American swimmer (born 1997)
Kathleen Baker (born February 28, 1997) is an American competition
swimmer who specializes in
freestyle and
backstroke events. At the
2016 Summer Olympics , she won a gold medal in the
4x100-meter medley relay and a silver medal in the individual
100-meter backstroke . She is the former world-record holder in 100 meter backstroke, set on July 28, 2018, in 58.00 at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center in Irvine, CA. Baker is also the former world-record holder in the 4x100 meter medley relay with
Lilly King , Dana Vollmer, and
Simone Manuel .
Early life
Baker attended
Forsyth Country Day School until the tenth grade and then was home-schooled, so it would be easy to travel back and forth between
Winston-Salem , North Carolina and
Charlotte, North Carolina to swim and train with SwimMAC Carolina. Her mother swam for the
College of Charleston in
Charleston, South Carolina , and her older sister, Rachel, currently swims for
Washington and Lee University .
[2]
[3]
In 2010, Baker was diagnosed with
Crohn's disease .
[4]
Career
College swimming
Baker attended the
University of California, Berkeley , where she competed for the
California Golden Bears swimming and diving team for three years from 2015 to 2018.
[5]
2014-2015
At the 2014
Phillips 66 Nationals , the qualification meet for the
2014 Pan Pacifics , Baker finished second in the 200-meter backstroke and qualified for the team. She finished ninth in the
200-meter backstroke at Pan Pacifics, just outside the final.
Baker was also selected to the
2015 World Championships roster in the 100-meter backstroke. She placed eighth in the final of the
100-meter backstroke . She also swam in the prelims for the
4x100-meter medley relay , but did not receive a medal as the final squad finished fourth.
[6]
2016 Summer Olympics
At the
2016 Olympic Trials , Baker qualified for her first Olympics in the 100-meter backstroke by finishing second with a time of 59.29.
In
Rio , she won a silver medal in the
100-meter backstroke with a time of 58.75, three tenths behind the winner
Katinka Hosszú . She was not considered by many to be a medal threat since she had never broken 59 seconds prior to the Olympics.
[7] Baker also won a gold medal alongside
Lilly King ,
Dana Vollmer , and
Simone Manuel as the lead off of the
4x100-meter medley relay .
2017
At the
2017 World Championships , Baker won three medals. She won silver in the
100-meter backstroke ,
[8] bronze in the
200-meter backstroke ,
[9] and gold in the
4x100-meter medley relay .
[10] Though she did not medal in the
50-meter backstroke , Baker broke Natalie Coughlin's
American record in the event in the semifinals with a time of 27.48.
[11] Baker led off the women's 4x100-meter medley relay, with the team winning with a time of 3:51.55. The team of Baker,
Lilly King ,
Kelsi Worrell , and
Simone Manuel broke the 2012
world record of 3:52.05 set by
Missy Franklin ,
Rebecca Soni ,
Dana Vollmer , and
Allison Schmitt .
[12]
[13]
Personal life
In July 2021, Baker announced on her engagement to her long-time boyfriend and
United States Marine , Sean Dowling.
[14]
[15]
See also
References
^ Murtagh, Alison (July 18, 2016).
"5 Reasons to Cheer for Olympian Kathleen Baker" .
Swimming World . Retrieved August 27, 2016 .
^ Lowe, Kegan (August 9, 2016).
"Winston-Salem's Kathleen Baker takes silver in 100m backstroke" . journalnow.com . BH Media Group, Inc. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ Fowler, Scott (July 1, 2016).
"For swimmer Kathleen Baker, 19, road to Olympics ran between Winston-Salem, Charlotte" . charlotteobserver.com . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ Crouse, Karen (July 14, 2016).
"Swimmer Kathleen Baker Overcomes Crohn's Disease to Become an Olympian" .
The New York Times . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^
"Kathleen Baker Bio" . calbears.com . California Golden Bears. Retrieved June 29, 2016 .
^
"Kathleen Baker Bio" . SwimSwam . Retrieved September 15, 2016 .
^
"Kathleen Baker: It's a Good Time to Go A Best Time (Video)" . swimswam.com . Swim Swam. June 28, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2016 .
^
"Results Summary" . Omega Timing . July 25, 2017. Archived from
the original on July 28, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
^
"Results Summary" . Omega Timing . July 29, 2017. Archived from
the original on July 30, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
^
"Results Summary" . Omega Timing . July 30, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
^
"Kathleen Baker Downs Natalie Coughlin's 50 Back American Record - Swimming World News" . Swimming World News . July 26, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2017 .
^
"U.S. set world record to win women's 4x100 metres medley relay" . Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
^
"Watch USA Women Eclipse WR in 4x100 Medley Relay (Race Video)" . SwimSwam . July 30, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
^ D'Addona, Dan (July 19, 2021).
"Olympic Gold Medalist Kathleen Baker Announces Engagement" .
Swimming World . Retrieved October 30, 2021.
^ Dornan, Ben (July 19, 2021).
"US Olympian Kathleen Baker Announces Engagement To US Marine Sean Dowling" .
SwimSwam . Retrieved January 15, 2022.
