Artistic Swimmers Leave Audience Transfixed With Led Zeppelin Rock N’ Roll Routine

Nov 04, 2022

Synchronized swimming is a team sport known for its elegance, showing off each swimmer’s agility, dexterity, flexibility and athleticism. It was introduced into the Olympics in 1984 but only for women’s teams. To this day, men are not yet allowed to compete in synchronized swimming, which has been renamed in some circles as artistic swimming, such as in the world’s most prestigious sporting event, as well as the World Aquatics Championship. However, some sporting events have introduced mixed duets.

While synchronized swimmers have had a long history of fighting for their sport to be taken seriously, it has now been recognized as one of the most physically demanding water sports. For one performance, swimmers establish routines comprising moves such as lifts, throws, basket tosses, somersaults and walkovers — all while keeping in perfect sync and harmony with their teammates. It used to be that, typically, routines were choreographed around calming and elegant classical music, but with the incredible success of the Spanish team that stunned the FINA World Championships with their rock song-paired performance, changes may be afoot.

In 2009, the Spanish synchronized swimming team contested in Rome with high hopes, even if fans and the judges were not expecting much of them as they'd previously had bad luck and poor showings in past competitions. When they took to the pool, all seemed to start well enough as the soft and melodic opening chords of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway To Heaven” began to play. But in true Led Zeppelin fashion, the song began to pick up. When the hard-hitting electric guitars started booming through the speakers, the swimmers picked up the pace and the audience was left utterly mesmerized.

A video of the performance captured the originality and inventiveness of the Spanish team. All of its members executed each move with stunning accuracy and prowess. The soloist, in particular, showed off her extraordinary athletic skills, moving with poise and precision. But as the song hit its crescendo, the performance took on a phenomenal turn that set them apart from the competition.

As the music stepped up, so too did the swimmers. A commentator said the team was “increasing the intensity of the action as the intensity of the music increases.” The pace of the movements began to speed up and gained momentum without losing any of the harmony and synchronicity the swimmers had trained so hard to pull off. The commentator lauded the team’s “effortless transitions” and called the variety of the movements “exceptional.” 

“They’re not afraid to get a bit rock n’ roll this Spanish team,” the commentator said.

When the routine ended, the audience erupted in raucous howls of approval and applause. Their enthusiasm was echoed by the judges, who went on to bestow the team top points for technical merit and artistic impression. With a final score of 98.333, the team nabbed gold and earned its first synchronized world title.

“This is our first gold medal. Over the last 11 years we have worked so hard to go up the world rankings,” one of the team’s swimmers, Raquel Corral said.

“Our aim was to dance to the music with our body and legs and this very famous song by Led Zeppelin motivated us,” she added.

Since being shared online, the video has also earned the team tremendous praise for its rockin’ routine and continues to delight and enthrall viewers across the globe.

What do you think of the routine? Have you ever seen sports and rock n’ roll paired in such a creative way? Let us know, and be sure to pass this along to friends and family who would enjoy seeing the Spanish team in action.