Three errors, officially called base marks in the new regulations, separated Spain from the medals in the artistic swimming free team final of the Fukuoka World Cup. The Spanish team (Iris Tió, Alisa Ozhogina, Berta Ferreras, Cristina Arámbula, Txell Mas, Paula Ramírez, Marina García and Sara Saldaña) finished fourth (249.6521), less than seven points behind the Ukrainians (256.2415) and far behind Japan (317.8085) and China (329.1687).
The Chinese, trained by Anna Tarrés, creator of the past successes of the Spanish synchronized, took the gold with a spectacular and impeccable routine, without penalties, called Gravitation, which was full of acrobatics and jumps. For their part, the locals won the silver medal with a performance that recreated a game of chess, with which they obtained the best mark in artistic impression.
The Spanish swimmers led by the Japanese Mayuko Fujiki, dressed in a purple swimsuit and gold details, recreated the cartoon film Aladdin, with moments where Prince Ali’s entrance to the palace was represented and others for Princess Jasmine. The exercise, of less difficulty than that of its main rivals, received the third best score in the artistic section, but the execution separated them from the podium. A performance below the preliminary phase, where they achieved the second best score.
The Ukrainians, with a martial march in honor of their army, snatched from Spain the seventh medal on Japanese soil, which would have equaled the best record in artistic swimming in a World Cup, achieved in Barcelona in 2013. The Spanish team, which has three gold medals, an unprecedented success, could still reach seven metals this Saturday in the mixed free duet final. Dennis González, who already has one silver and one gold, and Mireia Hernández achieved the second mark in the preliminary phase.
