Coach Andrea Fuentes jumped into the pool after she noticed the 25-year-old inventive swimmer sink to the underside at the top of her routine within the ladies’s solo free occasion on Wednesday.
Fuentes, a four-time Olympic medalist in synchronized swimming, lifted Alvarez to the floor earlier than serving to convey her to the sting of the pool.
Alvarez obtained medical consideration beside the pool, Reuters reported, and was subsequently carried off in a stretcher.
It was the second time Fuentes has had to rescue Alvarez, in accordance to Reuters, after she leapt into the pool throughout an Olympic qualification occasion final yr and pulled her to security, together with the American’s swim associate Lindi Schroeder.
She stated: “When a swimmer finishes their routine, the first thing they want to do is breathe and so I saw that instead of going up, she was going down and I told myself, ‘Something is going on,’ and I called for the lifeguards, like, ‘Go into the pool, can’t you see she’s going down in the water?’
“And they weren’t reacting, so after a few seconds, I went in as quick as I might.
“I don’t think I’ve swum as fast ever before, even when I got Olympic medals and well, in the end, I was able to get her up and she wasn’t breathing … In the end, everything came out OK.”
The International Swimming Federation (FINA) — the game’s governing physique — didn’t instantly reply to CNN’s request for a touch upon the velocity of the rescue.
But in a press release to CNN on Thursday, FINA stated it had been involved with Alvarez, her staff and medical workers following what it described as a “medical emergency.”
“Ms. Alvarez was immediately treated by a medical team in the venue and is in good health,” the assertion learn.
In a press release on the US Artistic Swimming Instagram web page, Fuentes stated Alvarez would relaxation on Thursday and seek the advice of her physician to see if she can be match to compete within the swim free staff finals, that are scheduled to happen Friday, in accordance to FINA.
“We sometimes forget that this happens in other high-endurance sports. Marathon, cycling, cross country … we all have seen images where some athletes don’t make it to the finish line and others help them to get there,” Fuentes added.
“Our sport is no different than others, just in a pool, we push through limits and sometimes we find them. Anita feels good now and the doctors also say she is okay.”
