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Here's how Olympic synchronized swimmers keep their hair perfectly in place

Sarah Carty
Updated

Have you ever wondered how synchronized swimmers manage to keep their hair in pristine buns that don't budge while they dive in-and-out of the water in perfectly harmonised moves?

Well the U.S. synchronized swim team has revealed the secret behind their hard-as-nails hair and it's not exactly what you would think.

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Swimmer Mariya Koroleva told Vogue that she and her swim partner Anita Alvarez "don't wear swim caps" and prefer to invest in a more heavy-duty hair product to keep their tresses in place.

Mariya Koroleva and Anita Alvarez from the US Synchronized swimming team.
Mariya Koroleva and Anita Alvarez from the US Synchronized swimming team.

“When we compete, we put Knox gelatin in our hair," Koroleva said.

"It’s like unflavored Jell-O—we mix it with water, and it turns into a gooey mixture.

"You comb or brush that into your hair, put it up in a bun, and put a headpiece over that, so when it dries, it gets really hard and your hair doesn’t fall out when you swim.

"We like to add glitter and other decorations to it—it’s easy.”

Gelatin, which is more commonly used in cooking, has been used on hair for decades, with punk rockers championing the thick substance as a gel to get their spiky manes to unimaginable heights.

The jelly-like substance is also supposedly great for a deep condition and it's also been said it can thicken hair.

As for their make-up, it needs to be extremely waterproof as they dip their head in-and-out of the water and they revealed which brand is the best one.

“We use a lot of Make Up For Ever: Its foundation and mascara, and it also has a cream eye shadow that’s already waterproof,” Koroleva told Vogue.

“One of the competitions we go to is in Paris, where they sell all the makeup for really discounted prices. We stock up on all our makeup in Paris.”

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