Meet Sisy Wang | Artistic Swimming Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sisy Wang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sisy, what is the most important factor behind your success?
I am one of those very lucky people who got to know the purpose of their life. From a very early age in China, I was an athlete. Competing in the Asian Championship and Chinese National Games, I was able to become a three-time gold medalist in artistic swimming, but it was not through competing myself that I found my goal.
Instead, I found it through helping young athletes to achieve their goals though artistic swimming, whether those goals are growing up along a path of strength and creativity or if they are working to be an elite athlete reaching for their Olympic dreams.
My first job was as the head coach of the Indonesian Artistic Swimming National Team. The team brought home three medals in the Southeast Asian Games in 2011, and I felt just how important it could be to coach athletes to a major success.
Despite that feeling, I still wanted to explore more of my options. I worked through my Master’s degree and tried different jobs such as working a 9-5 office position, but I quickly found that I could never replace what I found in the water. I eventually returned to coaching, and one experience in particular made me realize I had truly found my calling.
I was working with a talented athlete in London between 2018-2020. She was under fifteen yrs old girl and her parents suffered from drug addiction. They would sometimes forget to pick her up after practice. Her school grades had suffered. The hard work of training transformed her. I saw her become a person of responsibility and discipline. After a year of working with her, I got to watch her win a a bronze medal with her teammates at the Swim England Artistic Swimming National Age Group Championships. She was awarded the Most Improved student in her school in 2019. That was the pivotal moment for me. I saw just how much investing in child athletes could return and finally felt that feeling of knowing my purpose in life.
Since then, I have been working in the field for almost 10 years coaching highly competitive artistic swimmers. My athletes have won medals internationally and domestically across Asia, Europe and America. Medals aside, I place the highest importance on my athletes’ personal development, more than the results of any competition, because I get to see them grow into strong, well-rounded individuals who can succeed at anything.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Success is never easy to achieve, particularly in the realm of elite sports. My experience as an athlete in China instilled in me a strong sense of mental resilience, which has enabled me to pursue and accomplish the goals I set for myself.

I want more people to know about artistic swimming, which was formerly known as synchronized swimming. It’s an incredible sport that blends swimming, dance, acrobatics, and theatrical expression. The sport has come a long way, and it’s amazing to watch athletes move in perfect harmony—often upside down, holding their breath, and never touching the bottom of the pool. It’s far more than the old stereotype of women in bathing caps performing simple routines; artistic swimming is a powerful and highly skilled sport that deserves much more recognition.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I love visiting the boutiques at Rice Village and having lunch at Black Walnut Kitchen—they have the best salad, and it’s dog-friendly too! I also enjoy spending time in Montrose. It has all the fun stuff—from nights out to vintage stores, and cozy cafés to great restaurants—it never disappoints. The Heights is another great spot for a weekend visit. It also offers cute boutiques and trendy shops, but in a more compact, walkable area.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to give the biggest shoutout to my team the Houston SynchroStars. Not just for bringing me to the U.S., but also for giving me the opportunity to work with such an incredible group of talented, hardworking athletes. The Houston SynchroStars is the first and oldest non-profit artistic swimming club in Stafford and we offer high-level, competitive training for athletes from novice to senior levels. Some of these amazing young people commute up to two hours every day for practice and all of them manage the demands of school and a challenging training schedule. It is a true testament to their dedication and time management skills.
This year, we had an amazing season. We earned podium finishes at our local meets, as well as the U.S. National Championships and the U.S. Junior Olympic National Championships. One of our athletes, Xavier Wang, has made our team especially proud as he was selected for the U.S. Youth National Team and will represent the U.S. at the Youth World Championships this August. I can’t wait to see him perform on the world stage.
I’m beyond proud of all my athletes. They deserve all the shoutouts in the world. Go Houston SynchroStars!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sisy.wang/?hl=en

Image Credits

@rokp_photography