Olympic Synchronized Swimming Photos (SLIDESHOW)

Synchronized swimming has taken over the watercube in Beijing now that the swimming gold rush is done. With the costumes, the makeup and the grand gestures it's hard to believe the women are in water.

After two days of duet competition and in no particular order, here are some of the photos AP has taken. Competition will air Wednesday night on NBC

• • • • • • • • • •

Read an interview with the US team's choreographer

Spain's team was banned from wearing swimsuits with lights on them.

Comments

[bugsbonzai]

Synchronized swimming is as much as sport as, say...golf. To argue if it should be allowed in the Olympics, one must first define the purpose of the Olympics, the definition of what defines a sport vs. simply an athletic activity, and then reconcile the two.

[zddoodah]

Two things make a sport: physical skill and at least some degree of objective scoring. Synchro swimming (or diving), gymnastics, cheerleading, etc.? Not sports. While all of these things take incredible physical skill, none of them have any element of objective scoring. Poker, chess, etc.? Not sports because they require no physical skill (and no, the ability to sit on one's posterior for a long time is not a physical skill).

[DrJimmy]

I say leave it in.....but it must be done naked!!!!!!!

[DarwinAtWork]

Anything with the word "synchronized" in it, is not a sport. It may be hard, but that "don't" make it a sport. And that includes synchronized diving.

[S1m0n]

Synchro swimming is amazingly silly, and has REALLY awful make up.

Its not a sport if you have to wear eyemakeup to do it.

[barbwiregrrl]

So are you saying figure skating and beach volleyball are not sports? My ex was a synchronized swimmer and for her it was a sport. She worked out and practiced everyday and had abs that could put most of us console jockies to shame.

[DavidAF]

These Sports should be removed from the Olympics:

BADMITTEN: A house game

TRAMPOLINE EVENT: another fun house activity

BASEBALL & SOFTBALL: Which are actually going to be taken out for the next Olympics. This sport doesn't require much skill anyway. A poor team can defeat a good team in this sport.

TABLE TENNIS OR PING PONG: another house game

SPEED WALKING: I say, "WHY?"

SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING: Dancing in water is just plane dumb

[BlackJAC]

Also volleyball (beach and otherwise) for being a simple recreational activity ("I'm an athlete because I knocked a ball over a high net at a honking six miles an hour!") and snowboarding for being a stoner activity.

[zddoodah]

"[S]ix miles an hour," eh? How about you and any five of your buddies go up against Misty May and Kerri Walsh? I'll give you maybe 2-1 odds -- that none of you get injured -- and maybe 20-1 odds that you actually score a point.

[foneric]

And

Water polo
Field Hockey
Handball

These are sports ( so called ) that NBC broadcast every day. Meanwhile, I didn't get to see the following events that I actually wanted to see.

High Jump
Long Jump
Pole Vault
Shot put
Discuss
Hammer throw
Javelin

They will also broadcast the Marathon, and 10,000 meters in there entirety. I can watch 16 guys running in an oval for 30 minutes but can't watch a field event.

[zddoodah]

NBC actually showed about 2 minutes of women's "discuss" [sic], but (probably) only because a U.S. competitor won the gold medal. I do not know why NBC doesn't show the field events (I can't remember if ABC did this when it had the rights).

[chinationreport]

How about this?
Does this offend anybody?
http://www.chinationreport.com/YaoMingPictures.html

Tell me what you think.

[zurcl]

nope!

[zddoodah]

Why would anyone be offended by this?

[Cynth]

After all these years, these photos still remind me of the SNL skit with Martin Short, Christopher Guest, and, HuffPo's own blogger, Harry Shearer. :-)

[bartonfink]

"...I'm not that..strong..a swimmer..."

[zurcl]

"... i'm a very good driver."

[auramac]

I like it! Very...inspiring...

[CKieffer]

The photos aren't showing up, but all I can imagine is a modern day version of those 1940's dance movies... I can't remember the name, but there was one with a swimming scene.

[mamacat]

It is a little difficult to imagine ancient Greeks competing in this "sport."

[jpcline004]

LOL if they saw all the crotch shots in this slide shows the Greeks would jump right on board

[normathumb]

The original olympics were done in the nude.

[FeelinGroovy]

This looks kinda silly.

[BADEN]

It is, but it's damn tough.

YOU try treading water - for over 5 minutes - WITHOUT dancing with your arms and smiling, smiling, smiling.....

I know - misplaced priorities - but at least you can see what's happening....

Now, waterpolo?.....your comment is right on.

[alienufo]

They have synchronized swimming at the olympics? What about cheerleading?

[whatsthatsound]

A (probably typical) guy's reaction to synchronized swimming:

- how the heck do they suspend themselves in water like that?
-with their hair pulled back in a bun, those funny things in their noses, and the fake smiles, the ladies don't look all that attractive
- the feet sticking out of the water, curled in on themselves, look kind of weird.
- those cute behinds look fantastic every time they pop up out of the water.

I'll be watchin'!

[chinationreport]

That is a tough comment. Somewhat true. They do have a body to be proud of. I would have a tough time for my daughter to do the same.

Look at this beautiful diving queen, she has beauty, class and everything else:
http://www.chinationreport.com/#EditorsChoice

http://www.chinationreport.com/guojjpictures.html

Cheers.

[whatsthatsound]

Oh, she's classy all right. Great comment about her rival, Blythe Hartley, whom she called "the fat Canadian".

If that's class, I'll pass.