SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING / U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS : No Surprise, Josephsons Make U.S. Team

It could be questioned why officials of U.S. Synchronized Swimming even bothered to hold an Olympic trials Sunday in duet competition. Everybody knew the winners would be the twins from Bristol, Conn., Sarah and Karen Josephson. Since the 1988 Olympics, where they won a silver medal, there hasn’t been another American duet that compares.

Even as the Josephsons were being introduced to a crowd of about 1,300 at the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center in Pasadena, the announcer stopped listing their victories, and ended with the phrase, “ . . . and on and on.” But few worried that listing the duet’s credits before they competed would influence the judging. The seeming ease with which they performed the most difficult of skills had its own influence.

Still, the Josephsons took this competition seriously, swimming a near-perfect routine to officially secure their berth as the sole duet representative of the United States in Barcelona, where they are considered the gold-medal favorite. Only one duet and one soloist are chosen.

“We knew we were expected to win here, but there is still pressure in that expectation,” Sarah said. “I think this competition was deceiving in that the number two team in the United States (Becky Dyroen and Jill Sudduth), didn’t compete here because Jill is hurt. If they would have, the final scores would be a lot closer.”

The Josephsons, 28, won the three-day competition by six points, which is a huge amount in this sport. They scored 99.88 points--out of a possible 100--for their final routine and received perfect marks for artistic impression. They performed to American classics, including George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue.”

“We are known for our spins (performed upside down) and connecting legs,” Sarah said. “Our legs look so much alike nobody can figure out which is which.”

Finishing second to the Josephsons were Heather Simmons and Suzannah Dyroen, who have been together only two years. Simmons, who finished third as a soloist, said they prefer duet because “it’s more from the heart.

“If I were swimming for the scores I would have quit a long time ago,” Simmons said. “We do this out of enjoyment, hoping we can tell a story that will make the audience feel something.”