Wonder Woman of the Week: Natalie Coughlin

The rainy season is in full swing in Sitka which means I almost have to swim anytime I leave the house. This week’s spotlight would make anyone walking in the rain look like a bunch of toddlers in floaties. She fought scoliosis to earn twelve Olympic Medals, holds national and international swimming records, and has competed in three separate Olympic Games. The Wonder Woman of the Week is Natalie Coughlin.

Natalie Anne Coughlin Hall in 1982 in Vallejo, California. When most six year olds were riding their first ponies, Coughlin was already a competitive swimmer. Later in her life, one of Coughlin’s childhood coaches stated “she had one speed and that was ’all out.’” In high school, Coughlin became a champion, but she suffered a shoulder injury that sidelined her. Most athletes would have quit, leaving their goggles behind, but Natalie Coughlin was no average athlete. She pushed her body to its limits in college and won twelve NCAA national titles. For three years in a row, she earning the Swimmer of the Year Award and set new record times for the 50 meter backstroke. [1]

After setting new records for the 100 meter backstroke, and qualifying in the 100 meter freestyle, Natalie Coughlin earned her spot on Team USA’s Olympic swim roster. At the Athens Olympics in 2004, Coughlin won gold medals in the 100 meter backstroke and helped set the new world record for the 800 meter freestyle relay. The swimmer also earned silver medals in the 400 meter freestyle relay and 400 meter medley relay events and a bronze in the 100 meter freestyle. In the swimmer’s first Olympic Games, Coughlin earned five Olympic Medals. Four years later, Natalie Coughlin returned to the Olympics in Beijing where she became the first woman to win back-to-back medals in the same event. At Beijing, Coughlin took home six Olympic Medals. At her third Olympic Games, Coughlin won her twelfth Olympic Medal in London. [2]

When Natalie Coughlin turned thirty, she saw a doctor about back problems coinciding with the London Olympics. An X-ray revealed she had scoliosis- a medical condition in which the spine is not properly aligned. She also returned from the London Games with only a single medal and many sports analysts called it her last Olympic Games. That sort of thig doesn’t stop swimming legends though, and Coughlin refused to quit. [3]

In an interview with GrindTV, Natalie Coughlin addressed her plans for the future of her career. “I never said I was planning on retiring…” Coughlin stated. “My focus right now is on qualifying for the World Championships…in Barcelona.” Coughlin also spoke about her training in both swimming and surfing explaining in detail the training she undergoes for her career. [4] The interview was ten years ago, and with Coughlin’s continued international success, she will most likely become a four-time Olympic athlete.

Natalie Coughlin was a competitive swimmer since the age of six. When she suffered a sidelining injury in high school, she refused to quit and went on to become an NCAA swimming champion. After college, Coughlin still refused to quit and went on to compete in three Olympic Games, and broke multiple world records for swimming throughout the journey. Even after being diagnosed with scoliosis, the swimmer still refused to quit and Coughlin remains hopeful she’ll be a barracuda in the pool in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Natalie Coughlin is the epitome of will- refusing to quit after two major life injuries, refusing to retire after her worst Olympic Games, and refusing to be anything less than her absolute best. She continues to test the physical limits of her own body and for all of that, Natalie Coughlin is a true Wonder Woman.

“Natalie Coughlin.” 2015. Biography.com. Accessed 4 November 2015. http://www.biography.com/people/natalie-coughlin-20881669#early-life

“Natalie Coughlin.” 2015. swimswam.com. Accessed 4 November 2015. http://swimswam.com/bio/natalie-coughlin/

“Even scoliosis couldn’t stop Olympic medalist Natalie Coughlin.” 7 June 2015. espn go. Accessed 4 November 2015. http://espn.go.com/olympics/story/_/page/bodynataliecoughlin/olympic-swimmer-natalie-coughlin-shares-secrets-12-medals-espn-magazine-body-issue

Baird, Courtney. “Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin talks surfing, Rio 2016, and her new sportswear line with O’Neill.” 11 February 2013. GrindTV. Accessed 4 November 2015. http://www.grindtv.com/culture/olympic-swimmer-natalie-coughlin-talks-surfing-rio-2016-and-her-new-sportswear-line-with-o-neill/