Water Polo

Water polo is a contact sport played in water between two teams, each made up of six field players and one goalkeeper.  Teams attempt to score by throwing a ball into the opponent’s goal, and the team with the most goals at the end of the game wins.  Except for the goalkeeper, players participate in both offensive and defensive roles.  The rules of water polo cover the play, procedure, equipment and officiating and are similar throughout the world, but rule variations do occur regionally, and depending on the event and governing body.  See international rules → here

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Both men’s and women’s tournaments of the FINA Water Polo League – 2018 Inter-Continental Cup  (April 2 – 7) were hosted by New Zealand Water Polo at the Sir Owen G. Glenn National Aquatic Centre on Auckland’s North Shore.  The competition was action-packed, and gave us a chance to see the Olympic champion US women’s team.

Participating countries included:
Women: Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, USA and New Zealand
Men: Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, USA and New Zealand

If you missed the live broadcast of the 2018 Inter-Continental World Cup or just want to see it all again, there’s still time to watch video recordings and highlights of the competition.  Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or select from the video posts located on the media player below ↓

2017 Summer Univeriade Water Polo

If you missed the live broadcast of the 2017 Summer Univeriade Water Polo finals, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the competition.  Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or the posts on the media players below ↓

[su_dropcap]I[/su_dropcap]n the late 19th century, water polo began as a demonstration of strength and swimming skills at county fairs and festivals in England and Scotland.  In 1900, men’s water polo was introduced at the Olympic games, and it’s become so popular over the years that variations of the sport have developed.

Inner tube water polo is a style of water polo that requires players, excluding the goalkeepers, to float in inner tubes.  Floating on inner tubes allows recreational players to enjoy the sport without intense physical conditioning required for traditional water polo, but it’s still a good wet & wild workout for players.  There are no standard rules governing inner tube water polo;  therefore, organizers can create a set of rules that best fit specific competition requirements and individual needs.  Other variations of water polo include surf polo, first played with surf boards on the beaches of Waikiki, Hawaii in the 1930s and 1940s, and canoe polo or kayak polo, one of the eight disciplines of UK canoeing.

2017 Beach Water Polo Cup 

The Beach Water Polo Cup was originally a small challenge event founded by Robert Lynn in 2007, and traditionally held each August, just before schools begin Fall semester.  Now in its 10th year, it has grown to be one of the largest and most fun beach water polo events in the world with four courses in Alamitos Bay, Long Beach, California.   Event game/match scoring:  

First team to score 5 goals wins game; first team to win 3 games wins the match.

Matches are 30 minutes of straight play with 5 minutes between.  If 30 minutes expires before match has ended, the team ahead wins the current game.  If the current game is tied, a penalty shootout of 3 shots per team will decide that game.  If the match is tied, a final penalty shootout of 3 shots per team will decide the match.

If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2017 Beach Water Polo Cup, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the event.  Click/Tap the “Watch Again” button or the post on the video player below ↓

Watch world-class athletes compete in synchronized swimming events

Feature photo is courtesy of Flickr user, Steve Allen, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0