They say that every little girl dreams of being a ballerina,

• Published date: 26 October 2023
• Author: OWN Correspondent
• Publication title: Constantiaberg Bulletin

They combined dance with their love of water to pirouette their way into the sport of artistic swimming at the ages of 5 and 8 respectively

Having trained for over two decades to perfect this graceful, athletic and demanding sport, the duet recently competed at the World Championships in Japan to secure South Africa a place at the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024. “We are both passionate about the sport and were thrilled to compete at the World Championships,” says Strugnell, “and then, to help secure South Africa a duet artistic swimming spot for the 2024 Olympics, was just incredible.

“We feel particularly proud to be helping create awareness for this sport and it will be fantastic to have South Africa represented in Paris next year. But, more than that, we want to promote the sport, improve the standard and showcase SA’s talent on the world stage. Whether that’s us or another duet – the big prize is to have our flag flying in Paris next year.”

However, now the real hard work begins, not only for this duo but the other artistic swimming duets. They are training to compete in three competitions – locally and internationally – in December, February...