They are the undisputed queens of the pool, having won every Olympic gold medal available in their sport since the Sydney 2000 Games. They may seem like serious ladies, but Russia’s synchronised swimmers are in Rio de Janeiro – and they’re having fun!

“All the girls love coming to Brazil and they were so excited about this training period,” said coach Tatiana Pokrovskaya. “In Russia right now it’s really cold and people become quieter and more serious, but when we arrived here everything changed, because Brazilians have so much joy and they pass all this warmth of Rio to us.

“The conditions here are great. Everything here is very good, in addition to the climate and the warm welcome, the pool is great and we already feel at home. We will definitely feel good during the Olympic Games here.”

The fierce cold of Russia's winter is in stark contrast to summer in Rio de Janeiro (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Such news will sound ominous to Russia’s rivals. You have to go back to the last century, to the Atlanta 1996 Games, for the last time Russians did not stand atop of the podiums when the Olympic synchronised swimming competitions ended. They have won eight sets of gold medals – in the duets and team competitions – at the Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Games.

The Russians are training in Rio for two weeks, practising alongside the Brazilian team at the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre, which will host the synchronised swimming and diving competitions during the 2016 Olympic Games. The visiting team comprises 14 athletes, four of whom are Olympic champions: Daria Korobova, Alla Shishkina, Aleksandra Patskevich and Anzhelika Timanina.

The climate must have been a welcome break from their homeland, where temperatures regularly remain well below zero degrees during the winter. In comparison, Rio de Janeiro is currently enjoying a hot summer, with thermometers frequently showing numbers in the late thirties and even early forties.

After completing their routines, the Russian swimmers watched replays with the coaching staff (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Qualification for the Rio 2016 synchronised swimming events does not start until next year, but it seems highly unlikely the Russians will have problems confirming their places at the first Olympic Games in South America. And they seem sure to enjoy it.