By Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) - Chasing her third Olympics, Natalie Coughlin isn’t sure the trend of making the games over and over will become routine in swimming.

Michael Phelps is going for his fourth, Ryan Lochte his third. Dara Torres, Ian Thorpe, Janet Evans, Amanda Beard - everyone in the sport seems to be shattering the assumption that the Olympics are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“I think this is a special moment in time in swimming,” Coughlin told The Associated Press on Thursday. “Yes, there are several of us that have been to many Olympics. We’re kind of at that sweet spot where there are more opportunities now for people after college and people physically are figuring out how to keep injury away. At the same time, I think it’s kind of a coincidence that there are so many people who are doing well.”

Read More

BOLZANO, Italy, November 6. NATALIE Coughlin completed a strong two-day outing in Italy at the International Swim Meeting in Bolzano. 

Coughlin began the day with a win in the women’s 100 fly with a 56.97. That swim pushed her to fifth in the world rankings in the event. Italy’s Elena Di Liddo placed second in 59.32, while Germany’s Sina Sutter earned third in 1:00.21. Coughlin followed that up with her fourth title of the meet with a 24.50 in the women’s 50 free. She jumped to 12th in the rankings with that performance. Germany’s Dorothea Brandt took second in 24.99, while Italy’s Erica Buratto touched third in 25.36. 

Read More

BOLZANO, Italy, November 5. IT was a banner first day of short course meter racing for Natalie Coughlin at the International Swim Meeting held in Bolzano, Italy. 

Coughlin started off the day with a 52.94 to win the women’s 100 free, short of her eighth-ranked season best of 52.80 from Genova earlier in the week. She then rattled the American record in the women’s 100 IM, which Coughlin has said is her favorite event. Coughlin won the sprint medley with a time of 58.72. That time just missed Ariana Kukors’ American record of 58.65 from the semifinals of the World Short Course Championships in Dubai in 2010. The time did clip Fran Halsall’s 58.73 for the top ranking in the world this year, and bettered Coughlin’s lifetime best of 58.80 from back in 2003. She moved to eighth on the all-time rankings with the performance. 

Read More

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, November 3. THIRTY-six top U.S. swimmers, including 21 Olympians, will battle against a squad of European swimmers at the 2011 Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool in Atlanta, December 16-17. The competition will take place at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center and will be broadcast on NBC. 

The event will star Olympic gold medalists Ryan Lochte (Daytona Beach, Fla.), Natalie Coughlin (Vallejo Calif.), Rebecca Soni (Plainsboro, N.J.), Brendan Hansen (Irvine, Calif.), Dana Vollmer (Granbury Texas) and Amanda Beard (Irvine, Calif.). The meet will also feature 2011 World Championship gold medalists Missy Franklin (Centennial, Colo.) and Elizabeth Beisel (Saunderstown, R.I) as well as Olympians Peter Vanderkaay (Rochester, Mich.) and Eric Shanteau (Lilburn, Ga.). 

Read More

GENOVA, Italy, November 1. USA’s Natalie Coughlin began what looks to be a productive European swing spanning multiple meets in Italy this week. At the Nico Sapio Trophy meet today, Coughlin posted a top-ranked time while also breaking into the top 10 in another short course meter rankings for her second victory of the night. 

Coughlin crushed the women’s 100 backstroke with a time of 56.47. That swim cleared Missy Franklin’s previously top-ranked time of 56.73 set at the Berlin stop of the World Cup circuit, and came within half-a-second of her American record of 56.08 from Dubai in 2010. Italy’s Arianna Barbieri (59.83) and Roberta Ioppi (1:01.11) finished second and third. 

Coughlin then claimed the women’s 100 free title in 52.80 to move to seventh in the world rankings. Franklin leads the world with a 52.09 from Berlin, while Coughlin bypassed Allison Schmitt (53.07) as the second-fastest American this year. The Netherlands’ Femke Heemskerk took second in 53.20, while USA’s Kim Vandenberg touched third in 54.79. 

Read More

We’re smack in the middle of the Holiday Season and it seems as if every other commercial is geared towards selling you on some gift that you need to buy your loved ones.  I love buying my friends and family the perfect gift but am often stumped on what to get.  Since I love cooking and most people love eating, I have been making gifts from the kitchen over the past several years to accompany my purchased presents. 

Read More

Once again I am joining the blogosphere.  Even though I’m a Twitter-addict (follow me at NatalieCoughlin!) and I do a decent job of updating my Facebook page (facebook.com/officialnataliecoughlin), it’s been a while since I have kept a true blog.  Since I’ve been out of school for over five years, it’s probably a good thing to force me to write and help keep my mind sharp.  It’s amazing how dumb one starts to feel when you’re no longer forced to write or study.

So a little bit about me… 

Read More