Vasiliki Alexandri defends EM gold in the solo with Cleopatra!

Vasiliki Alexandri defends EM gold in the solo with Cleopatra!

Funchal, Portugal - Vasiliki Alexandri successfully defended their title in solo synchronous swimming at the European Championships in Funchal. The 27-year-old collected 257,2400 points, making it clear from her competition. Iris Tio Casas from Spain won second place with 249,0917 points and Klara Bleyer from Germany secured the bronze medal with 246,9650 points. Alexandri's position is one of the best synchronized swimmers in Europe after she had previously won the solo shorter in Serbia.

The European Championships were a special opportunity for Vasiliki Alexandri, especially since it had suspended the last championships in Belgrade due to illness. Together with her twin sisters, Anna-Maria and Eirini-Marina Alexandri, who also compete in Funchal, she was also able to win duet gold on Tuesday. In Portugal, however, the sisters only competed in technology, since the training period with their new trainer Takako Nakajima was not sufficient for a freestyle program. Vasiliki presented her new program with the title "Cleopatra", which she only performed slightly than in her previous success.

success and challenges

Overall, Vasiliki Alexandri has already reached five EM medal in the non-Olympic solo. Their successes include two bronze medals at the European Championships 2022 in Rome and two Vice World Championships at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. The next challenge is already around the corner: The World Championships in July 2025 in Singapore will be their next big stage.

A special focus was on the free freestyle, for which Alexandri was able to qualify as the best in the pre-fight at the swimming World Cup in Qatar. It was 0.1272 points ahead of the second-placed Greek Evangelia Platanioti, who has already won gold in the technology shorter. While Alexandri only took sixth place in the technology shorter due to an error, she showed her potential in the free freestyle.

The synchronous swimming at a glance

The synchronized swimming, also known as art swimming, is carried out to music in different group sizes and is an Olympic discipline for women. Men have been allowed to participate in the mixed duett since 2015. The sport combines high physical requirements, feeling of rhythm and mobility. The competitions include disciplines such as solo, duet, group and combination and are evaluated according to difficulty, technical implementation and artistic value.

The origins of synchronized swimming go back to the 19th century when the first competitions took place in Berlin in 1891. In 1983, synchronous swimming was officially recognized as a competition discipline, and since 1984 the competitions have also been part of the Olympic program. Current challenges and success of athletes such as Vasiliki Alexandri show the dynamics and the continuing popularity of this fascinating sport.

In mid -2025, a new stage is waiting for Alexandri in her career. While her sisters withdrew from the duet competitions due to an injury, she remains an outstanding figure in the competition and is one of the most hopeful athletes of the synchronized swimming.