Be An Aquabelle

ARTISTIC SWIMMING (SYNCHRO)

What is artistic swimming (synchro)?

Artistic swimming is an Olympic sport that combines the athleticism of swimming with the dynamics of gymnastics and the grace of dance. Athletes showcase their skills to a choreographed routine in the water as a team, duet, or solo. Strength, flexibility, musicality and synchronization shine through in every moment.

Why artistic swimming (synchro)?

This is a sport for kids who love swimming, dance, or gymnastics – or all of them! Artistic swimming builds endurance, power, speed, flexibility, and grace. It also builds amazing team skills, a respect for practice and discipline, and everlasting friendships.

Why the Calgary Aquabelles?

The Calgary Aquabelles have a long-standing history of excellence in the sport, producing top-level and well-rounded athletes. We offer programs from the pre-competitive to the national competitive level. Fostering fun and friendships, swimmers learn skills together and support each other. We are a club of athletes that feels like one large family!

SPORT BENEFITS

Teamwork

Without teammates artistic swimming would be a solo sport. Athletes must communicate and work together as a team for success.

Discipline

The sport requires repetitive practice. Athletes learn the value of diligence, persistence and working to get it right.

Strength

Artistic swimming is a physically and mentally demanding sport. In and out of the pool, athletes grow stronger each day.

Concentration

You can’t move through a routine without focus, no different than taking a class or reading a book.

Endurance

Success in the pool comes only with persistent work to build endurance.

Commitment

It takes a long time to build and perfect a routine. Athletes are committed to their teams the entire season.

Goal Setting

A clear picture of goals and a plan to work towards them happens on deck and in the pool.

Resilience

Artistic swimming is a judged sport at the competitive level. Sometimes swimmers have a bad day, but they learn to be resilient and to stay positive and get back in the pool.

Flexibility

This does not just refer to the splits! Artistic swimmers need flexibility and adaptability to face changes as routines are continually being modified, tweaked and perfected.

Confidence

It takes a lot of guts to get in front of a crowd and show them what you can do!

Performance

The sparkly bathing suits are only part of the performance aspect. Athletes get to show off their smiles, confidence, and athleticism.

Active Mindset

Once an athlete, always an athlete.

JOIN OUR CLUB

 

Whether you are new to artistic swimming or have already gotten your feet wet and are interested in learning more about the Calgary Aquabelles or joining our Club, following is some general information that will get you going in the right direction:

  • some general information about the programs we offer – both non-competitive and competitive
  • how to contact someone in the club to get more information
  • how to initiate the process of becoming a member of the Calgary Aquabelles

Our Club is always interested in new families and welcome all athletes – boys and girls, who are interested in the sport of artistic swimming. We offer the following programs:

  • Summer camps run out of MNP Sport Centre and coached by our own Aquabelles coaches
  • Pre-competitive sessions that run in the fall, winter and spring
    • no experience necessary but must be a confident swimmer in deep water and be able to tread water
    • these sessions are currently based out of Inglewood Pool (more locations might be offered in the future)
    • visit our website for more information, costs per session and to register at Programs (aquabelles.com)
  • Classic Competitive for ages 7 – 18 years old
    • this program runs from September – June
    • competitions are held provincially – generally 4-5 competitions attended each season
  • National Competitive for ages 13 – 20 years old
    • this program runs from September – June
    • competitions are held nationally across Canada – generally 4-5 competitions attended each season

If you would like more information about the Calgary Aquabelles, would like to discuss program suitability or have more questions before making a decision on what program to register your son/daughter for, please contact our Aquabelles Registrar at registrar@aquabelles.com.

 

If you are interested in joining the Calgary Aquabelles, please click on one of the two applicable forms below to make your Expression of Interest known. Once we receive your completed form, we will email you confirmation of receipt of your EOI and begin the process.

Please print, complete and email the form to registrar@aquabelles.com.

 

 

Come join the accomplished Aquabelles family!

SWIMMER PROFILES - Coming Soon!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Joining any new sport or team can be overwhelming for parents and athletes alike. Let’s see if we can answer some of your burning questions:

What’s with the hair gel?

When swimmers are competing their hair is slicked back into a bun, topped with a decorative bun cover, and gelled to smoothness. The gel – a thick concentration of the gelatin from your kitchen – is spread on the hair to keep it all off the face during competitions. Without gel the hair comes out of even the best bun and falls in the athlete’s face.

Don’t worry if you are new to artistic swimming, parents who’ve done it before are always happy to offer a tutorial in time for competition season.

Does my kid need to have long enough hair for a bun?

Absolutely not! Teams can get creative with hairstyles and even short hair works in the water. Barring a shaved head though, you are still going to use gel in your hair!

What’s up with those sparkly bathing suits?

We won’t lie, one of the perks of this sport for many of the athletes are the competition bathing suits. At high competition levels they will be custom made for each athlete to accentuate the routine theme. For entry level competitors suits will be ordered for the team.

Do they arrive sparkly?

Unfortunately not. You will have to borrow or buy a special tool called a bejeweller (not a bedazzler) to heat set the crystals. The club orders the crystals for all the teams so you don’t have to figure out yourself how many you need.

Again, parents who’ve done a bathing suit or two will be happy to help you with a quick tutorial, and keep you company when you are bejewelling in the stands while your kid practices.

How many bathing suits will my kid need?

Aside from any training suits, each athlete needs at least 3 suits – a club suit, a plain black suit for figures, and a team competition suit. If your child has a solo or duet routine they will need competition suits for those routines as well.

Is there other club gear required?

