 Portsmouth
Victoria Synchronised Swimming Club |
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| History A History of Synchronized Swimming Synchronized swimming has been around for quite a long time. As far back as 1890 men demonstrated "Scientific Ornamental Swimming" at Blackpool Tower. By the early 1930s teams of ladies swam patterns in the water which changed when a whistle was blown. Usually there was some background music. Esther Williams did much to arouse interest in water ballet when she starred in several films, and musical swimming extravaganzas were in vogue for some time. Synchronized swimming has changed a great deal since those early days and is comprised of increasingly complicated figures and taxing routines both solo, with a partner and in a team of between four to eight swimmers. "Synchro" has been an Olympic sport since 1984. Originally all three types of routine, solo, duet and team, were entered with a "knock out" round of figures to determine who should swim. However, in 1996 it was decided to make this a team and duet event with a maximum number of teams. These teams from all countries would have to qualify prior to the Olympic Games in order to participate. Other changes were introduced for 1996 Games, the figure competition was replaced by a "Technical Programme" in which a number of set moves were performed in a certain order. (This is rather similar to ice skating.) A famous quote compares synchronized swimming with running 800 metres whilst holding your breath and trying to look effortless and graceful at the same time. Fortunately it is no longer necessary to smile all the time and facial expressions are determined by the type of music being used. |
