.jpg) Dahlia in 2017 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Kelsi Worrell Dahlia |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | Kelsi Worrell (1994-07-15)July 15, 1994 (age 31)[3] |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)[4] |
| Weight | 165 lb (75 kg)[4] |
Spouse | Tom Dahlia (m. 2017) |
| Relative(s) | Siblings: Kyle Worrell, Jarrod Worrell, Lindi Worrell, Taylor Worrell, Skylar Worrell |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Swimming |
| Strokes | Butterfly,freestyle |
| Club | Cali Condors[1] Cardinal Aquatics |
| College team | University of Louisville[2] |
| Coach | Arthur Albiero (Louisville) |
Medal record | |
Kelsi Worrell Dahlia (néeWorrell; born July 15, 1994) is a former American competitiveswimmer and 2016 Olympic champion in the 4x100 medley relay who swam for theUniversity of Louisville and specialized in butterfly and freestyle events. At the2018 World Championships, Dahlia won nine medals which included seven gold.[5][6]
As part of theInternational Swimming League she competes for theCali Condors.[7]
Born on July 15, 1994, to Bob and Erica Worrell inVoorhees Township, New Jersey, Worrell grew up inWestampton Township, New Jersey where she swam for Tarnsfield Swim Club and Jersey Storm Swimming. At the Jersey Storm club, a highly competitive program, she was coached by Garrett Clark. She attendedRancocas Valley High School inMount Holly, where she graduated as part of the class of 2012.[4][7]
During her High School years, she earned All- American status in the 100-fly with a time of 54.93, the 100-back with a 56.81, and the 100-free with a 50.84. She was named Most Valuable Player of theRancocas Valley High School Swim Team and was Burlington County Swimmer of the year for four consecutive years. She was a New Jersey state champion three times in the 100-fly, and also won the 100-free event. During her High School career, she was named New Jersey Swimmer of the Year and was a USA Swimming Scholastic All American.[4][7]
Worrell attended the University of Louisville majoring in Exercise Science from 2012 to 2016 where she swam for Head CoachArthur Albiero. Through 2014, Dahlia received additional coaching from Albiero's Assistant CoachRachel Komisarz, a 2004 Athens Olympic gold medalist.[8][7]
As a Freshman at Louisville, swimming the 100-butterfly, Dahlia set a new record for the Big East Conference with a time of 51.55. She continued to hold the fastest time for the 100-fly in the nation for most of the year. At the NCAA championships, Worrell placed fourth place in the 100-butterfly in 51.80, becoming an All- American. As a Louisville Sophomore, she placed second in the 100 butterfly at the NCAA Championships recording a time of 51.09. She also recorded a Louisville record in the 200-fly in with a fourth-place finish of 1:53.63.[7]
As a Louisville Junior in March, 2015 she captured the NCAA Championship in the 100 butterfly with a time of 49.81, setting a new American Record and a new NCAA Record as well. When she first set the 100-fly record at the NCAA finals, she broke the 13-year-old former mark held byNatalie Coughlin, and became the first woman to break 50 seconds in the event. She also captured the NCAA championship that year in the 200 butterfly with the time of 1:51.11.[9][10][11][7] As a Louisville senior, she won theHonda Sports Award in the swimming & diving category in 2016.[7]
At the2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, she won the gold medal in the100-meter butterfly.[2][12]
As noted previously, while at Louisville, Worrell held theAmerican record in the 100-yard butterfly.[13] In March 2016, she improved her record to 49.43 s.[14]
At theDuel in the Pool meeting in December 2015, Worrell broke theworld record in the4×100 meter medley relay (short course) together with her teammates Courtney Bartholomew,Katie Meili, andSimone Manuel.[15]
At theUS Olympic Swimming Trials, Worrell placed first in the 100-meter butterfly and qualified for the US Olympic team.
InRio de Janeiro, Worrell placed 4th in the heats of the100-meter butterfly but failed to qualify for the finals after finishing 9th in the semi-finals.
On August 12, 2016, Dahlia won a gold medal in the4×100-meter medley relay after swimming in the preliminary heats, which helped the American team advance. Dahlia swam the breaststroke leg in the second preliminary heat of the medley with the American team ofOlivia Smoliga,Katie Meili, andAbbey Weitzeil, that recorded a combined time of 3:54.67. Though she did not swim in the final, the American medley relay team later finished in first in the final round with a combined time of 3:53.13, with Australia taking the silver and Denmark taking the bronze.[16][17]
At the2018 World Swimming Championships in December inHangzhou,China, Dahlia won a record nine medals at a FINA Championships meet, narrowly taking a lead in the gold medal count with seven medals overCaeleb Dressel who also won nine medals only with one less gold medal.[5][6]
In 2019 she was a member of the inauguralInternational Swimming League representing theCali Condors, who finished third place in the final match in Las Vegas, Nevada in December. Dahlia won the 100-meter butterfly at the final beating world record holderSarah Sjöström for the second time of the season.[18]
Dahlia won one gold and two silver medals competing for Team USA at the2019 World Aquatics Championships. She swam the butterfly leg of the4×100 meter medley final in which USA won gold with a world-record time of 3:50.40.[19] She won silver for a preliminary heat in the4×100 meter mixed medley and a silver in the4×100 meter freestyle final, setting an American record with a time of 3:31.02.[20]
In 2022 Dahlia announced her official retirement from swimming and began work as an associate swimming coach for the University of Notre Dame. In the position she worked with Louisville associate Chris Lindauer, who had been hired in April.[21]
In October 2017, Dahlia married her husband, Tom. She has 5 siblings: Jarrod, Kyle, Lindi, Taylor and Skylar who also swam for Tarnsfield Swim Club. Her brother Kyle swam forLouisville and qualified and competed in the 2021 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials.[4]
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Women's 100 meter butterfly world record holder (short course) December 3, 2021 – December 18, 2022 | Succeeded by |
