Natalie Coughlin
Encyclopedia : N : NA : NAT : Natalie Coughlin
Natalie Anne Coughlin (b. August 23, 1982 in Vallejo, California) is a United States swimmer and a member of the 2004 Olympic swimming team for the U.S. She is originally from Concord, California. Prior to journeying to Athens, she was a student and athlete 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 Natalie 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 recently 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 4x 200 meter freestyle relay. Her lead-off time was better than the time that won gold in the 200 meter freestyle individual event.
Natalie is partly of Filipino ancestry. Her grandmother, Zenaida Bohn, hails from Meycauayan, Bulacan, Philippines.
Coughlin will work as an in-studio host for MSNBC during the upcoming Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. To what capacity she will be working is still to be decided.
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. | |||
External links
- [Natalie-Coughlin.com]
- [Natalie Coughlin's U.S. Olympic Team bio] ... with three photo galleries
- [TIME: The Olympians, Natalie Coughlin]
- [Natalie Coughlin Online]
| Olympic medalists in swimming (women) | 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 |
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