Natalie Coughlin Quotes

I swam at school a lot. Long-distance swimming in pools, and diving, then when we moved to Hastings when I was 13 I used to swim in the sea all the time; I loved it out of season and when it was rough.

I consider myself normal. I've spent 20 years in the pool. I consider that something that's normal.

I joined the swim team when I was 12, and I was the worst kid in the pool - I was put with a group of 7-year-olds.

I think for most people it's hard to understand what it is about swimming - I mean it's such a solo endeavour.

I do a lot of swimming, both in the ocean and in the pool.

When I'm preparing for a swim, I imagine absolutely everything about it: the color of the water, how cold it is, the taste of salt in my mouth. I visualize each and every stroke.

Swimming is a confusing sport, because sometimes you do it for fun, and other times you do it to not die. And when I'm swimming, sometimes I'm not sure which one it is.

I started swimming when I was four because my brother wanted to join a swim team, and I wanted to do what he did. They said I had to be six, but if I could swim a lap, then I could participate. So I swam a lap, and the rest is history.

A huge part of swimming for me is I love it, and it is so much fun.

I grew up as a swimmer, speaking of sports; I spent a lot of time before school and after school swimming.

I swam in high school.

I'm a great swimmer, probably due to the size of my feet.

After my swims this weekend I think coach realized, you know what, you have to have a good one getting out of this meet. So I put the suit on and had a decent swim.

My father was a swim teacher. We used to swim before school, swim after school.

Swimming is my passion and something that I love.

I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer when I was growing up.

I grew up in Florida, so you start swimming at the age of 1, really. By 10, I was competitive swimming, and by 12, I had aspirations to be the best in the world.

I try to swim every damn day I can, and I've learned to scuba dive and snorkel.

It's always great to see young swimmers and their excitement and the joy that they have in the water.

I just always really wanted to swim. It was always a family thing: dad obviously swam, and my sister did, too. And mum used to come along to meets. They had to drag me out of the pool - so there was never any pressure on me to swim. It was just something I loved doing.

I can freestyle for a while, but I'm not an Olympic swimmer who can go two or three miles.

I love standing up behind the blocks, and I love that moment just before you dive in and it goes quiet, and you take a deep breath and you just dive, and then you try and win, but that moment just before I go, that's why I race.

Growing up, I was a water baby. We lived near a lake, had a pool in our backyard, and as soon as I was old enough, I joined a swim team. By 10, I was winning local events.

Swimming is still very much a part of me.

Oh, I can't play soccer, and I'm not a great swimmer. I won't drown, but you won't see me doing laps in a pool.