8 hours ago
Tampa Bay's MerMandy helps Team USA win Merlympics gold medal
When Mandy Walker first donned a mermaid tail a couple years ago, she never thought she'd end up competing in it, let alone on the world stage.
Why it matters: Walker, a mermaid performer and teacher from Riverview, was one of six athletes who represented the U.S. last month at the Official Merlympics 2025 in Wolfsburg, Germany, the Tampa Bay Times first reported.
And the results are in: Team USA brought home the gold medal, besting more than a dozen other countries with teams in the competition.
"It was a life-changing experience," Walker, who goes by MerMandy, told Axios. "USA blew first place out of the water. It was clear we worked our butts off — or, you could say, our tails off."
State of play: For Walker, 44, that meant training five to six times a week for the last six months, building up her strength and endurance in and out of the water. Swimming with a monofin takes serious core strength.
She did it all as a single mom of four and master's student, without a competitive swimming background or a coach.
In February, her teammates visited from as far away as Indiana and Utah to practice in Florida together.
They drilled their synchronization in the chilly waters of Alexander Springs in the Ocala National Forest and in the deep end at High 5, an aquatics center in Brandon.
Soon, they were off to Germany, arriving a few days ahead of the May 24 competition to practice together a few more times.
How it works: While the Merlympics aren't affiliated with the traditional Olympics, the competition has a similar structure with multiple events for individuals and with the synchronized swim, events included:
A 50-meter surface swim testing speed.
An underwater rescue emphasizing the merfolk oath of safety.
An underwater photoshoot judging poise and appearance ("they do say mermaids are vain," Walker joked).
Zoom out: They found time to have some fun, too.
Team members stayed in the historic Hotel Alter Wolf, where they snapped photos with their tails hanging out the windows.
Down the street was Schloss Wolfsburg, a medieval castle where Walker quipped she was just waiting for the moat to fill.
The big picture: Mermaid culture has long had a presence in Florida thanks to the famous Weeki Wachee mermaids.
But the professional scene has grown in popularity in recent years thanks to social media and the Netflix docuseries " MerPeople."
That popularity shined at the competition, Walker said. Folks kept coming up to her saying they followed her on social media.
What she's saying:"To meet friends that are now global — that's just mind-boggling and priceless," she said.
