The dangers of elite athletes pushing themselves to the limit -- and beyond

By Aimee Lewis, CNN

Updated 1339 GMT (2139 HKT) June 25, 2022

Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachAmerican artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez is rescued from the bottom of the pool by her coach, Andrea Fuentes, after her routine in the women's solo free artistic swimming finals at the 2022 FINA World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, on June 22. Hide Caption1 of 6Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachFuentes and a lifeguard took Alvarez (center) out of the pool, where she was given emergency medical attention and taken off on a stretcher. Fuentes later told a Spanish radio station that Alvarez was OK.Hide Caption2 of 6Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachMembers of Team United States react as Alvarez is attended to by medical staff.Hide Caption3 of 6Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachIt was the second time that Fuentes had to rescue Alvarez in similar circumstances. The Spanish coach told El Partidazo de COPE: «I don't think I've swum as fast ever before, even when I got Olympic medals and well, in the end, I was able to get her up and she wasn't breathing… In the end, everything came out OK.»Hide Caption4 of 6Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachFuentes told COPE: «When a swimmer finishes their routine, the first thing they want to do is breathe and so I saw that instead of going up, she was going down and I told myself, 'Something is going on'… So after a couple of seconds, I went in as fast as I could.»Hide Caption5 of 6Photos: How Anita Alvarez was rescued from drowning by her coachIn a statement on the US Artistic Swimming Instagram page, Fuentes said Alvarez was fine after