The Canadian women’s artistic Olympic swim team did not come up with a medal yesterday, but they definitely put on a memorable routine.
It seems as though the team wanted to inherit the swagger of some of hip hop’s most iconic performers as they included a mix of songs from rap legends such as Snoop Dog, 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar in their routine.
“It definitely fits our team’s vibe,” Canadian swimmer Claire Scheffel said, per Jamie Tozier of the Canadian Olympic Committee. “We’re always dancing, always singing, even prepping for this event. It’s part of our way to get in the game. We love to dance and sing and the hip-hop really lets us express ourselves.”
The result was a unique performance from some of the country’s most talented artistic swimmers.
Canada’s artistic swim team performs to hip hop music, including songs by Snoop Dogg, Dr Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent 🇨🇦😎 pic.twitter.com/IvvEwfZCvt
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) August 7, 2024
The Canadian team consists of six swimmers: Scheffel, Scarlett Finn, Audrey Lamothe, Jonnie Newman, Raphaelle Plante, Kenzie Priddell, Jacqueline Simoneau, and Florence Trembley.
If the soundtrack of the routine sounded familiar, it’s because it is based on the lineup of artists and songs performed at the Super Bowl LVI halftime show at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles back in 2022.
While it seemed to be a hit with the crowd, Canada’s hip-hop-centric routine was not good enough to land them on the Olympic podium. The team instead settled for sixth place in the group of 10, finishing ahead of Mexico, Italy, Australia, and Egypt.
China took home the gold medal, the United States captured silver, and Spain rounded out the podium with the bronze medal.
Canada has had a fairly successful history when it comes to medalling in artistic swimming. Though the team wasn’t able to get on the podium this time around, Canada has won eight medals in the event since 1984, including three gold, four silver, and three bronze.
That being said, Canada has been in a bit of a drought over the last decade or so, with its last Olympic artistic swimming medal coming in the form of a bronze from the women’s team at the Sydney 2000 Games.
The last Canadian gold medal in the sport came during the Barcelona 1992 Games with Sylvie Fréchette in the solo women’s event.