External links
Qualification Men's team Women's team Coaches
1960 :
Lynn Burke ,
Patty Kempner ,
Carolyn Schuler ,
Chris von Saltza (
USA )
1964 :
Cathy Ferguson ,
Cynthia Goyette ,
Sharon Stouder ,
Kathy Ellis (
USA )
1968 :
Kaye Hall ,
Catie Ball ,
Ellie Daniel ,
Susan Pedersen (
USA )
1972 :
Melissa Belote ,
Cathy Carr ,
Deena Deardurff ,
Sandy Neilson (
USA )
1976 :
Ulrike Richter ,
Hannelore Anke ,
Kornelia Ender ,
Andrea Pollack (
GDR )
1980 :
Rica Reinisch ,
Ute Geweniger ,
Andrea Pollack ,
Caren Metschuck (
GDR )
1984 :
Theresa Andrews ,
Tracy Caulkins ,
Mary T. Meagher ,
Nancy Hogshead (
USA )
1988 :
Kristin Otto ,
Silke Hörner ,
Birte Weigang ,
Katrin Meissner (
GDR )
1992 :
Lea Loveless ,
Anita Nall ,
Crissy Ahmann-Leighton ,
Jenny Thompson ,
Janie Wagstaff ,
Megan Kleine ,
Summer Sanders ,
Nicole Haislett (
USA )
1996 :
Beth Botsford ,
Amanda Beard ,
Angel Martino ,
Amy Van Dyken ,
Catherine Fox ,
Whitney Hedgepeth ,
Kristine Quance ,
Jenny Thompson (
USA )
2000 :
Barbara Bedford ,
Megan Quann ,
Jenny Thompson ,
Dara Torres ,
Courtney Shealy ,
Ashley Tappin ,
Amy Van Dyken ,
Staciana Stitts (
USA )
2004 :
Giaan Rooney ,
Leisel Jones ,
Petria Thomas ,
Jodie Henry ,
Brooke Hanson ,
Jessicah Schipper ,
Alice Mills (
AUS )
2008 :
Emily Seebohm ,
Leisel Jones ,
Jessicah Schipper ,
Libby Trickett ,
Tarnee White ,
Felicity Galvez ,
Shayne Reese (
AUS )
2012 :
Missy Franklin ,
Rebecca Soni ,
Dana Vollmer ,
Allison Schmitt ,
Rachel Bootsma ,
Breeja Larson ,
Claire Donahue ,
Jessica Hardy (
USA )
2016 :
Kathleen Baker ,
Lilly King ,
Dana Vollmer ,
Simone Manuel ,
Olivia Smoliga ,
Katie Meili ,
Kelsi Worrell ,
Abbey Weitzeil (
USA )
2020 :
Cate Campbell ,
Chelsea Hodges ,
Emma McKeon ,
Kaylee McKeown ,
Mollie O'Callaghan ,
Emily Seebohm ,
Brianna Throssell (
AUS )
1973 :
Ulrike Richter ,
Renate Vogel ,
Rosemarie Kother ,
Kornelia Ender (GDR)
1975 :
Ulrike Richter ,
Hannelore Anke ,
Rosemarie Kother ,
Kornelia Ender (GDR)
1978 :
Linda Jasek ,
Tracy Caulkins ,
Joan Pennington ,
Cynthia Woodhead (USA)
1982 :
Kristin Otto ,
Ute Geweniger ,
Ines Geissler ,
Birgit Meineke (GDR)
1986 :
Kathrin Zimmermann ,
Sylvia Gerasch ,
Kornelia Gressler ,
Kristin Otto (GDR)
1991 :
Janie Wagstaff ,
Tracey McFarlane ,
Crissy Leighton ,
Nicole Haislett (USA)
1994 :
He Cihong ,
Dai Guohong ,
Liu Limin ,
Le Jingyi (CHN)
1998 :
Lea Maurer ,
Kristy Kowal ,
Jenny Thompson ,
Amy Van Dyken (USA)
2001 :
Dyana Calub ,
Leisel Jones ,
Petria Thomas ,
Sarah Ryan (AUS)
2003 :
Zhan Shu ,
Luo Xuejuan ,
Zhou Yafei ,
Yang Yu (CHN)
2005 :
Sophie Edington ,
Leisel Jones ,
Jessicah Schipper ,
Libby Trickett (AUS)
2007 :
Emily Seebohm ,
Leisel Jones ,
Jessicah Schipper ,
Libby Trickett (AUS)
2009 :
Zhao Jing ,
Chen Huijia ,
Jiao Liuyang ,
Li Zhesi (CHN)
2011 :
Natalie Coughlin ,
Rebecca Soni ,
Dana Vollmer ,
Missy Franklin (USA)
2013 :
Missy Franklin ,
Jessica Hardy ,
Dana Vollmer ,
Megan Romano (USA)
2015 :
Fu Yuanhui ,
Shi Jinglin ,
Lu Ying ,
Shen Duo (CHN)
2017 :
Kathleen Baker ,
Lilly King ,
Kelsi Worrell ,
Simone Manuel (USA)
2019 :
Regan Smith ,
Lilly King ,
Kelsi Dahlia ,
Simone Manuel (USA)
2022 :
Regan Smith ,
Lilly King ,
Torri Huske ,
Claire Curzan (USA)
2023 :
Regan Smith ,
Lilly King ,
Gretchen Walsh ,
Kate Douglass (USA)
2024 :
Iona Anderson ,
Abbey Harkin ,
Brianna Throssell ,
Shayna Jack (AUS)