2009 World Championship silver medalist Daniela Samulski died on Tuesday after she lost her battle to cancer in her native Germany. Samulski succumbed to cancer after originally being diagnosed with the disease after her retirement in 2011. She was 33.
Samulski is survived by her husband and son. Samulski would have celebrated her 34th birthday next week on May 31.
Samulski’s former coach Henning Lambertz told the Berliner Zeitung, “I can not believe it. She was one of our best. It was a great time with her. I have not worked with any athletes for so long as they did with her.”
Samulski was the silver medalist in the 50 back at the 2009 World Championships behind China’s Zhao Jing, who set the world record that still stands today. Samulski’s time (27.23) still stands as the German record. She also holds the current German record in the 100 back with a 59.77 from the 2009 Worlds where she was ninth.
Samulski also swam the second leg on Germany’s 4×100 free relay and the lead-off on the 4×100 medley relay at those 2009 Worlds where the Germans finished second and third respectively. Both those relays still stand as the German record.
Samulski was also on Germany’s 4×200 free relay team that set a world record in the 2006 European Championships (7:50.82). Samulski swam the second leg (1:58.27) that also still stands as the German record.
The Berliner Zeitung and The German Swimming Federation Contributed to this report.