Hope held open day will boost numbers

Members of Phoenix Synchro Southland, of Invercargill, (clockwise from front left) Lily McDowall,...
Members of Phoenix Synchro Southland, of Invercargill, (clockwise from front left) Lily McDowall, Victoria McDowall, Onevai Pita, Ailin Pekar, Louise Sutherland, Xiara Patino, Abby Flutey and Amelia Gillanders (centre) perform in the age 13-15 free team event at the 2019 New Zealand Artistic Swimming National Championships, held at Moana Pool. PHOTO: ALLIED PRESS FILES
Synchronised swimming is a sport with a glittering history, but is facing challenging times as club membership is sinking.

In the 1930s, Hollywood musicals featured wildly elaborate ‘‘water ballets’’ with ‘‘bathing beauties’’ performing show-stopping routines in huge fantasy pools.

Aquacade, a water ballet performed in Dunedin by the Kiwi Amateur Swimming Club was described by the Otago Daily Times in 1945 as a ‘‘model of symmetry and grace’’ as young women drawn from local swimming clubs entertained crowds at the Municipal Baths.

More recently, Dunedin’s swimming sisters Nina and Lisa Daniels were celebrated when they won bronze for synchronised swimming at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and went on to compete at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Synchronised swimming has been an event at the Olympics since 1984 and was renamed artistic swimming in 2017.

It has been a challenge for Dunedin’s Aquagold Artistic Swimming Club to maintain a presence at Moana Pool.

Club president Phyll Esplin
Club president Phyll Esplin
Club president Phyll Esplin said from a high point in about 2006 when they had 25 to 30 members, the club now had only one young swimmer, who at present had paused participating as she did not want to train alone.

The club hosted the New Zealand Artistic Swimming National Championships at Moana Pool in 2019, but that did not seem to boost numbers, Ms Esplin said.

The plight of the club was chronicled in The Star in March but the situation had not changed.

To encourage participation the club was running a ‘‘have a go’’ day in the school holidays this Saturday at Moana Pool from 9.30am to 11am.

‘‘It’s a Saturday morning in the hope of getting swimmers to come along and see if they like it,’’ Ms Esplin said.

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