Aleksandr Maltsev was a true pioneer in men’s participation in artistic swimming . Dennis González is the one who is reaching the highest level. Now, the brilliant Russian and the best exponent of the Spanish men’s synchronized swimming academy are facing off for the first time at a World Championship.
The two swimmers are breaking new ground in this sport and approach the competition with different goals and programs. However, they will compete in the mixed duets and men’s technical solo events at Singapore 2025.
This final, on Saturday (8:00 a.m. Spanish time), will be their first duel in four years and their first in a major international championship. The only precedent dates back to the 2021 World Series in Barcelona, when the then very young Dennis González finished second in the coach-only final behind the great Russian champion .
And Aleksander Maltsev has done nothing but collect titles since the first World Championships in which men were able to compete, precisely in his country, in Kazan 2015. There the mixed duos from Russia shared the podiums with those from the United States and Italy, with the figures of Bill May and Giorgio Minisini , respectively, as pioneers and first male stars of the ‘synchro’ alongside Maltsev himself, who in that championship formed a couple with Darina Valitova.
In a country where artistic disciplines are highly valued, the St. Petersburg native arrived without role models and faced many difficulties in training like the girls he started with. “I’ve had to deal with misunderstandings and negative reactions, but I was sure those people were wrong, not me,” he said in an interview with the international federation, in which he also expressed his admiration for Frenchwoman Virginie Dedieu and Spaniards Gemma Mengual and Andrea Fuentes, among the best in artistic impressionism in history .
Now, at 30, he’s hoping to make his mark in the sport by expanding his World Championships career after missing the last three due to sanctions against Russia. Maltsev has four gold medals, and in Singapore, as a member of the Neutral B team , he’s entered in both solos and both mixed duets; in the technical event with Mayya Gurbanberdieva, and in the freestyle event with Olesia Platonova .
An Olympic cycle with the Spanish team
And if anyone can stand up to the Russian duos right now, it’s Spanish synchronized swimming , with Dennis González as one of its greatest exponents. At 21, the Catalan has already become a regular part of the team’s routines, a historic feat. In fact, at the Somabay World Cup in Egypt in April, it was the first time a team with a male member stood on the podium of an international competition.
The moment was also very important for him and the team. After overcoming an injury, this was González’s first test in shape this season, which marks the start of an Olympic cycle ; and on top of that, he was under a new coach: Andrea Fuentes.
After several years among the national—and therefore world—elite, Dennis González already has a sensational track record. Among other achievements, he won a gold medal in the solo (free routine) at the first World Championships in which this discipline was included in the World Championships program, in Fukuoka 2023 .
That same year, he made his debut with the Spanish team at a World Cup, but he wasn’t included in the squad for the 2024 Games, the first in which there was a possibility of including men in team events, although the measure had only been announced two years earlier. “I still didn’t really know what I wanted at that point. But last year was when I really said, ‘I’m going to give whatever it takes to be there.’ And that’s what happened with the help of the staff ,” the Kallípolis swimmer explained to RTVE just before leaving for Singapore.
Now, if he continues to progress, Dennis González will have a chance to be an Olympian in Los Angeles 2028. “He has to earn his spot,” warns Fuentes, who, as U.S. coach, already left Bill May off the Olympic team with which she achieved great success in Paris.
Andrea Fuentes , however, highly values the contribution of Dennis González, who will have a packed program because, in addition to a solo, in Singapore he will be participating in two mixed duets—the technical one with Mireia Hernández and the freestyle with Iris Tió —and two team routines, the freestyle and the acrobatic. In these, the coach has also given the Barcelona native a very prominent role in the choreography. ” He’s much stronger, he has a lot of charisma . He’s bringing positive things to the team. He’s a different kind of animal,” the coach told Efe.
Following in the footsteps of Pau Ribes
“But the most important thing is that socially we believe it’s important for children who want to participate in a traditionally female sport to feel free to choose . It’s 2025 and it’s already tiring,” she added in a statement to RTVE.
“I’m working day after day for what I have to do and little else. Then you realize the impact it has on the children who watch me, like I saw Pau [Ribes] at the time. And that’s when you appreciate it and fight to keep going,” the competitor himself explained to RTVE, referring to the pioneer of Spanish synchronization.
After Ribes, Fernando del Río also briefly shone on the world stage , and now González is joined by Jordi Cáceres , who will also be participating in the World Cup in Singapore, proving that Spain has a youth system, which is key to competing at the highest level.
Aware that the country is a benchmark in diversity and equality—and not just in this sport—the international federation organized a groundbreaking men-only camp in Barcelona this season. “I didn’t know there were so many young boys in Spain” in artistic swimming, said Mexican Diego Villaobos, who will also compete in Singapore and was delighted with the experience.
The emerging swimmers
At this World Championships, we also have to pay attention to some swimmers who have had a strong season, starting with China’s Muye Guo , who at 17 years old is aiming for several medals. And although coach Anna Tarres tested him on the acrobatics team at a World Cup, she hasn’t included him in any of the team’s routines at this championship.
Also standing out recently are Kazakhstan’s Eduard Kim and Britain’s Ranjuo Tomblin , both 19 years old; and Chile’s Nicolás Campos (17 years old). The youngest, however, just turned 15, will be Greece’s Stylianos Koukouselis Fousikis.
And among the veterans, at 24, we must mention Colombian Gustavo Sánchez, who was recognized by World Aquatics as the best male artistic swimmer of last year.
