History of Synchronised Swimming

After Annette Kellerman, an Australian lady, caught the attention of the nation, performing in a glass tank at the New York Hippodrome, she became known as the underwater ballerina. In the 1920s, a group of Canadian women developed what they called 'ornamental swimming'.

A water ballet club was formed by Katherine Curtis and they performed in the lagoon at the Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago. Esther Williams became a Hollywood phenomenon portraying Kellerman’s life in the musical Million Dollar Mermaid. In the 1940’s and 1950’s she performed in a string of MGM ‘aqua musicals’. The art developed quickly over the next 20 years becoming extremely technical and athletically demanding, becoming a sport. The name of was changed to Synchronised swimming and routines were put to music.

The American swimmers demonstrated the sport at the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960 and Synchronised Swimming became officially and Olympic Sport. Currently there are two Olympic Events, the duet and team routines (eight swimmers).

Becoming an Olympic sport significantly raised the profile of Synchronised Swimming and as a result of the diversity of the discipline and the aestheticism of the sport, the highly skilled athlete’s ability in the water has become more and more popular within the media, events and entertainment industry.