Natalie Coughlin
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Natalie Anne Coughlin (b. August 23, 1982 in Vallejo, California) is a United States swimmer and a member of the Olympic swimming team for the United States. At the 2004 Summer Olympics, she won two gold medals, two silver medals, and a bronze.
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[edit] Biography
She is originally from Concord, California and is of Filipino and Irish heritage.
Prior to journeying to Athens, she was a student and athlete at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill CA, then later at the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a BA in psychology in 2005. She had won three National Collegiate Athletic Association Swimmer of the Year honors in her first three years at the university. Many have claimed that Coughlin was undefeated in college competition before she was defeated by Kirsty Coventry at the 2004 NCAA's, but she was in fact defeated by Misty Hyman, Maritza Correia, and Shelly Ripple-Johnson during her freshman campaign.
She won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in the women's 100 meter backstroke event and was a member of the silver medal women's 4 x 100 meter 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 x 200 meter freestyle relay. Her lead-off time was better than the time that won gold in the 200 meter freestyle individual event.
Coughlin worked as an in-studio host for MSNBC during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy.
[edit] Trivia
Coughlin was voted as one of the Top 20 Best-Looking Female Athletes by a panel of Sports Illustrated's swimsuit models. [1][2]
[edit] 2004 Summer Olympics
| Natalie Coughlin's 2004 Summer Olympics Events | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Final medal count: 5 (2 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze) | |||
| Date | Event | Final Time | Place |
| August 14 | 4x100m Freestyle Relay | 3:36.39 AR | 2nd |
| August 16 | 100m Backstroke | 1:00.37 ** | 1st |
| August 18 | 4x200m Freestyle Relay | 7:53.42 WR | 1st |
| August 19 | 100m Freestyle | 54.40 | 3rd |
| August 21 | 4x100m Medley Relay | 3:59.12 *** | 2nd |
| WR: World Record; AR: American Record | |||
| ** Coughlin set the Olympic Record (1:00.17) in the semi-finals. | |||
| *** Coughlin set a new Olympic Record for the 100m backstroke (59.68) in the relay lead-off leg. | |||
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ SI's Swimsuit Models rank the best-looking athletes. Sports Illustrated (December 19, 2006).
- ^ Her Sports Illustrated photo is at Best Looking Athletes - 13 - Natalie Coughlin - Swimming. Sports Illustrated (December 19, 2006).
[edit] External links
- Natalie-Coughlin.com
- Natalie Coughlin's U.S. Olympic Team bio ... with three photo galleries
- TIME: The Olympians, Natalie Coughlin
| Olympic champions in women's 100 m backstroke |
|---|
| 1924: Sybil Bauer |1928: Marie Braun |1932: Eleanor Holm |1936: Nida Senff |1948: Karen Harup |1952: Joan Harrison |1956: Judy Grinham |1960: Lynn Burke |1964: Cathy Ferguson |1968: Kaye Halm | 1972: Melissa Belote | 1976: Ulrike Richter | 1980: Rica Reinisch | 1984: Theresa Andrews | 1988: Kristin Otto | 1992: Krisztina Egerszegi | 1996: Beth Botsford | 2000: Diana Mocanu | 2004: Natalie Coughlin |
Categories: 1982 births | Living people | People from Florida | Filipino Americans | Eurasians | Asian American sportspeople | American backstroke swimmers | American freestyle swimmers | American butterfly swimmers | American medley swimmers | Olympic swimmers of the United States | Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics | Olympic gold medalists for the United States | Olympic silver medalists for the United States | Olympic bronze medalists for the United States | Swimming World World Swimmers of the Year | University of California, Berkeley alumni | World record holders in swimming
