In unison

Diamonds gleam and patterns shimmer with sparkling detail on the synchronized swimmers’ suits. Their hair is gelled back into a perfect bun atop their head. It’s like watching a dolphin delicately breach the surface of the pool and then slide back in. Every kick, lift, and turn of the head is smooth and in unison. Smile. Gasp for air. Jump. Another deep breath.

The stands are full of parents in Spider red sweatshirts, alums in synchro gear, and little girls with eager eyes. Everyone awaits the annual synchronized swim meet between Ohio State and the University of Richmond. The event is more of a tradition than a competition, but that doesn’t stop the two teams from putting on spectacular routines of trios, duets, solos, and teams.

Even when there’s only one swimmer in the water, synchronized to nothing but the music, the performance is impressive. It must be the combination of holding your breath for almost a dozen seconds while thrusting your legs above you to do the splits. It’s no simple task.

And yet many of the swimmers in the water for the University of Richmond came into the program with no synchro experience.

“It’s the first team that we’ve had that’s really dominated by novices,” said Asha Bandal, who swam on the UR synchro team until she graduated in 2004, took over as head coach immediately after leaving college, and has led the team for the last 12 years.

When the UR synchro team was varsity instead of club before 2001, nearly every teammate had experience in synchro before joining. But once the team dropped down to club, the incoming swimmers had little to no experience in the water. She was going to have to create new swimmers from scratch.

“It’s like working with one athlete who’s 4-for-4 on the basketball court and at the same time, she’s working with someone who’s never seen a basketball,” Carol Mitchell, who coached the team during their transition year in 2001, said. “That’s a tough thing for a coach to be able to do. Obviously they have to be able to swim, but synchro is a tough sport. Asha’s done a great job teaching people who have never done it.”

Allison Zhao only knew how to survival swim before joining the team, and now she competes with the team at meets and Nationals.

“I had the perception that synchro was like ballet, but in water,” Zhao said. “And I think that’s a common misconception. I also thought about the pretty ladies jumping into the pool with their floral caps.”

But Zhao soon realized the challenges that the sport brought with it. Many spectators don’t realize that these swimmers never touch the bottom of the pool. They are in constant motion, keeping themselves afloat and performing lifts and back tucks.

“It’s so different from anything I’ve ever done before, Zhao said. “It’s really athletic, but it’s also such a performance-based sport.”

Bandal has had the support of synchronized swimmer and sophomore Erin Wheeler, whose passion for synchro began almost a decade ago. She is one of the captains of the current team and often takes on the role of a peer coach.

“Erin has been swimming since she was 10. She is amazing at synchro,” teammate Smaragda Spyrou said. “However, she has never made any of us feel inferior, and she always helps us when we need her, even if that gets in the way of her practice sometimes. She is one of the most modest people I have met, and I think that that in combination with her crazy synchro skills is what earns her our respect as a leader.”

Bandal has also had to work with a tight budget since the team no longer has the varsity funding and support that it once did.

“A lot of club teams struggle financially,” Bandal said. “We get a lot of support from our alums, which is so helpful because it can be really hard to fundraise on top of swimming and school and trying to maintain somewhat of a social life.”

Those same alums offer a supportive link in other ways as well. Former synchro swimmers will invite current swimmers over to their houses for dinner or stop by and help Bandal coach.

“We’re really lucky to have so many former team members who still feel so connected to the girls and who are watching the team,” Bandal said. “I think it helps the girls now by seeing that they’re part of something so much bigger than just them.”

Decades after the team’s formation in the mid-1960’s and Richmond synchronized swimming legend Peg Hogan joining the team in 1976, the University of Richmond synchronized swimming team still holds onto tradition and a strong team dynamic.

Former synchronized swimmer Courtney Ranson, ’01, remembers Christmas brunch at Peg Hogan’s house and bobbing for apples in the pool. Asha has maintained a very close-knit team with her own traditions.

“It feels like a family. We do sleepovers and hangout on weekends,” synchronized swimmer Taiyaba Ali said. “We have a Christmas party at Asha’s apartment where we have secret Santa and trade gifts and make snowball decorations together.”

There was a swarm of emotions from synchronized swimmers when Peg Hogan retired and the team dropped from varsity to club. Hogan left huge shoes to fill as well as the legacy of an exceptional synchro program. Although some doubted that the program would live on after taking several blows, Bandal never gave up on her team, as both a swimmer and a coach.

“Asha’s really picked up when a new coach was necessary, and she’s given so much time and energy to the program that I feel like Asha is becoming like the new Peg Hogan for the current swimmers,” former synchronized swimmer Heather Fairbanks, ’91, said. “I think that’s really admirable that she’s devoting so much time and she has so much loyalty and respect in the community too.”