Sync Up: January 1, 2020

Here are all the news from the last month you may have missed. Now, onto 2020 and the Olympic year!

2022 & 2024 European Championships

  • The 2022 European Championships have been allocated to Rome. The competition is scheduled for August 11 – 21. Very much like for the 2009 FINA World Championships, the complex of Foro Italico should host the swimming and diving events, while a temporary pool would be set up in the adjacent tennis center to accommodate the artistic swimming events. Open water swimming would return to the coasts of Rome (Ostia), and the city is also contemplating hosting the first-ever European Championships in high diving, which is already an event at worlds.
  • The next edition in 2024 will be held in Kazan, Russia. The recent WADA decision regarding the doping scandal should not affect this meet as European Championships are not considered a “major sporting event” by WADA.

Speaking of: Russia & WADA Update

  • To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Russia has confirmed it will appeal WADA’s four-year ban for manipulating doping data, and bring the case up to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Once a panel of three CAS arbitrators is chosen, a verdict will be issued within three months.

Retirements & Injuries

  • Carmen Juárez has announced her retirement from the Spanish national team, after not making the cut for the 2020 Olympic team training squad. She had been a member of the senior team since 2016, and was a world bronze medalist in highlight in 2019.
  • Maya Gurbanberdieva, two-time world and European champion in the mixed duet for Russia, had shoulder surgery. It is likely she will miss at the very least the beginning of the season, as recovery from shoulder surgery varies and most athletes can return to full-load training after four to six months of recovery time.

Last International Travels of 2019

  • Paula Klamburg, one of the current coaches of the Spanish junior national team and 2012 Olympic medalist, was in Mexico for 10 days to work mainly with the duet of Nuria Diosdado and Joana Jiménez on aspects of its choreography ahead of the Olympics: “The intention is to look for a different style,” Diosdado said.
  • Stephan Miermont continues to be in high demand ahead of the Olympic year. In December, he coached both of Italy‘s duets, first with Linda Cerruti and Costanza Ferro on their choreography, and then with the mixed duet of Giorgio Minisini and Lucrezia Ruggiero.
  • Chile‘s senior duet of Isidora Letelier and Natalie Lubascher worked with Spanish Olympian Marga Crespi in Las Vegas, where Crespi works at as a performer in the show Le Rêve.
  • Svetlana Kolesnichenko and Svetlana Romashina from Russia wrapped up their 2019 season with a training camp in Dubai, with national team coach Tatiana Danchenko.
  • Israel‘s duet training squad, made of Eden Blecher, Shelly Bobritsky, Tali Ostrovsky and Yael Polka, traveled to Barcelona to practice with Anna Tarrés and Bet Fernandez.
  • Japan‘s Olympic team had a training camp in Guam.

Mother & Son

  • Three-time world champion Virginie Dedieu took part in her club’s annual Christmas show, and performed a short “mixed duet” on land with her youngest son Macéo, who has also taken up synchro in the same club and is currently in the “Hopes” category.

Excuse Me, What?

  • As if the U.S.‘ jump up-and-down throw wasn’t insane enough, it looks like the team wants to go for landing a backflip back down onto the base. Because, why not?
Article by Christina Marmet

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