Spanish Duo Wins Silver Medal in Artistic Swimming at World Swimming Championships
This Saturday marked a significant achievement for the Spanish couple, Dennis González and Mireia Hernández. They managed to secure the silver medal in the free mixed duet final of artistic swimming at the World Swimming Championships held in Doha. This medal stands as a testament to their hard work and dedication, representing the fourth medal for Spanish artistic swimming and the sixth for the team in this prestigious event.
Performance Overview
The Spanish duo demonstrated an extraordinary performance, which was a unique blend of hip-hop and traditional Eastern European music. Their impressive performance garnered them a score of 208.3583 – 37.3500 for difficulty, 86.3500 for artistic impression, and 122.0083 for execution. This score enabled them to surpass their main competitors for the silver, Colombia, which scored 191.8729, and Mexico, which scored 192.5772 and ultimately took the bronze.
The Gold Medal Winners
The Chinese team of Wentao Cheng and Haoyu Shi maintained their favoritism and won the competition with a total of 224.1437 points. This win marks the seventh gold for the Asian country in the Doha event.
Post-Competition Reflections
“We have been super tense throughout the championship; we left the technical duet final with some bad feelings. But in the free duet, we went all out, pushing our difficulty level. As expected, China increased their difficulty and surpassed us, but we knew this was something beyond our control. We aimed to replicate our performance in the semifinal and even tried to do better. Yet, what we achieved exceeded our expectations,” reflected Dennis González after the competition.
Dennis also highlighted the challenges he faced during the competition. He mentioned that he was required to perform “more routines than in the previous World Cup,” which was physically demanding. Despite dealing with an issue with his arms, he remained focused on the competition. “We reached the last day and finished in the best way possible,” he concluded.
Mireia Hernández’s Thoughts
Mireia Hernández expressed her pride in their achievement. “It has been a long championship, and with the new regulations, you never know what challenges you may face. We were disappointed with the coach’s decision in the final that resulted in a small ‘base mark’ that placed us fourth. However, four medals is an excellent result, and we are very happy. There is always room for improvement, and the desire to push further is what makes sport magical,” she confessed.
Mireia also noted the significant progress they have made since the previous World Cup, which was “just half a year ago.” She was particularly proud of the increased difficulty in all their routines and their ability to maintain artistic quality, which she considers the beautiful part of Spain. Furthermore, she commended the rising level of mixed duets and expressed her pride in being part of this growth. She ended by emphasizing how easy it was to work with Dennis, her partner.
Overall Achievement
As a result, Spanish artistic swimming concludes its participation in the Qatari capital with four medals – a silver in the mixed free duet, the technical team routine, Dennis González’s free solo, and a bronze by Alisa Ozhogina and Iris Tió in the duet technical. They have also secured Olympic spots for teams and duos.
The Spanish team also celebrates the silver medal won by María de Valdés in the 10 kilometers open water swimming and the bronze medal by Nico García Boissier and Adrián Abadía in synchronized 3-meter springboard jumps. These achievements contribute to the team’s overall success at the event.