To present our best at competitions, athletes are required to have Calgary Aquabelles clothing. In Provincial Stream it starts with the basics that include t-shirts, a hoodie, bathing caps and a team jacket. Other gear like backpacks, crop pants, shorts, parkas, and gear bags, eventually become necessary as your swimmer progresses into the higher levels, especially if they move into the National Stream.

What are figures?

Each basic skill in artistic swimming is referred to as a figure. Athletes master these basics and put them together – with music and choreography – to form their routine. As the athletes move up in age category the figures get more complex.

Do they compete at figures?

Yes, they do. Early in the season there are some figures-only competitions. At almost all other competitions in the season they will compete both figures and routines.

During figures competitions all athletes wear black bathing suits and white caps. This makes them nearly indistinguishable from each other. This helps the judges score only on the merit of the figure performed. It does not, however, help parents watching in the stands as it is difficult to identify your child!

Do all athletes compete at figures?

Athletes from beginner (10&under, Novice) through to the 13-15 age group compete figures. Athletes in the Junior and Senior age categories compete Technical Routines instead of figures. Tech routines include required ‘elements’ that must be incorporated into the routine, but each team gets to choose the music and the choreography of the routines.

How are teams chosen?

The teams vary each year, primarily determined by age group. For the competitive programs the coaches start evaluations at Shape Camp in the pre-season and continue through the month of September. Teams will be made up of athletes of similar ages and skill level.

Do teams stay the same all year?

Yes, they do. Learning the choreography of a routine is a long process. Perfecting the routine is even longer. Teams remain together to give the entire group the best chance for success. This is also why it is difficult to join a team partway through the year.

What are the age groups?

In our Classic Competitive program, there are 5 age categories, 10&Under, Novice, 11-12, 13-15 Classic, and Junior (16-19) Classic.

In our National Competitive program, there are teams for 13-15 National, Junior (16-19) National, and Senior (20+).

Your athlete’s age category is determined by the age they turn in the calendar year in which our season ends. For example: If your athlete turns 11 in November 2024, they will compete in the 11-12 category for the 2023-24 season, not as a 10&under.

We only discovered artistic swimming and it is January!

May we suggest starting with one of our pre-competitive programs or summer camps then? It provides a great introduction to the sport and your athlete will be ready to dive right in come September.

PRE-COMP CAMPS

What are the volunteer requirements?

No sports club can run without volunteer commitments. It takes the whole family to make the club work.

Each year the specific requirements may vary, depending on revenue, but the Calgary Aquabelles does have a bingo and casino commitment.

At each hosted competition Aquabelles parents are required to work volunteer shifts to help the meet run smoothly. These shifts can include hospitality suites, timing routines, calling out scores, or keeping swimmers sorted out.

There are also dedicated volunteer opportunities to sit on the Board, coordinate team travel, coordinate fundraising or plan events.

What are the fundraising requirements?

There is no getting around the fact that pool rental time is expensive and the coaches do not work for free. The club runs a number of fundraisers throughout the year to defray the costs for both the club and athlete families.

Some fundraisers are mandatory. Other fundraisers are voluntary and can include meat or chocolate orders, bottle drives, or a grocery card program. These voluntary fundraisers can reduce your monthly fees.

Can parents go to competitions?

Absolutely! In fact, female chaperones are required for each out-of-city meet. If you chaperone you are responsible for feeding the athletes, making sure they sleep and arrive at the pool on time. Each chaperone is essentially a Mom away from home. If you do chaperone, your expenses and the food expenses of the team are covered by the team contributions.

All parents and family are welcome at each and every meet, but travel responsibilities will be your own. There might be times where travel can be booked with the team, but the extra cost is the family’s responsibility.

You say it is a big family, is that really true?

Well, when you spend this much time together it is hard not to be! The Calgary Aquabelles like to get together outside of the pool too – there is more to life than swimming. Each year we participate or host a number of different activities:

– The Calgary Aquaboobies are swimmers, coaches, and family members who fundraise and participate in the CIBC Run for the Cure each year.

– Each year we have a parent/daughter swim. Parents can get in the water and have their kids teach them – or try to teach them – some fundamentals. Gelling and hair buns for the parents are highly encouraged!

– Barbeques and parties bring the club together so girls from all the teams can connect and parents can catch up.

The athletes become very close throughout the year. Team events are organized by coaches and parents throughout the year. There are sleepovers, dinners, movie nights, birthday parties, and more. The athletes often become close friends and the parents do too. It really becomes like family.

How many competitions are there?

Classic Competitive athletes typically attend 2 figures competitions in early winter and 3 routine meets within the province. Competitions may be in Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer or even Grande Prairie. The locations of the in province meets vary each year.

In addition, experienced Classic Competitive athletes often have the opportunity to attend one out of province meet in Manitoba, Saskatchewan or BC.

National Competitive athletes attend 4-5 competitions each year.

Competitions are both within the province and across Canada. Opportunities to attend an international competition may also be available to top performers in the National Competitive program.

Who pays for competitions?

For each competition there are entry fees and travel fees (if travel is required). These are billed to your account as the year goes on. The club takes every opportunity to minimize costs and maximize travel coordination. Each team also covers the expenses of their coach’s travel.

The Calgary Aquabelles offer many levels of programs at various facilities within Calgary and surrounding areas. Due to our varying pool locations and hours of training both in and out of the water, we would prefer you contact our Registrar at registrar@aquabelles.com for more details on our costs.

Our Registrar will also be able to walk you through other costs associated with being a member of the Calgary Aquabelles such as competitions, club clothing, bathing suits and mandatory fundraising. Don’t worry – we offer many fundraising opportunities to help offset some of these costs..

2019 WINTER/SPRING PRE-COMPETITIVE SESSION