{"id":363913,"date":"2019-04-11T10:56:40","date_gmt":"2019-04-11T17:56:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=363913"},"modified":"2019-04-30T12:42:32","modified_gmt":"2019-04-30T19:42:32","slug":"world-champion-and-olympian-synchro-swimmer-olga-sedakova-to-be-inducted-into-ishof","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/world-champion-and-olympian-synchro-swimmer-olga-sedakova-to-be-inducted-into-ishof\/","title":{"rendered":"World Champion and Olympian Synchro Swimmer, Olga Sedakova To Be Inducted Into ISHOF"},"content":{"rendered":"

Olga Sedakova<\/strong> started synchronized swimming at just nine years old.\u00a0 Since the sport was still new to the Soviet Union, Olga and her coach developed training methods that combined swimming techniques along with famed Russian ballet and acrobatic methods.\u00a0 Through many years of hard work and dedication, Olga\u2019s dreams came true\u2026becoming World Champion in the solo, duet and team events at the 1998 World Championships.<\/p>\n

Olga Sedakova will be inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2019 during the Honoree Induction ceremony in Fort Lauderdale, Florida,<\/a> May 18, 2019.<\/p>\n

Meet Olga in person and hear her inspirational life story at the\u00a0ISHOF Induction dinner.\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0 Become an\u00a0ISHOF Legacy Member and attend the ISHOF Induction Dinner for FREE.<\/a>\u00a0 Can’t attend the event? Please consider making a donation to ISHOF<\/a> to support Olga and our other inspirational honorees<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Olga

Photo Courtesy: Olga Sedakova<\/p><\/div>\n

About Olga Sedakova<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Soviet Union was late to enter synchronized swimming and its first swimmer to show up on the international scene was a girl named Olga Sedakova.\u00a0 Sedakova came from an educated family, her father was a neurologist and her mother, an engineer.<\/p>\n

When Sedakova was about nine years old, she and her twin sister came upon synchronized swimming by pure chance. Olga\u2019s mother was working at one of the largest aquatic centers in Moscow and it was there that the girls discovered synchronized swimming.<\/p>\n

Early on, the girls trained with a very young coach, Elena Polianskaja<\/strong>.\u00a0 She was very ambitious, but because synchronized swimming was so new to the Soviet Union, she did not have much knowledge about the sport.\u00a0 It was clear that Olga was talented in the sport, but it took years until she began to fully develop her skills and shine on the podium.<\/p>\n

While Olga was in her mid-teens, Soviet women\u2019s magazine, Journal Price, hosted an international competition event to celebrate International Women\u2019s Day for Soviet women.\u00a0 Olga and her synchro teammates participated in this event.\u00a0 It was a great opportunity for the young synchronized swimmers not only to see other successful swimmers, but to learn from them as well.\u00a0 At this point in her training, Olga knew nothing about paddling techniques and regulations.\u00a0 She absorbed as much as she could at the competition by watching the other swimmers.\u00a0 Since Russia has always been so successful in the ballet and acrobatics, Olga and the other synchronized swimmers also developed their own training methods, based on Russian ballet and acrobats.<\/p>\n

\"Russian

Russian National Ballet, Swan Lake; Photo Courtesy: Columbia Artists Management Inc.<\/p><\/div>\n

Then in 1988, things began to change.<\/p>\n

In 1988, at the Junior European Championships, the Russians won their first gold medal in synchronized swimming.\u00a0 Olga was soon called up to the (Senior) National Team to represent her country.\u00a0 It took two years as a member of the National Team, before she could take a lead role as a soloist and with a duet partner to compete internationally for Russia.<\/p>\n

\"Olga

Photo Courtesy: Olga Sedakova<\/p><\/div>\n

In 1991 at the European Championships in Athens, Greece, Olga won her first gold medals, one in each of the three events, solo, duet with partner Anna Kozlova<\/strong>, and team.\u00a0 Next, she travelled to Perth, to the FINA World Championships, where she placed fourth in all three events.\u00a0 In 1992, Olga Sedakova competed in her first Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain and placed fourth in both events, the solo and duet, which were the only synchro events offered at the Olympic Games at that time.<\/p>\n

After the Olympics, Sedakova decided to make a change and moved to Switzerland.\u00a0 She decided to begin using her partner\u2019s coach, Svetlana Fursova<\/strong>, who was currently living and working in Zurich at the Limmat Nixen Club.<\/p>\n

All year round they trained splitting time between different three clubs.\u00a0 Part of the year they trained in the USA, in Santa Clara, California, with the famous, Aquamaids.\u00a0 Part of the year they trained in Zurichpart, and in spring, they went back to Russia and trained with the National Team.<\/p>\n

