| Rank | Event | Year | Location | Result |
| Olympic Games | ||||
| 1 | 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay | 2008 | Beijing, CHN | 3:33.76 |
| 3 | 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay | 2004 | Athens, GRE | 3:37.59 |
| 5 | 50m Freestyle | 2008 | Beijing, CHN | 24.26 |
| 6 | 100m Freestyle | 2008 | Beijing, CHN | 54.21 |
| 6 | 4 x 100m Medley Relay | 2004 | Athens, GRE | 4:07.36 |
| Semifinal | 50m Freestyle | 2004 | Athens, GRE | 25.27 |
| Semifinal | 100m Freestyle | 2004 | Athens, GRE | 55.32 |
| Heats | 4 x 200m Freestyle Relay | 2004 | Athens, GRE | 8:08.96 |
| World Championships | ||||
| 1 | 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay | 2011 | Shanghai, CHN | 3:33.96 |
| 1 | 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay | 2009 | Rome, ITA | 3:31.72 |
| 2 | 100m Freestyle | 2007 | Melbourne, VIC, AUS | 53.70 |
| 2 | 50m Freestyle | 2005 | Montreal, QC, CAN | 24.83 |
| 3 | 50m Freestyle | 2011 | Shanghai, CHN | 24.49 |
| 3 | 50m Freestyle | 2009 | Rome, ITA | 23.99 |
| 3 | 50m Freestyle | 2007 | Melbourne, VIC, AUS | 24.70 |
| 3 | 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay | 2007 | Melbourne, VIC, AUS | 3:36.81 |
| 5 | 50m Butterfly | 2009 | Rome, ITA | 25.63 |
| 8 | 100m Butterfly | 2009 | Rome, ITA | 57.79 |
| Semifinal | 50m Butterfly | 2011 | Shanghai, CHN | 26.61 |
| Heats | 100m Freestyle | 2009 | Rome, ITA | DNS |
Nickname
Mattie. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Hobbies
Reading, cooking and water polo. (tza.info, 14 Jul 2004; astmatest.nl, 01 Jan 2008)
Occupation
Athlete
Education
Industrial Engineering - Technische Universiteit Twente, Enschede, NED
Family
Wife Camiel Huisman and daughter Hannah
Language(s) spoken
English
Club name
Eiffel Swimmers PSV, Eindhoven, NED
Coach
Jacco Verhaeren (NED) from 2006 (zwemkroniek.com, 13 Jul 2011; marleenveldhuis.nl, 13 Jul 2011)
Position and style
Freestyle (zwemkroniek.com, 13 Jul 2011)
Sporting relatives
She was a former national water polo player but gave up the sport in 2001 to concentrate on swimming. (swimteam.nl, 28 Jun 2006)
Debut
2002 for Netherlands, European Championships (Riesa) (zwemkroniek.com, 13 Jul 2011)
Additional information
Start of sporting career
She began swimming at the ZPC Heidelberg club in the Netherlands. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Reason for taking up this sport
She got involved in school swimming but didn't like the water too much, so her mum had to encourage her. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Ambitions
To win a gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. (FINA Aquatics World Magazine, 23 Oct 2010)
Training
She trains in the pool 20 hours a week. (FINA Aquatics World Magazine, 23 Oct 2010)
Most memorable sporting achievement
Breaking the 24-year-old Dutch 200m freestyle record at the 2006 City Dynamiek Cup in Eindhoven. (Telesport, 02 Dec 2006)
Hero
Australian swimmers Libby Trickett and Jodie Henry. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Most influential person in career
Her former coaches and her parents. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"Make sure it is fun!" (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
Awards
Voted by the Dutch National Olympic Committee as Sportswoman of the Year for 2007. (zwemkroniek.com, 18 Dec 2007)
She has been named as the Sportswoman of the Year in the Dutch province of Overijssel. (Athlete, 11 Mar 2007)
General
IMPROVISED TEST
In December 2007 just moments before she was due to receive her Sportswoman of the Year award from the Dutch National Olympic Committee in Amsterdam, dope testers turned up in Eindhoven to give her an out-of-competition test. She had forgotten to mention the awards ceremony in the 'whereabouts' section of her doping control form and faced the prospect of having to miss the ceremony to race back to Eindhoven for the test. However, an improvised test was conducted under the supervision of the Dutch doping authority and later approved by FINA, leaving her free to celebrate her achievement. (zwemkroniek.com, 13 Jul 2011)
MASTERS DEGREE
She gained a degree in Technical Industrial Engineering from the University of Twente, before going on to achieve a masters degree in economics at the Vrije University in Amsterdam. (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 20 Feb 2007)
ASTHMA
She is an ambassador for the website astmatest.nl, a website about asthma that attempts to show children that they are not disabled if they are asthmatic. She was diagnosed with asthma as a child but never had the feeling she was less than others. "I wasn't shocked when they diagnosed asthma, I'd expected it I think. When I'd been to my grandmother's house where it was dusty and smoky I couldn't breath well for three days. But at sports, I didn't notice anything strange." (astmatest.nl, 01 Jan 2008).
BREAK
In 2010 she did not swim due to her pregnancy and the birth of her daughter. She made her comeback in 2011, six weeks after giving birth. (tctubantia.nl, 13 Jul 2011; FINA Aquatics World Magazine, 23 Oct 2010).
Previous Olympics
Beijing 2008, Athens 2004
