Natalie Coughlin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Natalie Coughlin Hall

Coughlin in 2018
Personal information
Birth name	Natalie Anne Coughlin
Nickname(s)	Nat
Born	(1982-08-23) August 23, 1982 (age 42) Vallejo, California, U.S.
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight	139 lb (63 kg)
Spouse(s)	Ethan Hall (2009–present)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, individual medley
Club	California Aquatics
College team	University of California, Berkeley
Medal record Women's swimming Representing  United States International aquatics competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Summer Olympics 3 4 5 World Championships (LC) 8 7 5 World Championships (SC) 2 5 1 Pan Pacific Championships 11 4 1 Pan American Games 1 2 1 Total 25 22 13 Summer Olympics 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 Bronze 2012 London 4×100 m freestyle World Championships (LC) Gold 2001 Fukuoka 100 m backstroke Gold 2001 Fukuoka 4×200 m freestyle 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 Gold 2013 Barcelona 4×100 m freestyle 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 Gold 2014 Doha 4×50 m mixed free Silver 2010 Dubai 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2010 Dubai 4×100 m medley Silver 2014 Doha 4×50 m freestyle Silver 2014 Doha 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2014 Doha 4×50 m medley Bronze 2010 Dubai 100 m freestyle Pan Pacific Championships Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m freestyle Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m backstroke Gold 2002 Yokohama 100 m butterfly 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 50 m freestyle Silver 2006 Victoria 100 m backstroke Bronze 2010 Irvine 100 m backstroke Pan American Games Gold 2015 Toronto 4×100 m medley Silver 2015 Toronto 100 m freestyle Silver 2015 Toronto 4×100 m freestyle Bronze 2015 Toronto 50 m freestyle

Natalie Anne Coughlin Hall (born August 23, 1982) is a famous American swimmer. She has won an amazing twelve Olympic medals!

While studying at the University of California, Berkeley, Natalie made history. She was the first woman ever to swim the 100-meter backstroke in under one minute.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, she won six medals. This made her the first American woman to achieve this in modern Olympic history. She was also the first woman to win two gold medals in a row for the 100-meter backstroke. In her last Olympic appearance in 2012, she won a bronze medal.

Natalie has been named the World Swimmer of the Year once. She also earned the American Swimmer of the Year Award three times. Overall, she has won sixty medals in big international swimming events. These include twenty-five gold, twenty-two silver, and thirteen bronze medals.

Natalie Coughlin's Early Life

Natalie Coughlin was born in Vallejo, California. Her parents are Jim and Zennie Coughlin. She has Irish and Filipino family roots.

Natalie started swimming at the Vallejo Aquatics Club when she was 8 years old. Her first coach was Tuffy Williams. She went to St. Catherine of Siena School and then Carondelet High School in Concord, California.

In high school, Natalie became the first swimmer to qualify for the Summer National competition in all fourteen events. She also broke two national high school records. These were in the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard backstroke. She finished high school in 2000.

Swimming in College

Natalie went to the University of California, Berkeley. She swam for the California Golden Bears team from 2001 to 2003. Her coach was Teri McKeever.

During her three years, Natalie won eleven individual national championships. She also won one team relay title. She was named the NCAA Swimmer of the Year for three years in a row. Sports Illustrated magazine even called her their college Female Athlete of the Year.

In 2014, Natalie was added to the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame. She earned her degree in psychology from Berkeley in 2005.

Competing for Her Country

Early International Success (2001-2003)

At the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, in 2001, Natalie won three medals. She earned one gold, one silver, and one bronze. Her gold medal was in the 100-meter backstroke.

In 2002, Natalie competed at the Pan Pacific Championships in Yokohama, Japan. She won six medals there. Four of these were gold medals! She won gold in the 100-meter backstroke, 100-meter butterfly, and 100-meter freestyle. She also helped her team win gold in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

At the World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona, Spain, in 2003, Natalie won two more medals. She took home a gold in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay and a silver in the 4×100-meter medley relay.

