The Paris Games brought a reconciliation to Spanish artistic swimming. After more than a decade of discord, a sort of general communion took place on the festive podium of the Saint Denis Aquatic Centre. At the top, China, which achieved its first ever Olympic gold medal under the guidance of Ana Tarrés, the coach who laid the foundations for this sport in Spain; in the silver position, the United States, led by the Spanish Andrea Fuentes to her first medal in two decades; and in the bronze position, Spain with a group of swimmers who began practising synchronised swimming because when they were very young they saw Andrea Fuentes win four medals between 2008 and 2012.
“This is the best coach in the world!” shouted Andrea Fuentes to the cameras that were filming her while hugging Ana Tarrés, the teacher from whom she learned to swim and train, who was fired by the federation in 2012 after a series of anonymous accusations of mistreatment that the CSD accepted as valid but the Supreme Court did not consider when it declared the dismissal unfair. With Russia, the hegemonic power since 2004, sanctioned for the invasion of Ukraine, the competition headed towards a new outcome. There were no losers in the pool at the end of the acrobatics program that completed the team final. Spain finished fourth in the specific diving event but made up for it with its excellent score in the free and technical routines contested on Monday and Tuesday, despite having suffered a penalty. In total, China 996 points; United States 914; and Spain 900.
Mayu Fujiki, the Japanese who fell in love with synchro at the 1984 Los Angeles Games and who, after competing on her national team, joined Ana Tarrés’ group of assistants two decades ago, completed the task of rebuilding the team after Ona Carbonell’s retirement. In Paris, she put together a competitive acrobatics program in a very short time, the weak point of the Spanish team, and to avoid the threat of the base marksas a result of the new regulations, devised a high-risk strategy. “It was a very well thought-out plan for these three days,” said the coach. “We prepared for three different scenarios. We decided to put the maximum difficulty on our figures so that even if they gave us base mark and they penalised us with points so that we would drop down the ranking as little as possible.” Thanks to her audacity, Fujiki knocked her home country off the podium: Japan finished fifth behind France.
Mayu Fujiki did not hide her emotion at meeting Andrea Fuentes and Ana Tarrés in the competition. “I have worked in the pool every day with Andrea for eight years,” she said. “We competed together at the Games in Athens and Beijing. I couldn’t feel like we were three different teams. I have been the coach of China and the United States and I know people on both teams. It was a very special moment. Ana told me: ‘Thank you, it is very important for artistic swimming in Spain, so that girls can start swimming in our clubs.’ I replied that part of this bronze is hers because I learned from her as a swimmer and as a technician.”
Canoe swimmer Blanca Toledano was 11 years old when she saw Spain win its last medal at the London Games: silver ahead of China and gold behind Russia in 2012. “I remember being in front of the screen and saying, ‘I wish this moment would come!’ And now I think: ‘I’m living it myself!’” Blanca recalled the legendary era, a founding moment that had Ana Tarrés and Andrea Fuentes as its top managers until later, after the 2008 Games, Ona Carbonell joined them. “There was something from Spain in all three teams on the podium!” said Blanca. “The cool thing about this atmosphere is that we get along really well with all the teams. It’s really nice to live in this atmosphere. We’re like a family.”
Spanish duo swimmer Iris Tió, who came up through the Kallipolis Club, whose synchronized swimmer is Ana Tarrés, said: “We are very happy that there is Spanish synchronized swimming all over the world. That means that we are a great power. In the end, we support each other. Ana trained me when I was a kid. Andrea and I have a very good feeling. I am very happy for her and her team.”
Ana Tarrés ended the day crying non-stop. “The medal for the United States is historic, just like ours in China,” said the Catalan, who has been living between Barcelona and Beijing since January 2023. “It hasn’t been easy for Andrea. The nice thing is to see how one of your swimmers is following in your footsteps, calling you and saying, ‘Ana, I need a favour, what would you do now? I have to change the difficulty of the routine….’ The fact that she still calls you to ask for advice and that it works out for her, after making a bet, is the best!”
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