Natalie Louise Cook, OAM (born January 19, 1975) is an Australian professional beach volleyball player and Olympic gold medallist.

Cook was born in Townsville, Queensland. She was the dux of her high school, and subsequently studied medicine. At the same time, she took up volleyball, captaining the Australian Indoor Junior Team in 1992. In 1993, she began playing beach volleyball, before giving up her academic career and going professional the following year.

She partnered with Kerri Pottharst , and together, they represented Australia at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, winning a bronze medal - the very first time that beach volleyball had been an Olympic sport. In the same year, the pair won a silver medal at the world championships, and came first in the World Tour Event in Japan.

Cook and Pottharst split for several years afterwards, but reunited in time for the Sydney Olympics in 2000. Before the games, they finished third in the World Tour Events in France and Portugal. At the games themselves, the pair dominated the competition, taking out the gold medal. In the aftermath of their Olympic win, the pair were awarded the Order of Australia, Australia's highest honor. Cook and Pottharst were included in the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball's Team of the Decade.

After the Olympics, Pottharst retired, and Cook found a new partner in Nicole Sanderson . They won a bronze medal at the 2003 world championships, and by the end of the 2003 world tour, were ranked fourth in the world. They were subsequently selected to represent Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympics. The pair have defeated Cook's former partner, Pottharst (who has come out of retirement), and remain unbeaten in the tournament, having reached the quarter-finals.

Cook currently resides in Brisbane. In addition to her sporting career, she tours on the public speaking circuit and has recently launched her own beach volleyball-related business, Sandstorm.

Books

• Go Girl! (2001)

External links

• Official site