About Artistic Swimming

Introduction to the Rules of Artistic Swimming Routines

While there are a range of rules and penalties for specific routines, the basic rules of artistic swimming are displayed below.

• No Touching The Bottom
  One of the things which makes the lifts all the more impressive is that artistic swimmers are not allowed to touch the bottom of the pool at any point during their routines.
• Bling
  Presentation is a unique and important part of artistic swimming so you will see many sequins and sparkles! However, there are certain restrictions on what swimmers can wear, for example, swimmers are not permitted jewellery, theatrical make-up or inappropriate costumes.
• Goggles
  Whilst goggles are worn for training and in figure competitions, swimmers are not permitted to wear goggles during routines. This makes it easier for the swimmers to make eye contact with the audience and judges and to pull more facial expressions to improve their presentation marks!
• Team Means Team
  In artistic swimming there are different types of teams all with different expectations and rules. Teams normally contain eight swimmers, but the minimum number for a team is four. Teams lose marks for every swimmer they have under the full complement because it is easier to synchronise the fewer people there are in a routine. Combination teams may have up to 10 swimmers.
• Stick To The Time
  Routines start at a minute long for our beginners and go up to 3 minutes 30 seconds. Swimmers are penalised if the routines are more than 5 seconds too long or too short! There are also time limits for how long swimmers can stay on the deck before they enter the pool.

Source and more: Swim England

Introduction to Artistic Swimming Routines

There are a number of different types of routines:

• Solos – where an individual swims to music on their own
• Duets – where 2 swimmers swim together, trying to stay in perfect synchronisation. Mixed duets contain one male and one female swimmer.
• Free Teams – 8 swimmers perform a routine together
• Acrobatic Team – 8 swimmers perform a routine with a set number of acrobatic elements
• Combination Team – a team routine where up to ten swimmers perform in one continuous routine but during the routine there will be segments where different numbers of swimmers will perform
• Technical routines – where swimmers must perform certain moves. These may be solos, duets or teams.

Source and more: Swim England

What Are Artistic Swimming Grades?

Since January 2017, Swim England Artistic Swimming have run a three-strand award system for athletes; Figure Grades, Routine Grades and Land Grades.

As you progress as an artistic swimmer you can choose to attend grade assessments. Moving through the grades offers opportunities for competing in higher level competitions.

To find out more visit: Swim England