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Artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez passed out while competing in the World Swimming Championships.
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Her coach, Andrea Fuentes, jumped into the pool to save her because “the lifeguards weren’t doing it.”
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Fuentes said Alvarez is now “doing very well”, and may still be competing in an upcoming team event.
American artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez was dramatically rescued after passing out while participating in the World Aquatics Championship in Budapest.
Per Agence France Presse, Alvarez, 25, completed her routine in Wednesday night’s solo free final before losing consciousness and sinking to the bottom of the competition pool.
Her coach, Andrea Fuentes, jumped into the water in her t-shirt and shorts to rescue the swimmer “because the lifeguards didn’t do it,” she said. Spanish news channel Marca†
Photos of the rescue and of the distraught faces of those watching the pool have since been doing the rounds online.
“I was afraid because I saw that she was not breathing, but now she is very well,” said Fuentes per Marca.
The coach told Spanish radio that the rescue “felt like a full hour,” according to AFP.
“I said things weren’t right, I yelled at the lifeguards to get in the water, but they didn’t understand what I was saying or they didn’t understand,” Fuentes said, according to the outlet. “I went as fast as I could, like it was an Olympic final.”
She also provided an update through the USA Artistic Swimming Instagram account on Thursday morning.
“Anita is fine – the doctors have checked all vital signs and everything is normal: heart rate, oxygen, sugar levels, blood pressure, etc … everything is fine. We sometimes forget that this happens in other endurance sports. Marathon, cycling, cross country … we’ve all seen footage where some athletes don’t make it to the finish and others help them get there,” she wrote in the caption alongside a photo of Alvarez.
“Our sport is no different from any other, only in a pool we look for limits and sometimes we find them. Anita now feels good and the doctors also say she is fine,” she continued, adding that Alvarez with the doctors will discuss whether she can continue to participate in an upcoming team event.
According to the BBCThis isn’t the first time Alvarez has passed out in the pool during a game. She lost consciousness after a routine during an Olympic qualifying in Barcelona last year and was also rescued by Fuentes at the time, according to the outlet.
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