Katie Hoff

Kathryn Elise Hoff (born June 3, 1989) is a former American competitive swimmer, Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder. Hoff was known for the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medley events. She represented the United States at the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Olympics, where she won a silver medal and two bronze medals.

Hoff qualified for the 2004 Summer Olympics at the age of 15.

At the 2005 World Aquatics Championships, Hoff set a championships record for her time of 2:10.41 in the women's 200-meter individual medley. Hoff earned two more gold medals at the competition, one in the 400-meter medley and the other for the 4×200-meter freestyle, with teammates Natalie Coughlin, Whitney Myers, and Kaitlin Sandeno.

In early 2006, Hoff made news by signing a 10-year endorsement deal with Speedo, which was the longest deal Speedo had with any athlete at the time. As a result, Hoff forfeited her amateur status for purposes of NCAA rules; however, one of the terms of the deal included a clause that Speedo would pay the cost of her college tuition.

Hoff retained her 200-meter individual medley title by winning at the 2007 World Championships setting a new championship record of 2:10.13. Hoff's previous experience helped her use her "veteran" status to help the most experienced member of the U.S. team, Natalie Coughlin, prepare for their world-record-setting pace in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

Heading into the 2008 Olympics, Hoff was considered a strong contender. Hoff held the American record in the 200-meter individual medley at 2:09.71 and set the world record in the 400-meter individual medley with a time of 4:31.12 set at the 2008 U.S. swim trials. (This time was subsequently bettered by Stephanie Rice in the Olympic finals with a time of 4:29.45).

Hoff's performances in Beijing produced a decidedly mixed record. NBC commentator and former-Olympian Rowdy Gaines described her results as disappointing (this included finishing second to Great Britain's Rebecca Adlington in the 400-meter freestyle), yet noted that her three medals at one Olympics is a significant achievement and cited the depth of the field in each of her events. Prior to the Olympic Games, Hoff was saddled by the media with the label "the female Michael Phelps" due to the challenging slate of races in which she was competing. Bob Bowman, Phelps' coach, thought the comparison was unfair.

Hoff set the American record in the 200-meter freestyle, yet finished fourth in the event. 70 minutes later, in the finals of the 200-meter individual medley, Hoff again finished fourth, well behind her time at the U.S. swim trials. These results led to questions as to whether Hoff's program in Beijing was too aggressive. It was also suggested that Hoff's narrow miss of a gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle created a confidence issue that affected her later races.