Natalie Coughlin

Natalie Coughlin

Coughlin in August 2008
Personal information
Full name	Natalie Anne Coughlin
Nickname(s)	Nat
Nationality	USA
Born	August 23, 1982 (1982-08-23) (age 29) Vallejo, California
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Stroke(s)	Backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, medley
Club	California Aquatics (CAL-CA)
College team	University of California, Berkeley
Medal record Women's swimming Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2004 Athens 100 m backstroke Gold 2004 Athens 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2008 Beijing 100 m backstroke Silver 2004 Athens 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2004 Athens 4×100 m medley Silver 2008 Beijing 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2008 Beijing 4×100 m medley Bronze 2004 Athens 100 m freestyle Bronze 2008 Beijing 100 m freestyle Bronze 2008 Beijing 200 m medley Bronze 2008 Beijing 4×200 m freestyle World Championships (LC) Gold 2001 Fukuoka 100 m backstroke Gold 2003 Barcelona 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2005 Montreal 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2007 Melbourne 100 m backstroke Gold 2007 Melbourne 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2011 Shanghai 4×100 m medley Silver 2001 Fukuoka 4×100 m medley Silver 2003 Barcelona 4×100 m medley Silver 2005 Montreal 4×100 m medley Silver 2005 Montreal 100 m freestyle Silver 2007 Melbourne 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2007 Melbourne 4×100 m medley Silver 2011 Shanghai 4×100 m freestyle Bronze 2001 Fukuoka 50 m backstroke Bronze 2005 Montreal 100 m backstroke Bronze 2005 Montreal 4×100 m freestyle Bronze 2007 Melbourne 100 m butterfly Bronze 2011 Shanghai 100 m backstroke World Championships (SC) Gold 2010 Dubai 100 m backstroke Silver 2010 Dubai 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2010 Dubai 4×100 m medley Bronze 2010 Dubai 100 m freestyle Pan Pacific Championships Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m backstroke Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m butterfly Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m freestyle Gold 2002 Yokohama 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2006 Victoria 100 m freestyle Gold 2006 Victoria 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2006 Victoria 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2006 Victoria 4×100 m medley Gold 2010 Irvine 100 m freestyle Gold 2010 Irvine 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2010 Irvine 4×100 m medley Silver 2002 Yokohama 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2002 Yokohama 4×100 m medley Silver 2006 Victoria 100 m backstroke Silver 2006 Victoria 50 m freestyle Bronze 2010 Irvine 100 m backstroke

Natalie Anne Coughlin (born August 23, 1982) is an American swimmer and eleven-time Olympic medallist.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Coughlin became the first American female athlete in modern Olympic history to win six medals in one Olympics and the first woman ever to win a 100 m backstroke gold in two consecutive Olympics.^[1]

Coughlin's success has earned her the World Swimmer of the Year Award one time and American Swimmer of the Year Award three times. She has won a total of forty-eight medals in major international competition, twenty-one gold, seventeen silver, and ten bronze spanning the Olympics, the World, and the Pan Pacific Championships.

Biography

Coughlin currently lives in Lafayette, California and is of Irish and one quarter Filipino^[2] heritage. She was born in Vallejo and went to school at St. Catherine of Siena School from kindergarten through eight grade. She attended Carondelet High School in Concord.

Coughlin first began swimming at the local YMCA when she was only 10 months old. In 1998 at age 15, she became the first swimmer to qualify for the Summer National in all 14 events.^[3] Prior to the 2004 Summer Olympics, Coughlin was a student-athlete at the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a BA in psychology in 2005. Coughlin won 12 National Collegiate Athletic Association Swimmer of the Year honors in her first three years at Cal.

Coughlin worked as an in-studio host for MSNBC during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

In April 2009, Coughlin married Crow Canyon Sharks swim coach, Ethan Hall.^[4] One of Coughlin's favorite hobbies is cooking. During the 2008 Summer Olympics, she was invited to prepare a Chinese-themed dish on the Today show. She has appeared as a judge on Iron Chef America.^[5]

Coughlin competed in season 9 of Dancing with the Stars with season 1 professional champion, Alec Mazo.^[6][7] She was eliminated on the fifth episode.

Swimming career

High School

While in high school, Coughlin broke two individual National High School Records in the 200 yard IM (1:58.45) and the 100 yard backstroke (52.86).

