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Read MoreBay Area Artistic
SwimTeam
for
Athletes with Disabilities
(AWD)
We are an artistic swimming team, previously known as 'synchronized swimming'. Established in 2015 in San Jose, California, we train youth with cognitive and physical disabilities in our sport. Operating as a private team during the school year, we currently coach up to 12 swimmers, subject to the availability of our coaching staff every season. We are a very small inclusive team. Sometimes, swimmers wait as long as 2 to 3yrs to join our team. We look forward to expanding in the future.
Our team is dedicated to inclusivity, welcoming youth athletes aged 6 and older with cognitive or physical disabilities. We provide coaching for transition from basic swimming to artistic swimming, but do not offer initial swim instruction. Applicants must possess fundamental swimming skills, be comfortable in deep water, and have an understanding of pool safety. Additionally, they should not exhibit uncontrolled behavioral issues that could be hazardous in or around the pool. Our training focuses on long term athlete development for advanced swimming techniques in artistic swimming competitions. We offer a 'pre-comp' beginner program which caters to younger swimmers who are new to artistic swimming, serving as a pre-competition, preparatory transition. Our beginner program does allow for those wishing to compete in local, national and even international competitions, when they are capable. We offer six USA Artistic Swimming levels (TIERS) of artistic swimming progression tailored for athletes with disabilities, with long-term training development designed to excel to advanced levels. Our objective is to empower our swimmers to fulfill their aspirations of ultimately competing at higher-level competitions, including regional, state, national, and international competitions. Participation in local novice/intermediate competitions is part of our coaching for all swimmers, while long-term aspirations guide the selection of swimmers who wish to continue with our team each season and progress through the levels (TIERS 1 through 6). We occasionally accept non-disabled swimmers who wish to swim in a duet, trio or small team (mixed ability) category at competitions. The non-disabled swimmers must have experience from another team or swim team and must be willing to train with our athletes with disabilities (AWD).
Over the years, it has been observed that swimmers with disabilities and impairments have fewer opportunities with community swim teams and other mainstream sports. Athletes with disabilities/impairments often struggle to progress in sports unless they already possess advanced skills, such as speed swimming, water polo, etc. Our focus is on artistic swimming, and we have seen our long-term athletes successfully join high school and collegiate water polo and competitive swim teams, with some moving on to Paralympic Swimming. We are committed to helping young swimmers who wish to incorporate artistic swimming or other water sports into their lifelong physical activities. While not every swimmer will reach professional levels—approximately 5% of non-disabled athletes do, and even fewer athletes with disabilities achieve this—so we take pride in making a difference in the lives of young people with disabilities/impairments by teaching them with skills that benefit their daily lives through our team program. Currently, we do not provide masters training, but we do coach young adult swimmers with disabilities/impairments, with certain exceptions. Older adults with disabilities may find opportunities with artistic swim teams that offer Masters programs. For more information on Masters swimming, please visit the USA Artistic Swimming website at: www.usaartisticswim.org
TIER1 Program (October through May every season) Our TIER1 beginner program is the perfect opportunity for swimmers ages 6 to 13, to learn and improve their swimming skills during the October through May season. They have the option to compete at local competitions and regional, national and international invitationals. Most new swimmers remain in this Tier for up to 4+ seasons as a beginner Novice Swimmer. PLEASE NOTE: This is NOT a 'learn to swim' session. Swimmers must have minimal swim skills from a previous certified swim lesson program within the past year and NOT be afraid of water and understand and able to demonstrate basic pool safety/drowning prevention. A free swim assessment will be conducted to ensure your swimmer is the correct fit & qualify for this program. This program capacity is 5 slots with one program coach and up to 3 coaching assistants.
The Advanced Novice Tiers program is designed for swimmers who have a basic understanding and have demonstrated the skills needed to advance through the program Tiers Levels. Swimmer may be able to start in the Novice program, especially youths who are ages 12 and older with novice swim skills. Most swimmers remain in each Novice Tier for at least 2 to 3+ seasons. This program has 4 athlete slots and is managed by one coach with up to 3 coaching assistants.
