American artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez had lost consciousness when she was rescued from the bottom of the pool after fainting.
The 25-year-old was "not breathing" having completed her solo free routine at the World Aquatics Championships.
Thankfully, Alvarez’s coach Andrea Fuentes responded to the horrific situation by diving in fully clothed to pull the swimmer to safety.
As the American artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez fainted and sank toward the bottom of the pool at the world championships, her coach Andrea Fuentes made a split-second decision: She dove in to save her.
Alvarez is doing "fine" now, her coach said. https://t.co/w5b9w4t1Iz pic.twitter.com/msOBUa3PY7
— The New York Times (@nytimes) June 23, 2022
"It was a big scare," four-time Olympic medallist Fuentes was reported as saying by Spanish newspaper Marca.
"I was scared because I saw she was not breathing, but now she is doing very well."
Alvarez was given immediate medical attention at poolside, before being taken away on a stretcher.
In a statement from the US Artistic Swimming federation, Fuentes said Alvarez would be assessed by doctors on Thursday before a decision was made on her competing in Friday’s team event.
Fuentes said: "Anita is OK – the doctors checked all vitals, and everything is normal: heart rate, oxygen, sugar levels, blood pressure, all is OK.
"We sometimes forget that this happens in other high-endurance sports.
"Our sport is no different than others, just in a pool, we push through limits and sometimes we find them."
