Aleksandr Maltsev

Aleksandr Evgenyevich Maltsev, born on 22 June 1995 in St. Petersburg, is a Russian artistic swimmer who is regarded as the most titled male artistic swimmer in the world. He took up synchronized swimming at the age of seven at a local sports school and was later the only male swimmer in the Russian national team. After FINA approved mixed-gender events in 2014 he competed in the mixed duet with partners including Darina Valitova, Mikhaela Kalancha and Mayya Gurbanberdieva. He is a four-time world champion and six-time European champion, and with Gurbanberdieva won both mixed duet titles at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju. FINA named him the best male artistic swimmer in the world in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021, and he is recognised as a founder of men's artistic swimming in Russia.