| Canada wins bronze in team combination event at FINA World Cup |
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Russia won the gold medal with 98.300 points, China was second at 97.200 and the Canadians, performing a routine called Street Dancing, followed at 96.000. It matched their result from the 2009 FINA World Aquatic Championships in Rome. The Canadian swimmers were Marie-Pier Boudreau-Gagnon of Riviere-du-Loup, Que., Camille Bowness of Beaconsfield, Que., Jo-Annie Fortin of Montreal, Chloé Isaac of Brossard, Que., Ève Lamoureux of Montreal, Tracy Little of Pointe-Claire, Que., Élise Marcotte of l’Ancienne-Lorette, Que., Valérie Welsh of St-Nicolas, Que., Stéphanie Leclair of Gatineau, Que., and Erin Willson of Toronto. "It’s a great way to start the competition," said Marcotte, 21, a member of the 2008 Olympic team and 2009 world championship squad. "In a judged sport, a first impression is always very important. This really sets the tone for the rest of the competition." While the result is the same from Rome, Marcotte says the Canadian team made some giant steps. "We’ve closed the gap on the Chinese and distanced ourselves from teams behind us," she said. "We had a great prelims in the morning and it was a challenge to surpass that. But we improved our acrobatic lifts and kept the energy level high from start to finish." Competition continues on Friday with the duet competition. In the pool for Canada are Boudreau-Gagnon and Isaac.
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Canada won the bronze medal in the team combination event on Thursday to open the FINA World Cup synchronized swimming competition. It was Canada’s first World Cup medal in more than 10 years.
