Swimming Pretty - The Untold Story of Women in Water

Since the nineteenth century, tensions between beauty and strength, aesthetics and athleticism have both impeded and propelled the careers of female swimmers-none more so than synchronised swimmers. In this deeply researched history, Vicki Valosik traces a century of aquatic performance for the first time, from Victorian variety theatre and carnival shows to the 1984 elevation of synchronised swimming to Olympic status. Writing in eloquent prose, Valosik shows how early starlets like Lurline the Water Queen and Annette Kellerman boldly challenged restrictive codes set for women in water; more than just bathing beauties, they influenced lifesaving and physical-education programmes, dropped drowning rates and paved the way for new generations of female swimming athletes. Brimming with reverence and mesmerising detail, Swimming Pretty finally foregrounds an essential sport.

Now, on the fortieth anniversary of synchronised swimming's elevation to Olympic status, Swimming Pretty honours its incredible history of grit, glamour and sheer athleticism.

About the author

Vicki Valosik is a masters synchronized swimmer whose writing has appeared in publications such as the Atlantic, Smithsonian magazine, and Slate. She is an editorial director and teaches writing at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, and lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Product details

• Authors: Vicki Valosik
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 07.08.2025
• EAN: 9781324096894
• ISBN: 978-1-324-09689-4
• Dimensions: 137 mm x 208 mm x 25 mm
• Weight: 332 g
• Illustrations: 60 illustrations
• Subjects: Guides > Sport > Water sport, sailing; Social & cultural history, HISTORY / Women, SPORTS & RECREATION / Olympics & Paralympics, Social and cultural history, Gender studies: women, Gender studies: women and girls, Swimming & diving, SPORTS & RECREATION / Water Sports / Swimming & Diving, Olympic & Paralympic games, Olympic and Paralympic games, Swimming and diving, SPORTS & RECREATION / Women in Sports