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Synchronised Swimming

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Of all the Olympic sports, synchronized swimming has been the butt of the most jokes.

Its critics cannot understand how it qualifies for a place at the highest alter in sport, when it appears to be little more than a group of women smiling a lot, duck diving and wiggling their legs in the air.

But this interpretation misses the athleticism, artistry and strength required to compete in synchronized swimming at the highest level.

The sport requires grace, agility, flexibility, near-perfect timing, musical interpretation and a sense of the dramatic.

Many of the most difficult manoeuvres attempted by synchronized swimmers are performed underwater, meaning competitors do not even have the luxury of being able to breathe while performing them.

For the first time, Australia has qualified for both the teams and duets Olympic events in Beijing. Australians did compete in the Sydney Games when qualification was guaranteed as the host nation.

Synchronized swimming is probably the only Olympic sport which owes much of its popularity to Hollywood.

Although it has a history, in one form or another, stretching back to the late 19th century, synchronized swimming really only enjoyed world-wide appeal after the aqua musicals of the 1950s and '60s starring Esther Williams.

These big-budget MGM productions featured Williams, who had been a teenage swimming star, and became more lavish and spectacular as their popularity increased.

MGM had created the aqua musical genre for Williams to cash in on the sport which had begun in its modern form in Canada in the 1920s.

From Canada synchronized swimming, or water ballet as it was known in its early years, moved to the United States.

The sport received its first big boost in 1934 when it was part of the World's Fair in Chicago.

Shortly afterwards, the United States Amateur Athletic Union recognised the sport and national championships began.

By 1948 synchronized swimming was an exhibition sport at the Olympics, but it was forced to serve an extended apprenticeship. After five appearances as a non-medal sport, synchronized swimming made its full Olympic debut at Los Angeles in 1984.

Early in its Olympic history, as was the case in the sport's early days, it was dominated by the United States and Canada.

Between them these two nations have won every gold and silver medal in the sport's Olympic history - until Sydney 2000.

The Russians won both the team and duet events in Sydney and backed up to repeat the double in Athens four years later.