TONOWANDA, N.Y. — For many people, Tonawanda is a special place to live and visit. 

“The Mighty Taco, Tim Hortons, anywhere to get wings,” two-time Olympian Anita Alvarez said. “It just takes me back and reminds me how far I’ve come and super exciting.”

But for the 27-year-old, this is where it all started. 

“I grew up at this pool with my mom when she was coaching...just a little kid on the side of the pool watching and first falling in love with the sport, joining and then swimming here until my last few days before moving out to California,” Alvarez said. “So it's really special to be back and also to be here and get to show my team around my home city.”

Alvarez began her professional synchronized swimming career after she graduated in 2014. Now Alvarez works alongside the 2024 USA Olympic artistic swimming team, making a special appearance at the Town of Tonawanda Aquatic and Fitness center. 

“Ten years ago she moved away and, you know, lots of hard work,” Anita’s mother Karen Alvarez said. “It's been an amazing journey. It's still, still hard to believe that she's going to be a three time Olympian. It's super special. You know, the town really rallies behind her. It’s so nice to see her dreams come true.”

Celebrating not only the achievements of Alvarez, the event provides an opportunity for family members to witness firsthand the athleticism and artistry of artistic swimming.

“When I'm in the grind and training at home in Los Angeles, you know, it's just my day to day, so I don't think about it,” Alvarez said. “But when I come back here and I get to see people that I used to swim with or my home club team and all these people who are so proud of me, it’s super special.” 

She is represented the United States with distinction in two consecutive Olympic games and is currently training for her third, as the team gears up for the 2024 games in Paris.

“There's been a change in the new scoring system and a lot of people don't know about this, but it's kind of caused our sport to lose a lot of the artistic side,” Alvarez said. “So I think one of our goals and main values in our team is to try and keep that artistic side of the sport alive. So we've done a lot with our choreography to implement the new scoring system, but also try to keep interesting choreography at the same time.”

The team’s training sessions are open for the public to observe, with many gathering for both the love of the sport and in support of their hometown hero.

“We're competing a lot because they're going to have to select the final eight of our squad of twelve,” Alvarez said. “So every day is a fight for, you know, for our own spot and the team, but also for the team to be at its best in the Olympics. We're going to do everything we can to get where that gets us. And if that gets us a medal, then we're super happy. But again, just always aiming to do our best and we'll see where that takes us.”

Alvarez's journey continues to inspire athletes, bringing the Town of Tonawanda’s pride to an international stage.

“To see the young Aquettes, you know, here practicing in the way that they look up to our team, it just reminds me of when I was a youngster like that,” Alvarez said. “And if you really, truly love it and want to go for it, you can do anything you set your mind to.”

Practice sessions will follow this weekend. Training sessions are open to the public to observe, followed by the big performance on Sunday afternoon.