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http://www.islandpacket.com/2010/04/15/1207724/olympic-champ-coughlin-on-island.html
Swimmer Natalie Coughlin has fans all over the world. On Wednesday,
she met with more than 50 of them at the Island Recreation Center
pool.
The three-time Olympic gold medalist is vacationing on Hilton Head
Island this week and is the keynote speaker for this weekend's
South Carolina Swimming All-State Weekend at Crowne Plaza Resort.
She swung by the rec center pool to meet members of the Hilton Head
Aquatics swim team.
"It's crazy," said 12-year-old H2A swimmer Ellen Vanagel, who got
Coughlin's autograph on a purple swim cap. "I can't believe it.
She's like one of my biggest mentors. It's so cool to get to meet
her."
Coughlin took time to sign autographs, pose for pictures and had a
question-and-answer session with the swim team, fielding questions
ranging from "What was it like to win a gold medal?" to "Is Michael
Phelps your best friend?"
Coughlin represented the United States in the 2004 Olympics in
Athens and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, where she became the first
American female in modern history to win six medals in one
Olympics. She has 11 Olympic medals in her career.
"Swimming is an interesting combination of having fun and working
hard," Coughlin said. "I do emphasize being passionate about what
you do. When you're spending five hours a day training, you have to
love it. I try to teach kids that. And I like doing
question-and-answer with them so they are engaged and focused and
I'm not just giving some long, boring speech."
Coughlin has ties to H2A head coach Jack Maddan. She grew up
swimming with his brother, David, who lost a battle with
Osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. She hosts swimming benefits
once or twice a year with proceeds going to a non-profit foundation
set up in David's honor.
"Having the most-decorated female swimmer of all time here is just
awesome," Maddan said. "It's really hard in today's society to find
a female athlete you can hold up on a pedestal and say 'Look at the
way she conducts herself' and 'Look at the way she carries
herself.' Girls need somebody to look up to and she is definitely
that individual."
While Coughlin is best known for her dominance in the water, she
also recently made a splash outside the pool as a contestant on the
ninth season of the television show "Dancing with the Stars." She
was also a judge on "Iron Chef America" and has made several other
TV appearances.
"I feel so blessed," Coughlin said. "If I walked away from the
sport today, I would be happy with my success. It has opened so
many doors for me."
Natalie Coughlin swim clinic
When: Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Where: Island Recreation Center pool, Hilton Head Island
Note: Coughlin will demonstrate different swimming skills in the
water and give feedback to swimmers. The clinic is open to the
public but only a select group of swimmers will be allowed in the
water.
More information: Go online to www.sc-swimming.org
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