Isabelle ‘Izzy’ Thorpe and Ranjuo Tomblin may have followed different paths in artistic swimming, but this season, they’ve come together in a new and somewhat unexpected mixed duet partnership for Great Britain.
The pair made its debut just a few weeks ago at the European Championships in Funchal, where they quickly found their rhythm, earning silver and finishing just tenths away from gold. Emerging as one of the mixed duets to keep an eye on, they’re aiming to build on that strong start at the upcoming World Championships in Singapore.
For Thorpe, the move into the mixed duet marks a first. She has long been a mainstay of the British duet scene, competing at two Olympic Games, five World Championships, and seven European Championships. Until Funchal, she had always swum alongside her longtime teammate and close friend Kate Shortman.
After an intense Olympic year, which culminated into a silver medal at the Paris Games, she took some well-earned time off at the start of the season. When the opportunity arose to explore something new, coinciding with the retirement of Tomblin’s previous partner, everything fell into place.
“I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do this year,” she said. “I knew I wanted to take a break first, and so I could finish my studies as well. It also kind of coincided with Beatrice [Crass], Ranjuo’s old partner, retiring, and Kate was in Paris for the year. Ranjuo’s coach Paola [Basso], who is my old coach as well, had mentioned this opportunity to me already last season. And then, it just kind of all came together quite well.”
After her break, the 24-year-old had eased back into the pool over the winter months, mainly to maintain her fitness and technique while finishing her university dissertation. She then returned to full-time training in April, a timeline she admits has made for “quite a quick turnaround” before the European Championships at the beginning of June.
Tomblin, 19, brings an impressive résumé of his own, including two European titles in solo and 21 European medals across junior and senior levels. Although it wasn’t something he expected, the chance to swim with Thorpe was a challenge he welcomed wholeheartedly.
“Obviously it’s a huge honor to be swimming with an Olympic silver medalist,” he said. “I didn’t think that would ever happen (laughs). Izzy brings a lot of experience, is always encouraging me and giving small tips here and there. I’ve learned a lot from her already. I think we’ve really been enjoying it; we really work well together. We have lots of laughs and we feed off each other’s energy.”
The move into the mixed duet has also brought Thorpe a welcome change of pace after years focused on the Olympic duet event.
With the latest rule changes, the mixed duet routines have drastically changed and include fewer hybrids, making them, as she put it, “a bit less challenging” than what she’s used to, though still demanding in their own right. “The hybrids are still quite long,” she added with a laugh.
While the format is new, the experience has been just as fulfilling. More than anything, she has valued the shift in training dynamic and in her schedule so far.
“It has been really nice,” she said. “I think it was the break I needed, not from Kate, because we’re like sisters, but from the duet and that intense environment. I feel a lot calmer, although I still get nervous in competition because of course I want to do well.”
Thorpe and Tomblin’s debut in Funchal was impressive, as they nearly upset perennial power Spain and established themselves as serious contenders in the category.
Their goal was clear: aim high, focus on what they could control and deliver a strong performance. They did just that, winning a silver medal in the technical event with a score of 214.9441, only 1.2526 points away from the now two-time European Champions of Spain.
“We wanted to go in aiming for the gold,” Thorpe explained. “But we really focused on the process as well, what we wanted our swim to look like. I think we kind of achieved what we were looking for. Obviously, we were really close to Spain, which has motivated us and made us excited to see what we could do with a bit more training together.”
Thorpe has also enjoyed discovering the spirit of the mixed duet community, a space she’s found to be both welcoming and supportive.
“It’s a really nice environment to be a part of,” she said. “It doesn’t feel like we’re competing and fighting against each other. Dennis [Gonzalez Boneu, of Spain] came up to us in training to tell us we looked really good, that he enjoyed the competition with us. Everyone is encouraging each other, and really with that mindset of pushing the mixed duet as a whole. Like, what can we do and what can we become? It’s been very fun and nice to be a part of this.”
Only a few days after Funchal, Thorpe and Tomblin traveled to Xi’an to compete in the World Cup Super Final. They unveiled their new free choreography there, and left China with two bronze medals.
In recent years, both of them have contributed to raising the sport’s profile in Great Britain, and they’re eager to keep that momentum going. After the Paris Games, Thorpe visited clubs around the country to coach and support younger swimmers, and she’s heard from many that interest has grown following the Olympics.
Tomblin has noticed the shift too, particularly among boys:
“When I was competing at nationals, I was the only one there, or perhaps there’d be two of us. This year, there were already five young mixed duets. That’s really exciting.”
Looking ahead to the World Championships in Singapore, the focus remains on doing their best and enjoying the experience.
“Obviously, we all want to win,” Tomblin said. “There’s that goal of winning a medal for us, of winning the event, but I think we also just want to have fun together, do good swims, and then, whatever happens at the end of the day, we’ll be happy.”
As for what happens after Singapore, nothing is set in stone. Thorpe is leaving the door open, whether that means continuing in the mixed duet, returning solely to the women’s duet, or possibly both just like a few others have been doing this season.
With Shortman expected back in training in the fall, Thorpe will certainly have decisions to make. But for now, the priority is staying present and making the most of this new chapter.
“We’re just gonna see how it goes,” she said. “It’s still early. I want to just focus on what I’m doing at the moment, and to continue enjoying the process with Ranjuo. LA 2028 is also still a long time away, but I think splitting the cycle helps avoid burnout. I want to stay in the sport at a high level, and this has been a great way to maintain a pace that’s sustainable and mentally good for me.”
Whatever happens, the partnership of Thorpe and Tomblin has brought a new spark to British artistic swimming and to the mixed duet competition as a whole.
ARTICLE BY CHRISTINA MARMET
Cover photo: Aniko Kovacs / European Aquatics
If you’ve enjoyed our coverage, please consider donating to Inside Synchro! Any amount helps us run the site and travel costs to cover meets during the season.