Olympics 2024: China wins gold in artistic swimming, US bags silver

There is attention to the sport that has never happened before, said Adam Andrasko, who heads USA Artistic Swimming. This is an absolutely different sport.

The smiles, the makeup and hair gelatin remain, but this is no longer the water ballet beneath flowery rubber caps that your grandparents watched.

Wednesday’s acrobatic routines, after technical and free routines on Monday and Tuesday, put female athleticism on full display: power, endurance, and energy.

In the acrobatic routine, each team is required to include seven above-water elements. Seven times, a swimmer known as the flier is launched two meters (six feet) above the water surface into flips, twists and dives.

She’s catapulted into the air from a base of swimmers below that are not allowed to touch the bottom of the pool.

Tricks, more muscular routines and more buzz now characterize the sport: like the Moonwalk routine performed upside down with the swimmers heads under water that the Americans performed Tuesday in the free routine.

Rules and judging changes adopted about 18 months ago have turned this into gymnastics on water with a dramatic edge like figure skating. The risks are also higher.

People are pleasantly confused about how in the world these women can do what they do, Andrasko said.

Men had an opportunity for the first time to compete in artistic at the Olympics, but no men were picked by any of the teams. There is consideration to add a mixed duet team event for Los Angeles 2028, which would create more space for men to compete.

There was not nearly enough time for nearly enough males to prepare for this chance, Andrasko said. It was a challenge to step up interest in a year and a half before the Olympics.

First Published: Aug 08 2024 | 8:38 AM IST