Harada Saho and Suzuki Emiko give an interview to the media after the competition.

(Beijing, April 16) On the opening day of the "Good Luck Beijing" Olympic Games Synchronized Swimming Qualification Tournament held at the National Aquatics Center, Japanese's Harada Saho/Suzuki Emiko, bronze medalists at the 2007 World Championships scored 95.833 points (47.833 for technical merit, 48.00 for artistic impression) to place second in the duet technical routine, following Spain's Andrea Fuentes/Gemma Mengual.

After the competition, the Japanese pair said they were satisfied with their performance today. "It's believed that the starting order may affect the performance, but I think the most important thing is to focus on technical elements," Harada Saho said with a smile. "The swimming pool here is too large, we have to pay attention to our position all the time." "The key is to keep our own pace!" Suzuki Emiko added.

As the USA, Russia, Australia and Egypt have already qualified for the Olympic Games as continental champions, they did not send swimmers to the tournament. Speaking of the absence of these teams, the two Japanese girls said, "We don't want to lose to any of our opponents. Even the Russian team is here, we are confident of giving full play to our style and skills in the competition."