Choreographed dance will meet breath-taking aquatic finesse when the North Island Synchronised Swimming Championships make a splash at Baywave this weekend.

The hybrid sport of swimming, dance and gymnastics sees more than 50 synchronised swimmers prepped to compete in solos, duets and team events across both days.

Zyleika Smith, 11, performing in the pool. Photo: Tracy Hardy.

And the excitement is building for none more than the home team, Tauranga Synchro eager to kick on from a strong showing across the Tasman.

'Six of our girls have just come back from Australia where they placed well in Figures, Duets, Solos and Open Team categories,” says Tauranga Synchronised Swimming coach Julieta Diaz.

'Having had such a wonderful opportunity to swim internationally, they are now well prepared to bring their routines back home and perform at their best against their North Island counterparts.”

Not only is synchronised swimming a demanding sport requiring great strength, endurance, flexibility, grace, and precise timing, participants need exceptional breath control when upside down underwater.

During lifts swimmers are required not to touch the bottom – yet pull off an outstanding lift.

Julieta says the club's beginners group, the Dolphins, most of which have only started with Tauranga Synchro this year, will be showing off their very first routines in a display on Sunday – one to music from ‘The Lion King' and the other to ‘The Bare Necessities' from ‘The Jungle Book'.

And there will be displays both days by the NZ Synchronised Swimming Team, The Aquaferns.

The national side is preparing to travel to The Spanish Open, The Swiss Open and World Champs in Russia next month, attempting to qualify for the Oceania spot at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Tauranga Synchro has four girls in the Aquaferns – Sarsha Younger, Eva Morris, Jazzlee Thomas and Amy Lowans.

'This is hugely exciting for Synchronised Swimming NZ, as this is the first time a team has contested for a spot at the Olympics,” says Julieta.

They will perform their Tech Team routine today at 3.30pm and at 4.30pm, then on Sunday their Free Team routine at 9.15am and 10.30am.

This 10-strong team is training up to 40 hours weekly, in and out of the pool, and has been centralised between Tauranga and Invercargill for six months.

'Synchronised swimming is a growing sport in NZ and this is a great opportunity to come and check it out.”

Spectators are welcome on today between 3.30pm-6pm and on Sunday between 9am-12.30pm. Baywave spectator entry fees apply.