LONDON — Not so fast, says Natalie Coughlin. Everyone had assumed Coughlin, 29, would retire after she qualified for the London Games only in the 400-meter freestyle relay.
Coughlin said Thursday her future is undecided.“I may continue to swim, and I may not,” Coughlin said. “I think a lot of people assumed I was going to be done, and I never once said that. So I’m going to take this meet as it comes, and then I’ll evaluate from there.”She is a captain for the U.S. women’s swim team, just as she was in 2008 when she won six medals. Coughlin’s 11 medals are only one shy of tying Jenny Thompson and Dara Torres for the most among American women.“The hardest part about being an athlete is the day-to-day training, and that’s actually my favorite part,” Coughlin said. “Whether I retire or not, I’m going to continue to work out, so I might as well do it as my job.”