Children flip, kick, twirl at Las Vegas synchronized swimming show
Children in matching swimsuits with glitter in their hair made a splash into the weekend, showing off the kicks, flips and twirls they learned during a nine-week city of Las Vegas aquatics program.
At the Baker Pool, an outdoor swim center on East St. Louis Avenue, about 100 synchronized swimmers and divers performed choreographed routines Saturday morning as part of the All-City Synchronized Swimming Show.
“I think it builds confidence in the kids,” said Danny Malloy, a city of Las Vegas aquatics specialist and a former participant in the program, which he said has been around for at least two decades.
Miriam Een has enrolled each of her four children in the program, which is open to children ages 7 to 17, over the last 17 summers. This time around, 13-year-old Melissa swam on the Fresh Princes and Princesses of Garside team to the song “Yo Home to Bel-Air,” and the Pavilion Spice team to “Stop” by the Spice Girls.
The theme: “That ’90s Show.”
“It gives structure to the summer, so my kids have something to do other than being on the computer and watching movies, and kind of wasting time all summer,” Een said.
Once the children turn 15, they can enroll in lifeguard classes and coach the synchronized swimming teams.
Een said the skills learned through synchronized swimming also give her children a leg up when transitioning to a high school team.
At Saturday’s event, young girls and boys threw their legs in the air almost in sync to tunes like MC Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This” and Smash Mouth’s “All Star.”
Pavilion Spice chose the Spice Girls because they’re “as good as it got” when it came to ’90s tunes, she said.
The team’s coach, Melissa’s 20-year-old sister Eliza Een, said the activity teaches the children to work together.
“There are a lot of skills you have to use,” she said. “You have to be comfortable going underwater and holding your breath. You have to point your toes and keep your legs straight.”
Een said it’s rewarding to see the team improve by the end of the summer.
After each of the day’s 19 performances, Malloy, who was the show’s master of ceremonies, shared a pun with the crowd: “Wow, her legs were so straight, I could swear they were made of plastic,” he said after Elizabeth Acevedo, 11, performed solo to “Barbie Girl,” a 1996 hit fittingly performed by Aqua.
“That was fantastic,” he said.
Contact Jessie Bekker at jbekker@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4563. Follow @jessiebekks on Twitter.
The 9-week program is offered to children ages 7 through 17 every summer for $35 at all city pools. Competitive swim and water polo lessons are also available.
