Swimmer of the Year" in both 2000 and 2001.
In March 2007, de Bruijn announced her retirement from competitive swimming. De Bruijn resides in Eindhoven, Netherlands, and previously trained in Portland, Oregon.
She was the face for Dutch lingerie brand Sapph, along with kickboxer Remy Bonjasky, the face for the men"s line of the brand.
At the 2003 World Championships, de Bruijn successfully defended her 50 m freestyle and butterfly titles. At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens she defended her gold medal in the 50 m free, and took silver in the 100 m free, and two bronze: one in the 100 m butterfly and another in the 4×100 m relay.