MOSCOW, August 13. /TASS/. Russia’s artistic swimming athletes will go on vacation following the 2026 European Aquatics Championships in Paris and will begin preparing for national team try-outs in October, Svetlana Romashina, the team’s head coach, told TASS on Thursday.

The 2026 European Aquatics Championships take place in Paris between July 31 and August 16 at the 5,000-seat capacity Paris Aquatic Center.

Led by Head Coach Romashina, Russia’s team of artistic swimmers won three gold, one silver and three bronze medals at the 2026 European Aquatics Championships in France, taking second in the overall medals’ standings.

"Our biggest goal right now is to get some rest. Everyone needs to recover: coaches, athletes as well as our accompanying specialists, because this was a really grueling event," Romashina stated.

"Next, in October, we will have a screening and try-outs for the national team," she continued. "Absolutely all athletes will participate."

"After that, we'll have training camp, where we will first work on our endurance, on strength, on endurance in the water, get back in shape. And only after that will we start working on new programs. So, basically, the work schedule is already in place," seven-time Olympic champion Romashina, who replaced Tatyana Pokrovskaya as head coach in November 2025, added.

Russia competed this year at the European Championships for the first time since 2021. Back then, in Budapest, the Russians finished at the top of the overall medals’ standings having coined 20 gold, nine silver and 13 bronze medals.

This is the second major competition for Russian swimmers since being cleared to return to the international arena. Last year, they participated in the World Championships in Singapore, where they finished fourth in the teams’ overall standings, but in the top spot among the competing European teams. Russia’s athletes have been cleared to compete at the European tournament in Paris under a neutral status.