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Learn more about the artistic swimming nominees across the 'Athlete of the Year' and 'Coach of the Year' categories at The Aquatics GB Awards 2024.
Artistic Swimming Athlete of the Year
2024 Shortlist: Kate Shortman, Isabelle Thorpe and Ranjuo Tomblin
Kate Shortman
National High Performance Centre
As one half of Britain's history-making artistic swimming duo, Kate Shortman enjoyed an unforgettable 2024 season that culminated with a first-ever Olympic medal in the sport for Team GB.
A whirlwind few months began with Kate and synchro partner Izzy Thorpe producing a couple of outstanding performances at the World Championships in Doha that brought a silver medal in the Tech Duet and bronze in the Free Duet - Britain's first duet medals at that level.
Two medals at the European Championships and a victory in the Olympic test event then set the scene for Kate's return to Paris for her second Olympic Games, where she and Izzy sat fourth after the Tech Duet routine and then shone brightly to come out on top in the Free Duet, ultimately ensuring a stunning, emotional silver to create more Aquatics GB history as the first British artistic swimmers to step on to an Olympic podium.
Isabelle Thorpe
National High Performance Centre
Izzy Thorpe wrote her place into Aquatics GB history in 2024, as her long-standing partnership with Kate Shortman flourished like never before to bring Olympic, World Championship and European successes in the space of five incredible months.
It began with those historic back-to-back medals in the Tech Duet and Free Duet events at February's World Championships, the greatest sign to that point that Izzy and Kate were now firmly among the world's best in the sport.
Izzy added pieces of silverware to her name with Kate at June's European Championships, fresh from winning the World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup and Olympic test event at the Olympic Aquatics Centre.
That venue would then provide the stage for a couple of incredible performances from the GB duo at the Olympic Games, with their Free Duet routine lifting them up to that unprecedented silver.
Ranjuo Tomblin
National High Performance Centre
If 2023 was a breakthrough year for Ranjuo Tomblin, 2024 was the year the youngster truly announced himself on the senior international stage.
Ranjuo's gold in the Men's Free Solo at June's European Championships the first ever for a British male in artistic swimming - and that was one of the four medals he won across an incredible competition.
He also claimed silver in the Tech Solo, as well as bronzes in both the Mixed Free Duet and Mixed Tech Duet contests alongside Beatrice Crass, playing a big role in a record-breaking seven-medal haul for Aquatics GB in the European artistic swimming.
Ranjuo ultimately matched his tally of four medals one month later at the European Junior Championships too.
Artistic Swimming Coach of the Year
2024 Shortlist: Paola Basso, Karen Thorpe and Yumiko Tomomatsu
Paola Basso
Artistic Swimming National Coach
Paola Basso played a crucial role in guiding Ranjuo Tomblin through an incredible season as coach for both the solo and mixed duet events.
Paola's dedication to Ranjuo's development - and that of the mixed duet pairing - in light of new rule changes and despite an early-season injury was remarkable, as she consistently went above and beyond to adapt strategies, refine routines and push through adversity.
Her efforts and belief in Ranjuo's potential have been instrumental in the growth and success of him as an athlete and the mixed duet this season, resulting in a history-making title and four European medals for Ranjuo in the summer, including two mixed duet bronzes.
Karen Thorpe
Artistic Swimming Head of Performance
As the programme lead for Aquatics GB artistic swimming, Karen Thorpe's extraordinary commitment to the sport and the success of Kate Shortman and Izzy Thorpe shone through in 2024.
In addition to her leadership responsibilities, Karen stepped in during times when Yumiko Tomomatsu was not at the pool to ensure Kate and Izzy had continuous coaching, support and motivation in the lead-up to their history-making Olympic and World Championship successes.
Karen's willingness to go above and beyond in every area of the programme - including the tireless management of every detail to provide an appropriate high-performance environment for those athletes and the whole programme - played a crucial part in driving the historic results of the British artistic swimming team on the world stage this year.
Yumiko Tomomatsu
Artistic Swimming National Coach
Yumiko Tomomatsuy's role as principal coach for Kate Shortman and Izzy Thorpe resulted in some incredible achievements this season, culminating in that unforgettable Olympic silver in Paris.
Although she was only able to coach them for seven to 10 days each month, her unwavering dedication and belief in the athletes was truly unparalleled.
Yumiko's ability to maximise Kate and Izzy's training, along with her deep understanding of the sport, was instrumental in shaping their historic performances on the world stage. Her exceptional coaching and commitment to excellence helped guide the GB duet to their incredible successes across Olympic, World and European Championships in the space of six memorable months.