Swimmers in this team program have progressed through the Tiers, season after season. This program is for intermediate and advanced artistic swimmers. Most swimmers may remain in a high-performance TIER for up to 2+ seasons. Swimmers who transfer from other artistic swim teams who are proficient and have the skills for advanced training, are assessed and placed in this program. Tier 6 is the Top Tier for Athletes w/Disabilities and eligible to compete in all high performance National/International Competitions including future Paralympics. The exception would be for athletes who are coming from a high-performance gymnastics/dance program with strong swim skills. The Tiers are designed for athletes with disabilities and are eligible to compete in the Tiers parasport categories at sanctioned USA Artistic Swim Competitions as well as some Int'l Competitions. This program has 6 slots and managed by 2 Coaches and up to 2 coaching assistants.
All Tiers
Coach Tina is the Co-Founder of the team along with Coach Raquel, which they established in 2015. Coach Tina has been involved with coaching Artistic Swimming since 2009 and is a USA Artistic Swim and USA Paralympic Certified Swim Coach. Coach Tina is an Aquatics Therapy Assistant for injured veterans and is enrolled in the SJSU M.S. Graduate program for Kinesiology with a focus on sports & facilities management for people with impairments. Coach Tina is a strong advocate for long term athlete development and knows that the skills learned and earned by athletes with disabilities are lifelong in any career they chose. Coach Tina has been instrumental along with Coach Raquel in the national and global push to include artistic swimming as a future Paralympic sport. Coach Tina was successful in guiding the USA Artistic Swim Federation to include a category for athletes w/disabilities (AWD) to compete in locally, regionally, state and nationally. Coach Tina has been a guest speaker all over the world for the inclusion of artistic swimming as an adapted & Paralympic sport, in addition to engaging athletes with disabilities with the sport. Coach Tina has made a global impact not only as a Head Coach but as the President of her advocacy organization, Artistic Swim AWD. Her ultimate goals are long term athlete development for athletes with impairments, Paralympic inclusion and establishing a local aquatics facility for people with impairments. Her compassion, understanding and qualifications will result in the success of these goals.
Tiers 5 & 6 Remote Coach
Coach Raquel is the Co-Founder of the Team and a USA Pioneer in evolving artistic swimming as a main stream sport with parasport categories (Tiers). Coach Raquel began the formal global movement to include athletes with disabilities in Artistic Swimming. Coach Raquel began her artistic swimming career in 2009 with two local teams and ultimately started the Bay Area Artistic Swim Team in 2015 to allow for athletes w/disabilities (AWD) to have full opportunities for high performance competitions. Coach Raquel continues to compete as an athlete in National and Int'l competitions. Coach Raquel believes in inclusivity in sports and has traveled all over the World to speak about the importance of inclusion and keeping our athletes with disabilities engaged and independent. Coach Raquel graduated from San Jose State University in 2022 with a degree in Political Science. She took a break to coach and to pursue the AWD global movement for inclusion in future Paralympic Games. Coach Raquel is now one of our remote coaches and she is currently attending Law School in San Diego. She continues to advocate for the rights of our underserved populations and has started an accessible students association at her law school just two months after she began her studies. Coach Raquel as an AWD, is committed with strength and passion to lead AWD and non-AWD swimmers to success in the pool and in their lives and will be a successful and integral part of our community as a champion, not only in the pool but in our community helping others achieve their dreams.
Tier 1 & 2 Coach
Coach Tulisha has been a USA Artistic Swim Federation certified coach since 2018. Coach Tulisha was instrumental in the early beginning of this team to find success locally and with inclusivity at local pools. She has coached at local, regional, and Int'l competitions. She brings a wealth of experience with customer service and satisfaction while working as a senior customer service rep in internet and retail services. Coach Tulisha's experience and ability to coach up and coming athletes to enjoy what artistic swimming has to offer has led to numerous successes for athletes who would have very little opportunity to excel in other sports. Coach Tulisha gives every swimmer the opportunity to develop their skills while having fun. Coach Tulisha believes in long term athlete development and has the ability to encourage young swimmers to stay engaged and to fulfill their dreams of showcasing their acquired skills to the world. Coach Tulisha graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in public relations. Coach Tulisha is also a caregiver for her mom, who is visually impaired and knows the frustrations athletes w/disabilities face when it comes to equity and inclusion. Coach Tulisha believes coaching is a lifelong journey for her as it is with many of the athletes she coaches.