2001–2003

2004 Athens Summer Olympic Games

See also: Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2004 Summer Olympics

Coughlin won the gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in the women's 100 m backstroke event and was a member of the silver medal women's 4×100 m freestyle relay with Kara Lynn Joyce, Amanda Weir, and Jenny Thompson. She also broke a world record and won gold as a member of the 4×200 m freestyle relay and obtained a silver in the 4x100 m medley relay and a bronze in the 100 m freestyle.^[8]

2005–2006

2007 World Aquatics Championships

See also: Swimming at the 2007 World Aquatics Championships

At the 2007 World Aquatics Championships, Coughlin won five medals, two gold, two silver, and one bronze. In her first event, the 4×100 m freestyle relay, Coughlin won a silver medal along with Lacey Nymeyer, Amanda Weir, and Kara Lynn Joyce.^[9] The following day, in the 100 m butterfly, she placed third in the final with a time of 57.34, an American record.^[10] In the 100 m backstroke final, held the following day, she broke her own world record set in 2002 with a time of 59.44.^[11][12] After a day of rest, Coughlin was back in the pool to swim the lead-off leg in the 4×200 m freestyle relay. Swimming in lane eight, Coughlin set the American record with a time of 1:56.43, to break Katie Hoff's one-day-old record of 1:57.09.^[13] Dana Vollmer, Lacey Nymeyer, and Katie Hoff each extended the lead and the final time of 7:50.09 was a world record.^[14] The following day, Coughlin finished in 4th place in the 100 m freestyle despite setting the championship record in the semifinals.^[15] In her last event, the 4×100 m medley relay, Coughlin won a silver medal along with Tara Kirk, Rachel Komisarz, and Lacey Nymeyer.^[16]

2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games

See also: Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Olympics

In Coughlin's second Olympics appearance, at Beijing in 2008, she became the first American female athlete^[17] to win six medals in one Olympics. She was elected joint captain of the US women's swimming team together with five-time Olympian Dara Torres and four-time Olympian Amanda Beard.^[18] Coughlin won the gold medal in the 100 m backstroke at those Games, becoming the first woman to retain the gold medal position in that event. She had lost her world record to Kirsty Coventry, the eventual winner of the silver medal, in the semi-final. When receiving her medal, her lip was still bleeding where she had bitten it during the race to distract her from the pain in her legs.^[19] She won a silver medal in the 4×100 m freestyle relay, swimming with Lacey Nymeyer, Kara Lynn Joyce and Dara Torres, and also won bronze medals in the 200 m individual medley, 4x200 m freestyle relay, and the 100 m freestyle. She won a silver medal in her final race in the 4x100 medley relay swimming with Rebecca Soni, Christine Magnuson, and Dara Torres.

2010 US Summer Nationals

After taking an 18-month break from swimming, Coughlin returned to the pool at the 2010 Conoco Phillips Summer Nationals for swimming. Coughlin qualified for Pan Pacs in the 100 Backstroke. (1:00.14).^[20]

Before racing at the Pan Pacs, Coughlin, along with Amanda Beard, was elected co-captain of Team USA once again. Although she qualified for only one event, Coughlin signed up for the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke. In the finals of the 100 freestyle, Natalie Coughlin won the gold, making a new Pan Pacific Record. (53.67). In the finals of the 100 Backstroke, Coughlin finished third (59.70) behind Australia's Emily Seebohm(Gold) and Japan's Aya Terakawa(Silver) Coughlin won two more golds when starting off both the 4x100 Freestyle Relay and the 4x100 Medley Relay.^[21]

2011 World Aquatics Championships

See also

• List of world records in swimming
• United States records in swimming
• List of multiple Olympic medalists
• List of multiple Olympic medalists at a single Games
• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists

