July 17, 2018 – Synchro Canada (soon to be branded Canada Artistic Swimming) is pleased to share a sneak peek at the stories behind the routines that will be performed at the Duna arena in Budapest at the 2018 FINA Artistic Swimming Junior World Championships – July 18-22.
“Our talented juniors have trained for many months to perfect these truly Canadian pieces and we are excited for everyone to watch and appreciate them” commented Kasia Kulesza, Head Coach. “The competition will be streamed on FINA TV (https://www.finatv.live/en) so for the first time at this level, fans at home will be able to tune in and watch their favorite young artistic swimming stars entertain both the live and TV audience.”
The coaching team of Kasia Kulesza, with Assistant Coaches Jennifer Tregale and Jennifer Koptie had support and direction from world renowned choreographer Denise Sauvé in assembling these routines – in particular, the technical team routine.
These notes describe the musical and thematic directions taken for each Junior World routine:
Technical Solo
Final – July 18, 3 pm Local (9 am EDT)
Emily Armstrong has a successful history as one of Canada’s leading soloists. This will be her first World Championship solo representation and she will be swimming to “Dreaming with a Broken Heart” by John Mayer for her technical solo. She competed in the senior tech solo event all season and represented Canada – Regional Training Centre at this year’s French Open FINA World Series. This strategy prepared her well for the junior elements which are slightly different and a little less challenging, giving Emily an edge against some of her junior competitors. Watch for strong propulsion and great artistic connection. Emily is developing world-class technical skills and working to leverage her explosive power.
Free Solo
Prelim – July 18, 10 am Local (4 am EDT)
Final – July 18, 7:30 pm Local (1:30 pm EDT)
Emily will be swimming her free solo to “Burning” by Sam Smith. This solo routine showcases Emily’s strength of flexibility both above and below water, as well as her capacity for variation of movement. Emily has been focusing on propulsion and sustained height as she prepares for her solo debut at the world level.
Technical Duet
Final – July 19, 3 pm Local (9 am EDT)
Paige Hopper, Emily Armstrong, and Catherine Barrett comprise the Technical Duet entry. Emily and Paige won the Bronze medal in duet at the 2014 Mediterranean Cup. This duet routine theme is Enchanted Forest and if it is familiar it is because it was originally performed by Canada’s Olympic Duet Simoneau and Thomas at Rio in 2016 (“Breakout” – Ekholm and “Race to the Line” – Holroyde/Ramazanoglu). The routine is full of difficult movements, angles and speed. The trio of athletes have been focusing on high quality and execution of elements as well as presentation as they prepare to face the world in Budapest!
Free Duet
Prelim – July 19, 10 am Local (4 am EDT)
Final – July 19, 7:30 pm Local (1:30 pm EDT)
Paige Hopper, Emily Armstrong, and Mikaëlle Gauthier combine to enter the Free Duet. Their Irish Party themed routine is packed with difficulty and speed (“Irish Party in Third Class” – Gaelic Storm). Watch for their explosive power and capacity for endurance. Emily, Paige, and Mik have been working especially hard on posture and presentation to capture the judges’ attention and admiration this week.
Technical Team
Final – July 20, 6 pm Local (12 pm EDT)
The theme is Extreme and all the music is appropriately taken from chase scenes in the movie The Italian Job (2003). The routine is full of difficulty in the variety of movements and sustained double leg actions. Athletes have been focusing on execution of elements and maintaining small/ accurate patterns.
Free Team
Prelim – July 21, 11 am Local (5 am EDT)
Final – July 21, 6 pm Local (12 pm EDT)
This routine is based on the theme We the North. It is an exploration of winter and includes underlying imagery of power, strength, fire, ice, and unity. The music is a combination of three selections by artist Epic Score and two by the famous Toronto-born artist Drake. The routine is full of difficulty through variation of movement and complex pattern changes. Look for “The Six” arms and the classic “Dab”! This routine was developed and first performed in the 2017 America Open by Canada’s Next Gen team. The team loves to swim this routine and to share their version of what is uniquely Canadian because doesn’t everyone need “a little more Canada?”.
Synchro Canada (Canada Artistic Swimming) recognizes and applauds the accomplishments of this diverse team of athletes – who represent five different provinces and almost two years of collaboration with our club and provincial partners – all of whom have an important role in providing a daily training environment for our athletes. Canada does not have a mixed duet at Junior Worlds because we do not yet have a suitable entry for this level of competition. But we believe firmly and passionately that there is an important place for males in the sport of artistic swimming and will continue to reinforce the message of inclusivity and diversity, both internally and externally.
Synchro Canada’s vision is to move and inspire Canadians through the performances of our artistic swimmers and always strive to be World and Olympic Champions – enroute to maintaining a position as a world leading nation in the sport. We hope you enjoy cheering our future stars on in their bid to leave a lasting impression in Budapest!