In Synchronised Swimming, Russia took the duet gold. Natalia Ishchenko and Svetlana Romashina in costumes decorated with puppets, their eyes framed by doll-like eyelashes, took gold after scoring 98.9 points out of a possible 100 in the free routine executed for the final.That marked an improvement in Tuesday’s already leading score for the same syncopated sequence and took their total points to 197.1, more than four points clear of their nearest rivals Spain and China, who took silver and bronze respectively.Russians, bringing a tradition of ballet to the pool, have taken home the Olympic gold for duets since Sydney in 2000, earning a reputation for seamless execution in a sport that demands precision, endurance and nerves of steel underneath the fixed smiles, gelatined hair and often garish costumes.