ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, July 23, 1996 TAG: 9607230032
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
Concept: Impress judges, who are stationed at strategic locations on the pool deck, with a routine that's no longer than five minutes and shows precision, grace and strength while blending the performance to music. Synchro competitors say the idea is to tell a story or at least have a theme.
Athletes: U.S. Synchronized Swimming estimates there are 220 clubs in this country with about 5,000 registered members.
History: The sport's roots trace to 1907 when Annette Kellerman attracted national attention at the New York Hippodrome as the first underwater ballerina. (The first synchro joke was cracked by a vaudeville comedian sometime in 1908 - just kidding.)
The sport made its Olympic debut in 1984 with solo and duet competitions. In Atlanta, those events have been scrapped in favor of an eight-person team competition that synchro proponents hope will be more palatable for mass public consumption.
Atlanta Olympic schedule: July 30, technical routine program; Aug. 2, free routine program.
Synchro Lingo: "Eggbeatering" is the leg motion swimmers use to tread water when they are upright in the water. It's similar to what water polo players do. Sculling is the figure-eight hand motion that synchro competitors employ to keep themselves in place when they are upside down in the water. |- KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE
LENGTH: Short : 35 linesby CNB