Iris Tio Casas, who helped Spain earn Paris 2024 team bronze at the Olympic Aquatics Centre, will return there seeking further success when artistic swimming starts at the European Aquatics Championships Paris 2026 on July 31.
The 23-year-old from Barcelona enjoyed a remarkable 2025, at the end of which she was named European Aquatics women’s artistic swimmer of the year.
At the EA Artistic Swimming Championships in Funchal she claimed three continental golds, two silvers and a bronze, and added major titles in the duet free alongside 18-year-old Lilou Lluis Valette and in the mixed duet free with Dennis González.
She then amassed three golds and three bronzes at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore.
Her campaign included a landmark first individual world gold in the solo free routine, bronze medals in the solo technical and team free events, and further podium finishes in team competitions.
Looking back now on your Paris 2024 experiences, which do you most clearly recall? Did you expect a medal?
What I most remember is the experience of being at the Olympic Village, and also of being in the pool with a full crowd cheering for us.
It was incredible because I had never experienced such a crowd before then. It was also very emotional to have my family, my parents and friends there. That is what I remember most.
Also we fought for the medal – but the main thing was that we wanted to enjoy these Olympics.
What do you remember of the Olympic atmosphere and the city? Did it feel different to other competitions?
On the last day after we finished our competition we were able to go to the Eiffel Tower and saw the women’s marathon. It was incredible to see how much of the city was involved in sport and how everyone was enjoying it and watching it everywhere. That was really, really beautiful.
How different as an athlete and a person do you think you are heading into Paris 2026 compared to Paris 2024 – especially given your extraordinary performances at last year’s World Aquatics Championships?
I have more skills now in the sport and also more experience because I have grown up. I think I will be more prepared this time.
What are your personal ambitions for Paris 2026?
I feel like I have grown my skills and I have learned a lot from last year. I also want to enjoy this competition. I think it will be very familiar because it’s Paris, it’s near to Spain, and my parents will be there. So I want to enjoy Paris 2026 and feel like I learned a lot.
How does it feel to be guided by Andrea Fuentes, who has earned Olympic silver both as an athlete and a coach? What is Spain’s future in artistic swimming now?
Having Andrea Fuentes as a coach is an inspiration for me because she was my idol and now she’s my coach, so I feel very grateful to have that.
I really admire her – who she is, and how she managed to be the head coach in Spain. She’s a really good coach and I’ve learned a lot from her. So I am very grateful to have her!
How significant will the Paris 2026 Championships be for you in terms of a marker on the route to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics?
It will like a challenging proof that we are going in a good way – I hope so. This year we have tried to focus on building more muscles and more physical strength. We are trying to be more prepared physically for LA 2028.
So of course Paris 2026 will be like a test to see if we are going in a good way or not. I hope we are going in a good way. We will try our best.
Were you able to have friends and family watching you in Paris. If so, how special was that and will it happen again this summer?
My parents will be there. They were in Paris 2024, and also my boyfriend. And this year they will all be there again, so I will be very, very happy to have them there cheering for me and for my team.
It really gets me a lot of energy when I have them there, so I’m happy they can come.
Did you have much chance to experience Paris as a city in 2024? Any particular places/scenes that resonated strongly? What will be on your city wishlist this summer?
I didn’t have much chance to experience Paris as a city in 2024. Every time I come to Paris we have to compete and leave quickly so I never had the chance to visit properly.
But after the Olympics in the night I went to see the Eiffel Tower and it was very, very beautiful. I remember that a lot. If I have free time during this competition I will of course visit Paris because I really like it.
But it is on my wishlist to come some day without any competitions and be a tourist so I can visit the city in a calm and relaxed way!
Artistic Swimming will take place at the European Aquatics Championships Paris 2026 from July 31 to August 5.
Mike Rowbottom for European Aquatics
