Synchronized swimming or artistic swimming is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by World Aquatics. It has traditionally been a women's sport, although FINA introduced a new mixed gender duet competition that included one male swimmer in each duet at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships and LEN introduced men's individual events at the 2022 European Aquatics Championships. From 2024, men will be able to compete in the team event at the Olympics.
World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA, is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competitions in water sports. It is one of several international federations which administer a given sport or discipline for both the IOC and the international community. It is based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Brenda Villa is an American accomplished water polo player. She is the most decorated athlete in the world of women’s water polo. Villa was named Female Water Polo Player of the Decade for 2000-2009 by the FINA Aquatics World Magazine. She is one of four female players who competed in water polo at four Olympics; and one of two female athletes who won four Olympic medals in water polo. She is a leading goalscorer in Olympic water polo history, with 31 goals. In 2018, she was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame.
The 10th FINA World Aquatics Championships were held July 12–27, 2003 in Barcelona, Spain. The championships featured competition in all 5 of FINA's disciplines: Swimming, Diving, Synchronised swimming, Water Polo, and Open Water Swimming.
The 2001 World Aquatics Championships or the 9th FINA World Swimming Championships were held in Fukuoka, Japan between 16 July and 29 July 2001.
The 2007 World Aquatics Championships, or the XII FINA World Championships, were held in Melbourne, Australia from 17 March to 1 April 2007. The competition took place at three locations in central Melbourne: the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, St Kilda Beach, and Rod Laver Arena in a temporary pool christened the Susie O'Neill Pool.
The 2009 World Aquatics Championships or the XIII FINA World Championships were held in Rome, Italy from 18 July to 2 August 2009. The 2009 Championships featured competition in all 5 aquatics disciplines: diving, swimming, open water swimming, synchronised swimming and water polo.
Mark Andreas Cornelis Versfeld is a Canadian former competitive swimmer and backstroke specialist. At the 2000 Summer Olympics, he finished in 26th position in the 100 m backstroke. He won the same event and the 200 m backstroke two years earlier, at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. At the 1998 Aquatic World Championships he won a silver in the 100-metre backstroke, and bronze in the 200-metre backstroke, breaking a Commonwealth record in the process. He was named Canadian Male Aquatic Athlete of the Year in 1998.
Mark Daniel Gangloff is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, world champion, and former world record-holder.
The Swimming competition at the 11th FINA World Aquatics Championships consisted of 40 long course events, swum July 24–31, 2005 at pools in Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Swimming's 40 events were split evenly between males and females and were:
For the swimming competitions at the 2008 Olympics the following qualification systems were in place.
The 15th FINA World Championships were held from 20 July to 4 August in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The 2013 World Championships featured 6 aquatics disciplines: swimming, water polo, diving, high diving, open water, and synchronised swimming.
The diving competitions at the 2012 Olympic Games in London took place from 29 July to 11 August at the Aquatics Centre within the Olympic Park. It was one of four aquatic sports at the Games, along with swimming, water polo and synchronised swimming.
The American team competed at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China from July 16 to July 31. The United States topped the gold medal count in the competition with 17 golds and finished the competition with 32 total medals, behind China's 36. 16 of the 17 gold medals came from the swimming competition and one came from the open water swimming competition. Individually, Michael Phelps won the most overall medals in the competition with seven. Ryan Lochte won the most gold medals among the male competitors with five and finished the competition with six medals total.
Canada competed at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China between July 16 and 31, 2011. Margie Schuett was the chef de mission.
The 16th FINA World Championships, also Aquatics 2015, were held in Kazan, Russia from 24 July to 9 August 2015. Russia hosted this event for the first time. The number of participating national teams (190), athletes (2,400) and the number of medals (75) were the most ever amongst these championships. This was the first time the World Aquatics Championships partially overlaps with the FINA World Masters Championships that have a number of athletes, countries (110) and medals (635) which are the most ever also.
Stefano Tempesti is an Italian water polo goalkeeper. He competed at five consecutive Olympics between 2000 and 2016 and won a silver medal in 2012 and a bronze in 2016. He is the second water polo goalkeeper to compete at five Olympics, after Spaniard Jesús Rollán. Tempesti was the top goalkeeper at the 2008 Olympics, with 83 saves. He was also the top goalkeeper at the 2012 Olympics, with 87 saves.
The 17th FINA World Championships were held in Budapest, Hungary from 14 to 30 July 2017.
The 2019 World Aquatics Championships were the 18th FINA World Aquatics Championships, held in Gwangju, South Korea from 12 to 28 July 2019. The city had previously hosted the 2015 Summer Universiade aquatics events in the same venues.
The Danube Arena is an aquatics complex located in Budapest, Hungary. It was designed by Marcell Ferenc and built between 2015 and 2017.
United States (USA)
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