Huang in watery wonderland as synchro team defeats Japan

China's gold medalists compete in the synchronized swimming combination final at the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou on Sunday. China won gold, Japan silver and Kazakhstan bronze. Agence France-Presse

Guangzhou - Studying Alice in Wonderland helped Huang Xuechen and China beat Japan for another synchronized swimming combination title on Sunday, one day after the 20-year-old put in an equally inspired performance for a share of the team gold.

Huang took the movie soundtrack to heart before performing to it at Foshan Aquatic Center, an experience she likened to method acting.

"Not only did I listen to the music, but I watched the movie time and again," she said. "I tried to understand the character and study her facial expressions to reflect the emotional changes Alice goes through.

"In brief, I totally incorporated myself into the character."

China's Japanese coach, Masayo Imura, said she was satisfied with Huang and her teammates in the synchro after they flattened their longstanding rivals for a second time at the Asiad, this time with a score of 97.125.

"They have shown what they have, but they are still short of a perfect 10," said the 60-year-old, dubbed Japan's "mother of synchro".

The Chinese dazzled with high jumps and lifts as 10 water ballerinas performed as individuals, pairs, fours, eights and a whole to see off Japan (94.000 points) and relegate Kazakhstan (85.375) to third place.

It was the first time that the combination was competed at the Asian Games since the sport made its debut in 1994.

Imura coached the Japanese national team for 27 years as they secured podium finishes in all six Olympic Games to Athens 2004, where they finished second behind Russia.

She was picked up by the Chinese camp after it dethroned Japan as the region's long-time synchro leaders at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.

As they proved again this weekend in Guangzhou, China's swimmers are not ready to roll over and give up their hard-won trophies just yet.

Twins Jiang Wenwen and Jiang Tingting executed perfectly on Saturday to play a key role in China's second straight team gold after the camera-friendly pair retained their duet crown on Friday.

Much of China's success has been attributed to Imura, who led the team to its first Olympic medal in the sport, a bronze, at Beijing 2008 before signing a new contract this September to assist with training for the Asiad.

However, she said plenty of work remains to be done before the team can catch up with its rivals on the world stage, led by Russia.

"Russia ranks first and this is a status that won't be jeopardized in the near future," she said.

Imura said she has no plans to renew her contract once the games end but that she would "think about it" if China asks her to coach the team again for next year's world championships in Shanghai.

AFP also contributed to the story

China Daily