Synchronized swimmer (11) tells us "I'm used to running out of air under water"
Eleven-year-old N. has decided to take up synchronized swimming as a hobby. On Future Day, she tells blue News how a routine is created.
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- On Future Day, eleven-year-old synchronized swimmer N. describes how she develops and rehearses a routine with her team.
- She finds it most difficult to memorize the sequence of figures and the long breath-hold under water.
- N. is often nervous before the competition, but as soon as she is in the water with her team, the tension disappears and she concentrates fully on the choreography.
N. is eleven and has been a synchronized swimmer for a good two years. She does the sport for fun - but the figures are difficult and the training hard.
On Future Day, she tells blue News how a routine is created.
Everything happens to the beat of the music
"First we choose the music. The trainer makes a suggestion and we always like it. We already had a mix of three songs, but now we just have one song.
My team chose the song at the training camp. I wasn't there. That's why the song was already decided when I came back. The others had also already started practising.
Of course, it's important that we like the song. But it also has to match the tempo of synchronized swimming. We move to the beat of the music. We always count to eight and then start again at one. We do the different movements at a certain number that we have agreed beforehand.
At the beginning, we stand at the edge of the pool and count to the beat of the music. On five, the first four go into position, on the next one they jump into the water. On the next five, the second row moves into position and jumps into the water on the next one."
Too long under water
"We decide together what our routine looks like. The coach usually makes a suggestion and we say whether we like it or not.
For example, she wanted us to do three figures directly one after the other under water. We would have counted to eight eight or nine times - without taking a breath in between. That was too long for us, so the instructor made a sequence where we could come up earlier.
I'm used to running out of air underwater. I then try to breathe in the air I still have inside me, although that doesn't help at all. What makes it even more difficult for me is that I have asthma. But I can manage one minute under water without any problems.
We practise the freestyle step by step. The coach has an idea of what we should do, but while we're doing these figures, she has other ideas and we incorporate them."
Excited about the competition
"At the moment, we've practiced more than half of the choreography and are working on the last part. In just three weeks, we have to perform the routine at the first competition. That's quite tight and I also have to practise at home so that I can do everything.
It's easier on dry land, of course. But one of the hardest things for me is knowing what I have to do next. I can also do that in my room. Or in front of the TV when it's not so exciting.
I'm often nervous at the competition. But we just want to win. We've managed that once so far. But as soon as I'm in the water with my team and the freestyle is underway, there's no more nervousness. Then we just do our figures and at the end I ask myself why I was nervous in the first place."