The U.S. synchronized swimming duet of Anita Alvarez (Kenmore, N.Y./Town of Tonawanda Aquettes) and Mariya Koroleva (Concord, Calif./Walnut Creek Aquanuts) posted a sixth-place finish Saturday at the Make Up For Ever French Open in Paris.
Anita Alvarez, left, and Mariya Koroleva finished sixth in their first competition together as a duet.
Alvarez and Koroleva scored 81.3667 points in the duet free final. They qualified for the final after finishing sixth in free (80.0000 points) and seventh in tech (80.1203) out of 29 duets in Friday’s prelims.
“They had a good swim today, much better than yesterday. It was more confident and more synchronized,” said USA Synchro High Performance Director Myriam Glez. “The level is incredibly strong here. This means we have to work much harder in preparation for this summer’s competition.”
“Anita and I were happy that we improved our free duet swim from prelims and increased our overall score,” said Koroleva, a 2012 Olympian. “This was our first competition as a duet pair, and we have just written two new programs, so we are pleased with where we are at, at this point in the season.
“We know we have a lot of work to do when we get home, but we’re excited to share our experience here with the rest of the team and to get back to work.”
Duets from Italy (88.1667 points), France (85.8333) and Greece (84.8000) finished 1-2-3 in the standings.
About USA Synchro
USA Synchro was established as a nonprofit organization in 1977, and is the United States national governing body for the sport, recognized by the International Olympic Committee, the United States Olympic Committee and FINA (Federation Internationale de Natation Amateur) – the international governing federation. USA Synchro organizes, participates in, and promotes a variety of competitive events each year. These events begin at the local level and continue in the following categories: Senior (15 & O), Junior (15-18), Junior Olympic (19 & U), Collegiate and Masters (20+).
Swimming News is courtesy of USA Synchro.