Background
Atje Deelstra was born as the eldest of four siblings in a farmers family.
Atje Deelstra was born as the eldest of four siblings in a farmers family.
As a teenager she did gymnastics, athletics and basketball, but finally chose speed skating.
When the Thialf arena opened in 1967 in Heerenveen, Keulen-Deelstra went there to work on a comeback. She quickly made much progress, but she was told over and over again that she was too old. In 1997, just a few weeks after having been injured in a traffic accident, Keulen-Deelstra participated in the Elfstedentocht.
She died of a cerebral infarction in 2013.
Like her mother, Boukje went from short track through long track ("regular") to marathon speed skating. Over the course of her career, Keulen-Deelstra skated 2 world records:.