Splashing for the gold: Women’s Olympic Water Polo
The most difficult water sport and its rise to Olympic prominence.
Water polo is a relatively famous water sport with a massive following all over the world. Europe side is much into this game — mainly Spain, France, Croatia, Hungary, Russia, and Italy — with United States, Australia, Brazil, and Canada also having avid fans of the water sport. Water polo is played in a swimming pool, with seven players per side and six substitutes per team. A goal is scored by dribbling and throwing the ball under the crossbars and between the goalposts of the opponent’s goals. The pool is two metres deep, thirty metres long, twenty metres wide (for men), twenty — five metres long, and seventeen metres wide (for women).
The history of the game traces back to England, where the game originated in the 1870s, while the rules were made in Scotland in 1877, and goalposts were suggested. The first international match was held in London in 1890, which Scotland won. Soon after its inception, the game entered United States in the 1880s, then it made its way to the Summer Olympics in 1900. England won the inaugural Olympic water polo and continued to dominate the game for quite some time before other eastern European countries toppled England to take the top spot.
While the men’s water polo became a permanent part of the Summer Olympics in its second edition in 1900, it took almost a century for women’s water polo to become a permanent part of the Summer Olympics, as the women’s events started from 2000. Hungary so far has been the most successful in men’s water polo, while United States is on top with multiple wins in the women’s water polo events at the Summer Olympics.
A total six teams competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, with the home team Australia clinching the goal medal. United States came second with a silver medal, but it continued to dominate the game at Summer Olympics with five successive medals from 2000–2016. The 2000 Sydney Olympics saw six teams competing, while from the next edition, the number of teams was increased to eight. Till 2016, eight teams entertained in the Summer Olympics, but for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, a total of eight teams will be seen in action.
So far, the successful team in women’s water polo at the Summer Olympics in the United States of America. This team has bagged two gold medals, two silver medals, and a bronze medal, making it five medals in five editions. Brenda Villa is America’s most celebrated female water polo player with numerous achievements to her name. She represented her country, America, at four Olympics and scored thirty-one goals — her highest in the Olympics. She has won four medals, including one gold, two silver, and 1 bronze. Her remarkable performances made her Female Water Polo Player of the Decade (2000–2009), named by FINA Aquatics World Magazine. She was also inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame in 2018. She has grabbed fifteen gold medals, four silver medals, and a bronze medal in twenty-seven international competitions. No wonder why America dominated the water polo competitions at the Summer Olympics.
Natalie Golda is considered one of the finest female water polo players. After serving as the player for America, she is now passing on the experience to upcoming stars through coaching. Golda represented America in the 2004 Athens Olympics and 2008 Beijing Olympics, and her team got bronze and silver medals, respectively. She was then inducted into the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame in 2015. She has also earned two gold medals and a silver medal in the world championships in team competitions.
Another prominent name in American water polo is of Maggie Steffens. She has scored thirty-eight goals at the Summer Olympics to take the second spot on the all-time scoring list in Olympic history. She was part of the gold-winning American team in the 2012 London Olympics and 2016 Rio Olympics. Other than Olympic gold medals, she has also grabbed eighteen more gold medals (six in team) in different competitions.
The second most successful team at the Summer Olympics in Australia with four medals in five editions. After finishing at the top with a gold medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Australia lost the impetus and could never cross bronze. The 2004 Athens Olympics were upsetting for the kangaroos as they finished at the fourth place. In the next two editions, they settled for bronze, while 2016 was again medal-less. Kate Gynther is Australia’s star water polo player with three Olympic appearances in 2004, 2008, and 2012. Her team won bronze medals in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. She is also one of the leading goal scorers with thirty goals and a leading sprinter in water polo at the Olympics with thirty-nine sprints won in her Olympic career.
Bronwen Knox is another Australian great who started playing water polo at the age of fourteen and represented Australia at junior and senior levels. She was part of the bronze-winning team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics. She has a gold medal, four silver medals, and two bronze medals in other competitions as well. Rowena Webster is an Australian water polo player with more than 300 international appearances for her country. She has been playing the sport since she was twelve, and hence, she has played at both junior and senior levels. She was part of the team that won a bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics. Other than an Olympic medal (bronze), she has grabbed two golds, two silvers, and three bronze medals.
Italy is the leading European water polo team with fifteen medals in multiple competitions. The breakdown is eight golds, four silvers, and three bronze medals in the Olympics, world championships, European championships, and Universiade. However, Italy has a bobbing Olympic history with a gold medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics and a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Tania Di Mario is one of the greatest female water polo players the world has seen. She is the top goalscorer with forty-seven goals at the Olympics, as she has represented Italy in all the four Olympics that Italy was part of — 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016. She contributed to Italy’s gold-medal win at the 2004 Olympics and silver-medal win at the 2016 Olympics. She was the leading goal scorer — fourteen goals at the 2004 Athens Olympics. She scored ten goals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, eighteen goals at the 2012 London Olympics, and five goals at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Roberta Bianconi, with her team, won the silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. She scored sixteen goals to help her side in the competitions. She is the first woman to be awarded multiple times by LEN as LEN European Water Polo Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016. She has won one gold medal at the European championships, five silver medals at the Olympics (team game) and FINA World League, and two bronze at the world championships (team game) and European championships. Arianna Garibotti is another fine name with four medals (two bronze and two silver) in her career. She was a part of the silver-winning Australian team at the 2016 Rio Olympics and scored twelve goals in it.
The Netherlands are the favourites of the water polo sport and dominated the game in the 1980s and 1990s. Their Olympic triumph came at the 2008 Beijing Olympics with a gold medal. They came fourth at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Hungary is also considered as the top team of water polo; however, they ended up in fourth place in the last three editions (2008, 2012, and 2016). Russia is another strong name of water polo but can never challenge the dominance of America at the Summer Olympics. This country has won two bronze medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and 2016 Rio Olympics. Despite being two outstanding outfits, Greece and Spain only managed to win silver medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics and 2012 London Olympics, respectively.
The Tokyo 2020 water polo matches venue is the beautifully designed dome-shaped Tokyo Tatsumi International Swimming Centre. The arena can entertain 4,700 spectators, and this place is the center for pool-based games in Tokyo. Women’s preliminary rounds will start July 24, followed by quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals. The top four teams from each group will qualify for the quarterfinals. Olympics favourite USA has its troops ready for the mega event. American captain, Maggie Stephens, is the rock support of the American team. She is already in the list of the leading goal scorers (thirty-eight goals), and she was part of the gold-winning American side in the previous two editions. She is the player opposition should be well aware of at the 2020 Summer Olympics. American goalkeeper, Ashleigh Johnson, is the current best. She will be playing a huge part in her team’s success through her remarkable skills. Australia might not have been as good as America at the Olympics, but this team is capable of turning the tables around. Their combination can be lethal, as the side has some strong names with the likes of Hannah Buckling, who is doing great in this sport and has many medals to her name in different championships.
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