Tiers 4 to 6 Lead Coach
Coach Katie has been a USA Artistic Swim Federation certified coach since 2019 and was a competitive artistic swimmer for a local team for 6yrs. Coach Katie has coached at local, regional, state, national and Int'l competitions for athletes with disabilities. By dedicating herself to coaching, she found a way to be involved in the sport she loves while pursuing her education. Coach Katie is passionate about providing individualized support and skill training to young athletes with developmental and physical disabilities. Coach Katie is an English major and a Human Rights minor at UC Berkeley. She loves to choreograph routines, finding joy in working with new artistic swimmers on the creativity and musicality of the sport. Coach Katie continues to provide a calm and safe space where athletes with disabilities are accommodated, and their abilities are valued. Coach Katie is committed to compassion and the understanding of the challenges which athletes with disabilities face and has the experience as a coach with an impairment herself, to pass on to athletes so they can excel in their endeavors for this sport and in their daily lives.
Tier1 & 2 Coach
Coach Brandi is one of our Tier1 coaches. She is currently attending school for Paramedic certification and enjoys coaching our younger swimmers in Tiers 1 and 2. She brings a lot of experience as a swimmer and working with kids with disabilities.
Coaching Assistant/TIERS 1-6
Coach Anya swam for several years with the Santa Clara Artistic Swim club and enjoys working with our younger swimmers. She is one of our skills coaches with a technical focus on figures and skills transitions for routines. Our swimmers in all Tiers loves her ability to get in the pool and go 'hands on' with teaching our swimmers what a lot of people cannot see underwater.
Remote Skills Instructor/All Tiers
Claire is a former USA National Team Swimmer from the Santa Clara Artistic Swim Club. She is currently in her Medical School Residency and will resume part time coaching at the pool when she completes her medical program.
Remote Skills Instructor/All Tiers
Coach Jade is a former USA National Team Swimmer from Irvine, California. She is currently in medical school for nursing and upon completion, will return to the pool to coach in person.
Remote Skills Instructor/All Tiers
Coach Hannah is our Intl AWD Social Media Outreach Coach. She is on the Jr. National Team and manages the AquaGrace monthly international webinar program for global AWD.
In'tl AWD Coach
Coach Yuliya is our Int'l level AWD Coach who travels with our team to International Competitions for our advanced swimmers Tiers 4 through 6. Coach Yuliya has been a part of our team for the past 11yrs and has coached AWD swimmers for 16yrs. She is currently a high performance coach for the Santa Clara Artistic Swim Club in Northern California as well as a Gold Medalist swimmer for years with the Santa Clara Artistic Swim Club.
Team Rep & AWD Coach
Coach Sarah is our Team Representative who works alongside of our Head Coach and Staff. She is also our Pre-comp/Tier1 Program Lead and in pool coach. She is also an Occupational Therapist. Coach Sarah brings great leadership skills for our swimmers and staff and represents the Team at competitions and events.
AWD TIER1 Coach & Athlete Safety Rep
Coach Takako brings many years of experience with athlete safety for our team and is one of our pre-comp/Tier1 coach and assists with long term athlete development and is currently working on her certification as an artistic swim technical judge for novice figures competitions.
Coaching Assistant/Skills Instructor
Coach Olivia is currently a National Team Swimmer and swims for the Santa Clara Artistic Swim Club. She brings a lot of experience as an artistic swimmer and manages a summer camp for neurodivergent kids called Aqua Villagers. She aspires to go into the medical profession and loves working with our athletes.
Coaching Assistant/Skills Instructor
Coach Anusha is one of our in pool skills instructors and brings a lot of experience as an artistic swimmer. She swam for years with the Santa Clara Artistic Swim Club and loves working with our athletes with disabilities. Coach Anusha believes that kids with disabilities can be just as strong swimmers as their nondisabled peers. Coach Anusha is enthusiastic about inclusion of AWD in our sport and enjoys working with all levels of our swimmers.
Coaching Assistants/Skills Instructors
We are blessed to have a wealth of high school and college bound knowledgeable and experienced swimmers on our staff. We are proud to continue expanding our staff to send out in the community to bridge the gap for our underserved population of youths with disabilities and to assist with the future of inclusion and success for our swimmers.
