Synchronized swimming Looks Effortless…But Is It?

Randal C. Hill

50plus Magazine

Synchronized swimming can seem an elegant but relatively easy activity, but swimming legend Charlotte Davis vehemently disagrees. “I challenge people to come watch a workout and watch the competition very closely,” she once told a reporter. “One of the deceptive qualities about the sport is that you try to make it look as effortless as possible. To do that, you have to be a very well-conditioned athlete.”

 

She knows of which she speaks. Charlotte began swimming at age three and has been in pools ever since. When she was eight, her older sisters introduced her to “water ballet.” She was immediately hooked on the pageantry — and the fact that she could swim upside down! By 13, Davis had set her heart on becoming a synchronized swimmer, later admitting, “I never saw myself doing anything else.”

 

Her Seattle high school and college didn’t offer the sport, so she joined the Washington Athletic Club Synchronized Swimming Team.

 

During her sophomore and junior years at the University of Washington, Charlotte competed in synchronized swimming for California’s Santa Clara Aquamaids. In 1970, she became a National Team champion. After graduating college, she founded the Seattle Aqua Club.

 

Charlotte’s star turn arrived when she became Head Swim Coach for the first-ever synchronized swimming event at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Her young charges took home three gold medals. She coached three more Summer Olympics and racked up four more gold and three silver awards before retiring in 2000.

 

Synchronized swimming isn’t her only water sport. At the Oregon Senior Games last year, she set national records for 100-yard breaststroke and 500-yard freestyle. She also took home gold for 50-yard freestyle.

 

“I would encourage anyone to try competitive swimming at any age, especially as a senior,” she tells 50plus readers. “The social benefits become inherent
in the program by enjoying a new sense of community,
the camaraderie of other swimmers, and forming
new friendships.”

 

“Also,” Charlotte continues, “swimming helps keep the mind active during workouts through the necessity of thinking about your stroke and watching the pace clock. It’s a whole-body workout that keeps your joints moving while providing cardio, strength and pulmonary benefits without the normal stress on joints that other activities can create.”

 

Everyone ready to take the plunge?