Knowing how to swim doesn’t exclude anyone from the dangers of it.
This was a reality that an athlete and her coach had to face during a competition.
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Sometimes, people become complacent with swimmers in pools. They think that just because someone has trained all their life in the water means that they will never meet an accident.
Coach Andrea Fuentes jumped into the pool even with her clothes on.
During a competition in the FINA World Aquatic Championships in Budapest, Hungary, American swimmer Anita Alvarez began sinking.
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Towards the end of Alvarez’s routine, her coach noticed something unusual. Even through the water, she could see that the athlete’s feet were paler than usual.
Then, the 25-year-old athlete began to sink.
“I was already paying attention, and then I saw her going down,” Fuentes said to CNN. “I didn’t even ask myself if I should go or not, I just thought that I was not going to wait.”
The coach also added that even if the situation seemed ironic, passing out and drowning underwater isn’t uncommon.
She attributes the risks to how swimmers are required to hold their breaths for longer periods of time.
It was not the first time Fuentes saved Alvarez.
The first time she swam after the athlete was during an Olympic qualification event just last year.
Alvarez received medical attention at the poolside and was eventually carried out. The athlete competed at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics.
When asked about the lifeguards, Fuentes just said “They did their job.”
She explained that while it seemed that the lifeguards didn’t react quick enough, she was able to make a decision quicker because she knew Alvarez and the sport really well.
FINA said in a statement to the news outlet that “Ms. Alvarez was immediately treated by a medical team in the venue and is in good health.”
Alvarez said she would also continue the competition.
In a post via Instagram, Fuentes explained that things like these aren’t new to athletes whether in marathons, cycling, or cross country.
“Our sport is no different than others, just in a pool, we push through limits and sometimes we find them.” The post said, “Anita feels good now and the doctors also say she is okay.”
In her personal Instagram account, however, she shared that Alvarez had to be dropped at the last minute.
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“3 hours before the final, the top of FINA and their doctors decided Anita was not going to swim. They thought the risk was too high.” She said I a separate post. “I understand their position and it makes a lot of sense, but at that point, we were so ready to go for it and it was a huge frustration for the team.”
Alvarez finished seventh.
Japan’s Yukiko Inui bagged the gold. Marta Fiedina from Ukraine and Evangelia Platanioti from Greece completed the roster of podium finishers.
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Alvarez was named USA’s Artistic Swimming Athlete of the Year last 2021.
Meanwhile, her coach Fuentes was a four-time Olympic medalist in synchronized swimming.
Watch how a swimming coach rescued her athlete after an unexpected turn of events.
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