Olympic Glory in Athens (2004)

Natalie won her first Olympic gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This was for the 100-meter backstroke event. She also won a silver medal with the U.S. women's 4×100-meter freestyle relay team.

She helped her team break a world record and win another gold medal in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. Natalie also earned a silver in the 4×100-meter medley relay. She finished her amazing Olympics with a bronze medal in the 100-meter freestyle.

World Championships and TV (2005-2006)

At the World Aquatics Championships in Montreal in 2005, Natalie won five medals. She got one gold, two silvers, and two bronzes. Her gold medal was in the 200-meter freestyle relay.

In 2006, Natalie worked as a host for MSNBC during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Italy. She shared her sports knowledge on television.

Breaking Records at Worlds (2007)

At the 2007 World Aquatics Championships, Natalie won five more medals. She earned two gold, two silver, and one bronze. In the 100-meter butterfly, she set an American record.

The next day, in the 100-meter backstroke final, she broke her own world record! She swam it in 59.44 seconds. Natalie also helped her team set a new world record in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

Six Medals in Beijing (2008)

At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Natalie made history again. She became the first American woman to win six medals in one Olympics! She was also chosen as a captain for the U.S. women's swimming team.

Natalie won the gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke. This made her the first woman to win this event in two Olympics in a row. She also won two silver medals and three bronze medals in other events.

Comeback and Pan Pacific Wins (2010)

After taking a break from swimming for 18 months, Natalie returned in 2010. She competed at the Conoco Phillips Summer Nationals.

At the Pan Pacifics, Natalie was again a team captain. She won a gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle, setting a new record for the championships. She also won two more gold medals in relay events.

More Medals at the World Championships (2011)

At the World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China, in 2011, Natalie won three medals. She earned one gold, one silver, and one bronze.

She won a gold medal with her teammates in the 4×100-meter medley relay. She also won a silver medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. Her only individual medal was a bronze in the 100-meter backstroke.

Final Olympics and Record Tie (2012)

At the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials, Natalie competed against younger swimmers. She qualified for the U.S. team in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, she swam in the qualifying round for the relay. Even though she didn't swim in the final race, she earned a bronze medal when her team placed third. This was her twelfth Olympic medal! She tied the record for the most Olympic medals won by a U.S. female athlete.

Last World Championships Gold (2013)

In 2013, Natalie competed at the Phillips 66 National Championships. She focused on sprint freestyle events. She qualified for the 50-meter freestyle and the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.

She won a gold medal on the first night of the World Championships in the 4×100 freestyle relay. She swam her part of the race very fast, in under 53 seconds. In 2015, just before her 33rd birthday, she set an American record in the 50-meter backstroke.

Life After Competitive Swimming

Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame plaque

Natalie has been a spokeswoman for C20 Coconut Water. She loves to cook and has even appeared on TV cooking shows. She was a judge on Iron Chef America and competed on Chopped.

In 2009, Natalie was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. She also wrote a book called Golden Girl.

Natalie has appeared in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and on the cover of Self magazine. She is also an investor in a frozen food company called Luvo Inc.

In 2017, she became a partner in Gaderian Wines, a wine company in Napa Valley. In 2021, Natalie was inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame. In 2023, she was elected to a leadership role for the board of directors of USA Swimming.

Natalie's Personal Life

Coughlin in 2008

In April 2009, Natalie Coughlin married Ethan Hall. He is a swim coach. They have one daughter.

Natalie's Fastest Swim Times

Long course (50 m pool)

Short course (25 m pool)

United States open record

See Also

• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
• List of multiple Olympic medalists
• List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists
• List of multiple Olympic medalists at a single Games
• List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)
• List of United States records in swimming
• List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming (women)
• List of world records in swimming
• World record progression 100 metres backstroke
• World record progression 100 metres butterfly
• World record progression 100 metres individual medley
• World record progression 200 metres backstroke
• World record progression 4 × 100 metres medley relay
• World record progression 4 × 200 metres freestyle relay