It is a brisk morning, and seven women stand shivering on the side of DeGuerre Pool. Suddenly music starts, and they jump into the water. In seconds they are swimming in perfect unison, moving their arms and legs with the explosiveness of gymnasts and the grace of ballerinas.
So begins a typical workout for one of the smallest and probably the least known of Stanford varsity sports squads -- the synchronized swimming team.
In March, when the women captured a second consecutive championship, it was a joyful end to a year of big changes.
After the team won its first title last year, coach Vickey Weir retired. Under Weir's direction, the team moved from club status to a varsity sport and had 18 top-five national finishes and an astounding dual-meet record of 123-3.
But if there was anybody who could fill Weir's shoes in the small world of synchronized swim coaches, successor Gail Emery is the one. Emery coached the last four U.S. Olympic teams and the Walnut Creek (Calif.) Aquanuts, historically one of the sport's dominant clubs.
Taking over a championship team might seem like a snap, but the Cardinal's marquee swimmer -- 1996 Olympic gold medalist Heather Pease -- graduated. That left Emery to compete this year with just seven athletes in a sport where having fewer than eight effectively means an automatic point deduction.
Still, Emery signed on. She hopes to double the squad's size, which will eliminate those nasty point concerns in the future.
She also hopes to expose more people on the Farm to the sport. On May 23, Stanford will hold its first synchronized swimming exhibition. The evening event will include an auction to raise money for the team as well as noncompetition performances by former Olympic medalists and the Stanford team.
