Stockholm men push boundaries with synchronised swimming
STOCKHOLM: Balding, paunchy and unshaven, this group of Stockholm friends in their 40s are making waves: they're pioneers of men's team synchronised swimming, challenging stereotypes one aquatic pirouette at a time.
On a recent May evening, these 18 amateur swimmers ran through their formations and underwater acrobatics under the watchful eye of their coach Claudia Arasa.
They're tweaking their choreography before heading off to Ibiza, where they will compete in the Men's Cup on May 24-26.
The team members have diverse backgrounds, comprising a doctor, a tramway driver, a movie director and a teacher, among others.
But what unites Anders, Mika, Elric and the others is their age: members must be over 40; and physique: they must not be too well-trained, in fact some are smokers and most have a hint of a belly and are greying or balding.
And perhaps most importantly, they must have a good sense of diplomacy.
The latter is necessary for this motley crew to come together in the name of collective artistry.
"It's like a rock band, we're a group, with all the friction and all the energy that comes with being very close together," Sam Victorin, a member who co-founded Stockholm Simkonst Herr (Stockholm Art Swim Gents) in 2003, tells AFP.
The team doesn't compete in major international competitions -- their philosophy is to "have fun, but we try to do it with a serious approach."
"Some people thought when we started that we were trying to ridicule the sport. But it was the opposite."
Elric Sauze, a Frenchman who has lived in Sweden for seven years, joined the team because of his love of dance and swimming. - AFP