Ahmedabad
For the past eight years, Thailand has placed its trust in Italian siblings Claudia Tapparelli, head coach, and Massimo Tapparelli, assistant coach, to lead the country’s artistic swimming program. At the ongoing 11th Asian Aquatics Championships 2025 at the newly built Veer Savarkar Sports Complex in Ahmedabad, the duo has been among the loudest supporters, cheering passionately for their team., their enthusiasm has been matched by the Indian spectators, many of whom are witnessing artistic swimming live for the first time. Drawn in by the high-energy music, colourful routines and athletic grace of the competitors, local audiences have added to the electric setting.
We’d like to thank India for hosting the Asian Aquatics Championships because it’s not easy to find competitions in Asia where athletes can really measure themselves against other nations. It’s also easier and more affordable for countries in the region to participate in Asian meets, which helps athletes gain valuable experience. We’ve received tremendous support from spectators, and it’s been wonderful to see kids dancing along in the stands. Even though India is just hosting artistic swimming this time, this exposure can definitely attract youngsters to the sport, said Claudia.
Artistic swimming, one of the most visually captivating aquatic disciplines, demands immense strength, control, and coordination. Similar to diving, athletes must declare their movements beforehand and are then scored on their execution, synchronization, artistic impression, and difficulty.
Reflecting on the journey of Thai artistic swimming, Claudia said, In Italy, artistic swimming is quite big, almost every city has two or three clubs, adding up to about 300 across the country.
