Today’s stage of the Russian Synchronised Swimming Championships featured mixed duo technical routines. Aleksandr Maltsev and Olesya Platonova from Moscow got the highest score: 91.7578 points.
While Aleksandr Maltsev had won the world and European Championships four times, this was his first medal at a Russian-wide competition. His partner, Olesya Platonova, made a debut appearance during the event. Aleksandr Maltsev also performed another routine at the Aquatics Palace, paired with Maya Gurbanberdiyeva, two-times world and European champion. This performance was not part of the official competition.
“It was important for me to perform well both times; I had to give each routine my very best. There was a large break between the two performances, enough for me to restore my strength,” said the champion.
Maya Gurbanberdiyeva, who has only recently recovered from an injury, confessed that getting back in shape had been far from easy. “This was my second surgery, I had to miss an entire season,” said the athlete. “After my first surgery, I spent less time recuperating—but this time, I was out of it for more than 7 months. It was hard to make up for what I lost. I struggled with getting back in shape. But overall, we managed to give a decent performance.”
The athletes’ coach, Gana Maksimova, was also left satisfied by their work. “Basically, they did what they should have done, though their technique could use more honing,” she commented. “Plus, it was Olesya’s debut. And we didn’t have much time to prepare. With all of this in mind, I think we got a good start. Maya has just bounced back after an injury, and she performed really well. We are happy with our work, but there are a lot of nuances we will need to address. But we have plenty of time for that ahead of us.”
The athletes are planning to compete at the European Championships and the FINA legs next year.
The second place went to Kristina Averina and Mikhail Vasilyev from the Moscow Oblast (89.0431 points). The bronze medal was awarded to Artur Korshunov and Alina Tikhomirova from Tatarstan (84.1801 points).
Press office of ANO “Directorate for Sports and Social Projects”