“There are not too many sports that combine the grace of dance, athleticism of gymnastics and the strength of swimming while holding your breath upside down,” Renee Lynch says about synchronized, or artistic, swimming.
Photo courtesy DC Synchromasters Richmond
Lynch is a member of DC Synchromasters Richmond, which, together with the River City Magnolias and Triangle Aqualinas, is presenting the 2025 Artistic Swimming Exhibition today at SwimRVA.
The Richmond squad is part of DC Synchromasters, a self-coached, competitive group of synchronized swimmers in Washington, D.C.; Maryland; and Virginia. Swimmers on the Richmond team range in age from late 30s to 70s.
“We span generations and have different backgrounds and beliefs, but we are a family and have a unique bond through our shared water time, our health and the investment into this sport,” says member Elizabeth Kuhfuss-Beville, 37, of Chester. “I love having teammates who push me to improve, and I love being able to explore new variations and options as we dance in the water together.” Kuhfuss-Beville particularly enjoys the constant challenge and striving for improvement.
Synchronized swimming has health benefits, as well, says Laura Alt, 64, of Virginia Beach, who has been involved in the sport since age 8. “Synchro is good physical and mental exercise,” she says. “The water is gentle to your joints.”
Lynch, 67, joined DC Synchromasters Richmond as a masters competitor (older than collegiate age) eight years ago. It is far from her first experience with the sport, however. Also head coach of SwimRVA’s Rapids Artistic Swim Team, Lynch participated in synchronized swimming with the Richmond Dolpholinas at what is now the Weinstein JCC from age 5 to 13, when she chose to focus on dance. As part of Richmond Ballet’s junior company, Lynch rose to soloist, then principal dancer and choreographer before leaving at age 18 to help form the Concert Ballet of Virginia.
“As a kid, synchronized swimming was very different than it is now,” she says. “It was much more theatrical, with props for deck work and swim costumes. It was very much in line with dance, so it really was just another form of dance for me, but competitive.”
Lynch’s interest in both dance and synchronized swimming is rooted in creativity and the ability to take an audience on “a journey, whether it is a mood, emotion, statement or storytelling,” she says. “Every movement has a purpose to interpret the music. The routine becomes a visual of the music.”
Synchronized, or artistic, swimming is rooted in aquatic performances that date back centuries; the sport gained Olympic status in 1984. As in ice skating and gymnastics, routines are scored for execution, difficulty and artistic impression. DC Synchromasters swimmers can choose to participate in technical or freestyle routines as soloists or members of duets or larger groups.
“You can swim as little or as much as you want to,” Lynch says. “This year, since I am head coach for the SwimRVA team, I don’t have a lot of extra time to devote to my own personal swimming.”
The team practices at Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, a decision made based on the amount of pool time they could book. “At Fork Union, we don’t have to share the pool. We get it to ourselves to practice,” Lynch says. “They have been very accommodating.”
DC Synchromasters competes nationally and internationally at events such as USA Artistic Swimming’s Masters Championship (where the team took third place last year), the FINA World Masters Championships, the World Aquatics Masters Championships and the Pan Am Games. The nine-member Richmond squad will join the larger DC Synchromasters team for the 2025 Masters Championship in Overland, Kansas, at the end of October.
“My first competition, I saw women and men of all shapes, sizes and ages come together, not to compete just for the awards, but to also show what they can do,” Lynch says. “Watching a masters competition is like watching a living documentary of our sport.”
Training for events can be grueling and rewarding at the same time, she adds. “You have to have tolerance for traveling and being together every Sunday for 10 months out of the year. We are a big support group. We have seen people through severe illness of a spouse, death of a spouse, and personal and physical challenges, but as a group, we are always there for them and give them as much time as much as we can.”
Kuhfuss-Beville began synchronized swimming at age 9 and says she’s glad it’s not something you can age out of. “I love that it is a sport I have been able to return to as an adult and hope to continue for decades to come.”
DC Synchromasters Richmond, the River City Magnolias and the Triangle Aqualinas present the 2025 Artistic Swimming Exhibition at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 5, at SwimRVA, 5050 Ridgedale Parkway.
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