References

1. ^ "Coughlin's 6 medals most by a US woman". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. (The Associated Press). 2008-08-17. Archived from the original on 2010-09-07. http://www.webcitation.org/5sZtDOHIR. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
2. ^ "Olympic Gold Medalist Natalie Coughlin". http://www.asiancemagazine.com/2010/07/30/olympic-gold-medalist-natalie-coughlin. Retrieved 2011-07-05. 
3. ^ "Natalie Coughlin Wins the Gold!". AsianWeek. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
4. ^ "Did Paps Crash Natalie Coughlin’s Wedding?". http://www.theswimaids.com/2009/04/29/did-paps-crash-natalie-coughlins-wedding/. 
5. ^ Crooks, Peter. " Gold Medal Gourmet" Diablo Magazine, Nov 2008.
6. ^ "Dancing With The Stars Season 9 Cast". http://pophangover.com/?p=4341. 
7. ^ Joyce Eng (17 August 2009). "Dancing with the Stars 2009 Season 9 Cast Revealed!". TVGuide.com. http://www.tvguide.com/Dancing-Stars/Dancing-Stars-2009-1009007.aspx. Retrieved 2009-08-17. 
8. ^ "Natalie Coughlin Profile & Bio". NBC Olympics. Retrieved on 2009-09-23.
9. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 4×100 m freestyle relay final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_107_Finals_Women_4x100_Free.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
10. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 100 m butterfly final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_101_Finals_Women_100_Fly.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
11. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 100 m backstroke final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_109_Finals_Women_100_Back.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
12. ^ "World Championships: Keeping the String Going, Natalie Coughlin Breaks World Record in 100 Backstroke". Swimming World Magazine. 2007-03-27. Archived from the original on 2010-09-07. http://www.webcitation.org/5sa2BZ1rO. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
13. ^ "World Championships: United States Takes Down World Record in 800 Free Relay; Natalie Coughlin Sets American Record in 200 Freestyle". Swimming World Magazine. 2007-03-29. Archived from the original on 2010-09-07. http://www.webcitation.org/5sa37AjDK. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
14. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 4×200 m freestyle relay final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_126_Finals_Women_4x200_Free.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
15. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 100 m freestyle final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_122_Finals_Women_100_Free.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
16. ^ "12th FINA World Championships: 4×100 m medley relay final". Omega Timing. http://www.omegatiming.com/swimming/racearchives/2007/melbourne2007/F73_ResByHeat_137_Finals_Women_4x100_Medley.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
17. ^ "The six medals she won are the most by an American woman in any sport, breaking the record she tied four years ago. Her career total matches the third-most by any U.S. athlete." Jaime Aron (2008-08-17). "Coughlin's 6 medals most by a US woman". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. http://stats.cbc.ca/olympics/story.asp?i=20080817063823933328708&%20ref=rec&tm=&src=OLYMPICS_DOLY_SWM. 
18. ^ "U.S. swim teams name captains for Beijing". Los Angeles Times. July 30, 2008. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/olympics_blog/2008/07/us-swim-teams-n.html. Retrieved May 19, 2010. 
19. ^ "Why The Water Cube Is So Fast". http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/olympics/2008/08/why_the_water_cube_is_so_fast.html. Retrieved 2008-08-12. 
20. ^ http://www.star-meets.org/results/Nats/2010/
21. ^ http://www.star-meets.org/results/PanPacs/2010/

External links

• Official website
• USA Swimming athlete bio: Natalie Coughlin
• Natalie Coughlin at the United States Olympic Committee
• Natalie Coughlin on Twitter

Records
Preceded by –	Women's 200 meter backstroke world record holder (short course) November 27, 2001 – February 23, 2008	Succeeded by Reiko Nakamura
Preceded by He Cihong Hayley McGregory	Women's 100 meter backstroke world record holder (long course) August 13, 2002 – June 30, 2008 June 30, 2008 – August 11, 2008	Succeeded by Hayley McGregory Kirsty Coventry
Preceded by Martina Moravcová	Women's 100 meter butterfly world record holder (short course) November 22, 2002 – August 28, 2006	Succeeded by Libby Trickett
Preceded by Jenny Thompson	Women's 100 meter individual medley world record holder (short course) November 23, 2002 – August 10, 2009	Succeeded by Emily Seebohm
Awards
Preceded by Inge de Bruijn	World Swimmer of the Year 2002	Succeeded by Hannah Stockbauer
Preceded by Brooke Bennett Katie Hoff	American Swimmer of the Year 2001–2002 2008	Succeeded by Amanda Beard Ariana Kukors & Rebecca Soni

Persondata
Name	Coughlin, Natalie
Alternative names
Short description	American swimmer
Date of birth	August 23, 1982
Place of birth	Vallejo, California
Date of death
Place of death