Brenda Merserau HELSER

In addition to helping set a world record in the freestyle relay at the 1948 Games, Brenda Heiser swam in both the freestyle individual events. In the 100m she was eliminated in the semi-finals and in the 400m she placed fifth in the final. Having won the first of her eight AAU titles in 1940, and having qualified for the at year’s Olympic team, which did not compete, Brenda Heiser was one of the veterans on the women’s swim team at the London Olympics. In the early part of her career she represented the Multnomah AC in Portland, Oregon, but later swam for the Los Angeles AC. Helser attended Stanford University. She later became, by marriage, the Countess de Morelos y Guerrero. She is a member of the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame.