China's synchronized swimming on the rise
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China Daily, July 19, 2011
The Chinese synchronized swimming team, which aims to flourish at next year's London Olympics, has been motivated by a breakthrough in a non-Olympic event at the 14th FINA World Championships.
Always driven by its Games' programs, China's synchronized swimming team didn't expect too much in the non-Olympic solo discipline at the worlds, but was inspired after young swimmer Huang Xuechen claiming its first championships silver medal here on July 17. On Monday, Huang added another silver medal in the technical duets with Liu Ou. The event was won by Russia's Natalia Ishchenko and Svetlana Romashina.
"She executed her show to perfection tonight," said Huang's personal coach, Zhang Xiaolei.
"It's our first solo silver medal at the worlds. She made history at such a big event. It really stunned the world and encouraged us," Zhang said.
"Although the solo routine won't be part of the Olympic program and we are mainly concentrating on the Olympic-accepted duet and team events, her dazzling performance gave the whole team a huge confidence boost for next year's bid for gold at the London Games," Zhang said.
Dressed in shiny black swimwear, 21-year-old Huang finished her routine to the sounds of Swan Lake at the Oriental Sports Center, wowing the cheering crowds with total 96.5 points.
"I am excited to win a record-making silver medal. But I still saw gaps in technique and emotions between myself and the top players," said Huang, who chose a black "swan suit"make herself "unique".
Ishchenko and Spaniard Andrea Fuentes won the gold and bronze medals respectively.
Ishchenko, a winning member of the team event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, admitted China was emerging as a "pretty challenging" opponent for Russia - the event's traditional powerhouse.
"The Chinese team has improved a lot technically in recent years. They are becoming a tougher opponent," said Ishchenko, who outscored Huang by 1.8 points and moved the audience with a classic Romeo and Juliet dance.
Despite a stunning show, Huang still needs to fix some minor flaws in her routine, according to the Spanish team's head coach, Anna Tarres.
"She is doing well with the way she swims. But the elements are still not very well connected. If she can improve that, she will be at the top," Tarres said.
