What is Artistic Swimming?

Imagine a dancer, but dancing in the water. Imagine ballerina, but pirouetting in the water. Imagine gymnast, but performing acrobatics in and out of the water. Now imagine the amalgamation in upside down perspective.

Artistic swimmers are required to express themselves with incredibly difficult routines while upside down in the water. As routines are executed, the swimmers are breathing faster and their heart rates are elevated, these moves become increasingly difficult as they have to hold their breath underwater.

At the same time, the swimmers often changing patterns to the tune of music, gracefully shifting spatially and in sync to one another with precise movements, while being upside down in the water. While so, their performance required them to traverse to cover the whole pool.

And all of this takes place in deep water. When you see swimmers catapulting their fellow swimmer out of the water, it is easy to forget they are not touching the bottom of the pool. They are using their physical strength not only to stay afloat but at the same time amassing the energy to propel not just themselves above the surface, but also the body weight of their fellow swimmers they are supporting and lifting.

Artistic swimming consumes a lot of physical, mental and emotional strength to perform underneath the water yet it looks effortless.