JOIN us for a FUNraising 2026 event which includes sponsoring a swimmer (or 2) for our ArtSwim-A-Thon, which is a unique aquathon with synchronized swim elements. Also, swimmers will do their routines with a costumed exhibition to music. We will have a fantastic silent auction and great raffle prizes. All of this with Free admission! If you want special treatment, then purchase one of our limited VIP tickets, which is front row seating includes cold bottle of water, and an optional photo opportunity with your camera of our costumed swimmers with you, along with our special guest Mermaid. All for just $15. Seats are limited and advanced RSVP is required. Spectators in wheelchairs will have a specific viewing area at no additional cost. Bleacher seating is free, first come, first served. Those arriving late or no more seating available are encouraged to bring their own folding chair just in case. Otherwise it is standing only during the duration of the event. Aquathon sponsorship pledges for swimmers start at $5 per lap and up. The silent auction and raffle concludes at 3pm. The event concludes at 3:15pm, and door closes to the public at 3:30pm. For RSVP or addl information, please email Coach Tina at: artisticswimawd@gmail.com
JOIN US! ALL INT'L swimmers representing their clubs or unaffiliated who are qualified athletes with disabilities in artistic swimming, Tier1 to Tier6. Our Team is PROUD to announce that THREE of our high-performance swimmers will be competing at this event this month! Congratulations on being selected to represent not only our team but our USA Artistic Swim Federation as AWD Club Athletes! Competition will be held in Mexico City, Nov. 21st to Nov. 23rd, 2025. Please email us for more details!
JOIN OUR TEAM for SEASON 2026!!! We begin training on Sat, October 4th, 2025. We practice the first 3 SATS of every month until May 30th, end of season. This season for 2026, we will participate in at least 2 competitions and 2 exhibitions. We are limiting team slots, first come, first served! Current team swimmers have priority! We only accept athletes with disabilities, ages 8 to 15 and must have demonstrated swim skills to join the team. For a FREE TRY IT session on Sunday, June 15th, June 22, June 29, and July 13, Please email us with an RSVP. IF we fill team slots with qualified swimmers before October, there will be NO more Try It sessions until June 2026.
If you are a Masters swimmers, ages 25+ and wanting to learn more about artistic swimming and enjoy the beauty of another County, come and join us for this fabulous experience in Poland! If you have any disability or impairment, we will work with you! Please email us for more details! Camp reg closes in July!
The California State Games is an Olympic style grass roots event which involves over 20 sports including Artistic Swimming at venues across San Diego. The events are kicked off with an opening ceremony at the Pechanga Stadium in San Diego on Friday, July 18th from 5pm to 830pm. Please visit the California State Games website for additional information and tickets. For the Artistic swim competition, there will be competitors from across California and the Western Region. The competition will begin at 9:00am and end with an awards ceremony at 4pm. This competition includes Novice, Intermediates, Age groups, Parasports Tiers and Masters. NO tickets are required for spectators at the Artistic Swim Competition. Please visit the California State Games website at: https://www.calstategames.org/opencer
We will be conducting our State Games Camp for our pre-registered swimmers from our team. We invite new swimmers to come out and TRY a session with us from 2:30pm to 3:15pm! Sundays ONLY and must email us to pre-register! Chose a date: Sunday, June 15th, June 22nd, June 29th or July 13th. We will have more TRY IT sessions in October through November on Saturdays if we still have slots available. TRY IT sessions are for youths, ages 8 to 15 with Cognitive and/or Physical disabilities with swim skills/pool safety awareness.
This is the final local competition of the season. ALL teams with Novice and Intermediate/Age group swimmers who will compete in their final meet of the season with figures (technical) and full routines. AGE group swimmers will compete on Sunday, same time.
Regionals Competition involves all northern California teams with competitions amongst age groups and advanced swimmers, including parasport categories (Tiers).
Great fun with costumed artistic swim routines! Solos, Duets, Trios and Teams. This competition will occur for AWDs on Friday, April 11th and Sat, April 12th. More details/schedule of events to be posted soon.
This inaugural event is the culmination of 10yrs of advocacy by the Artistic Swim AWD Organization to advocate for AWD Organizations globally to hold a World Championship during the Olympic/Paralympic break. This competition is for the Intl Olympic committee to experience the abilities global athletes with disabilities in artistic swimming worthy of recognition of the sport to be on future Paralympic Rosters. SPECIAL THANKS to everyone at the Nat'Handi Artistique Organization (France) for putting this event together and hosting this amazing competition! For additional information about this international competition, your support and any information you need, please contact: nathandiartistique@gmail.com
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Read MoreWe do not have online enrollment. ALL free try it sessions, enrollment requests, and other questions are processed via the contact form. NO solicitations allowed and will not respond to any sales rep. To donate to our team, please complete the contact form and will respond with donation information.