In 1993 at the FINA World Cup in Lausanne, Switzerland, Olga and her partner, Anna Kozlova<\/strong>, won the silver medal for their duet performance, while Olga took bronze for her solo performance.\u00a0 Then, in 1994, Olga won her first gold medal in the solo event at the Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n

Olga\u2019s partner, Anna left for America and her coach, Svetlana left for Canada.\u00a0 After the success she had just found, she now found herself alone in Switzerland, without a partner, or a coach.<\/p>\n

Sedakova decided to coach at her club in Zurich, as well as train herself in her free time, with the help of Susie Morger<\/strong>, the Swiss Coach.\u00a0 Olga eventually went back to Russia to once again train with the National Team, so she could perform with them at the upcoming World Championships.\u00a0 They placed fourth and Olga also took fourth in the solo event.\u00a0 At the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, the only synchronized swimming event was team, and the Russians took fourth behind the USA, Canada and Japan.<\/p>\n

\"Olga

Photo Courtesy: Olga Sedakova<\/p><\/div>\n

In 1997, Olga went back to Russia to begin practicing with her new partner, ISHOF Honoree, Olga Brushnikina<\/strong> and the Russian team as well.\u00a0 Later that year in Guangzhou, China, Sedakova won the FINA World Cup gold medal in the solo and duet.\u00a0 The January of the following year, 1998, all her dreams came true and she achieved her long-awaited goal.\u00a0 Olga Sedakova became World Champion in the solo, duet and team events, at the FINA World Championships in Perth, Australia.\u00a0 With three gold medals at one World Championships, Sedakova was only the fourth person to sweep every event at a single championship. \u00a0The other three athletes to do so were ISHOF Honorees, Teresa Anderson<\/strong>, in 1973 at the first World Aquatics Championships, Carolyn Waldo<\/strong>, in 1986 and Becky Dyroen-Lancer<\/strong> at the previous competition in 1974.<\/p>\n

\"Olga

3X World Champion; Photo Courtesy: Olga Sedakova<\/p><\/div>\n

Sedakova had reached the pinnacle of her career and accomplished everything she had set out to do.\u00a0 She retired and decided to take on a new challenge, coaching! \u00a0Sedakova became the National and Olympic Team coach for the Swiss National Team.<\/p>\n

She took the Swiss team to the 2000 (Sydney) and 2004 (Athens) Olympic Games.\u00a0 She choreographed and swam in (along with Billy May<\/strong>) the big show production of Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty in Switzerland.<\/p>\n

Now living in Zurich, Olga is married to a former Swiss boxing champion has three daughters.\u00a0 She stopped coaching synchronized swimming after her second daughter.\u00a0 She hopes one day to return to synchronized swimming, but today, her family in the most important thing.<\/p>\n

About The International Swimming Hall of Fame\u00a0Induction Weekend<\/a><\/h2>\n

\"International<\/p>\n

The\u00a0International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) Induction Ceremony is shaping up to be a star-studded weekend with multiple events spread out over three days in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida.\u00a0 Make your plans now to attend the weekend of May 17-19, 2019!\u00a0\u00a0ISHOF Members can purchase the Weekend Package and Save<\/a>!\u00a0 Can’t attend the event? Make a donation to ISHOF<\/a> to support our honorees.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s International Swimming Hall of Fame honorees include\u00a0<\/span>Swimmers:\u00a0<\/span>Jason Lezak <\/b><\/a>(USA), <\/span>Otylia Jedrzejczak <\/b><\/a>(POL),<\/span> Stephanie Rice<\/b><\/a> (AUS), <\/span>Britta Steffen<\/b><\/a> (GER); Diver: Li Ting <\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/b>(CHN); Water Polo Player:\u00a0<\/span>Alessandro Campagna <\/b><\/a>(ITA); Coach:\u00a0<\/span>Boris Popov<\/a>\u00a0<\/b>(RUS)<\/span>;\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>Synchronized Swimmer:<\/span>\u00a0Olga Sedakova <\/b>(RUS);\u00a0<\/span>Open Water Swimmer<\/span>: Marcy MacDonald<\/b><\/a> (USA); Contributor:\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Ferenc Salamon<\/b><\/a> (HUN); and Pioneer<\/span>: Alfred Nakache<\/a><\/b>* (FRA). \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

ISHOF will also present the 2019 Gold Medallion Award, ISHOF’s highest honor, to<\/span> Dr. Joseph B. MacInnis<\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n

2019 Paragon Award<\/a> and ISHOF Specialty Award<\/a> Recipients<\/h2>\n