Academy Waterpolo

18/09/2026

How much does waterpolo cost per year in Australia?

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15/09/2026

National WaterPolo day by New Wave Water Polo Club, Western Australia

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14/09/2026

THIS IS A MUST FOR SWIMMERS & HISTORY LOVERS

WHERE WE LEARNT TO SWIM

An Illustrated Journey Through Sydney’s Heritage Baths & Pools
From the iconic pools of Balmain, Bondi and Bronte, to the historic tidal baths of the harbour.

"Where We Learnt To Swim" explores the rich social history of Sydney’s swimming establishments.

Dr Tracy Rockwell traces the evolution of well over 230 of these beloved community spaces in 580 fully illustrated pages, telling the stories of the people and places that defined Sydney’s love affair with the water.

For generations, Sydneysiders learnt to swim in harbour enclosures, ocean baths, floating pools and magnificent swimming establishments, many of which have now disappeared.

"Where We Learnt To Swim", brings this extraordinary history back to life through extensive research, rare photographs, historic illustrations and the stories of the clubs and communities that gathered beside the water.

From Sydney’s earliest colonial bathing places to the pools that produced generations of celebrated swimmers, water polo players and divers, this richly illustrated book reveals an overlooked chapter of our city’s social and sporting history.

ON SALE from 1st November at $60.00 rrp

OR
PRE-ORDER A COPY NOW for $49.99
then collect from...

https://tinyurl.com/WWLTS-55

OPTION A: Have your signed copy delivered:
Pre-order a copy and have it mailed... for an additional $12 postage & handling.

OR

OPTION B: Collect your signed copy at the Book Launch:
Send an RSVP to [email protected] to attend the book launch,
where your book will be ready for collection.

… SAVE THE DATE …

BOOK LAUNCH
Meet the Author: For an Inspiring Conversation, Interview & Discussion
3:00pm, SUNDAY, 1st NOVEMBER at
EMANUEL GARDENS
118 Wallis Street, Woollahra NSW 2025
[limited space - followed by coffee and nibbles]

Somewhere in your past there is a pool, a baths, or a stretch of water where it all began. Where We Learnt To Swim is a fully illustrated chronology of the baths, pools, ocean enclosures, swimming clubs and athletes that helped shape Sydney, and it's people over more than 238 years. Through rare...

13/09/2026

WATERPOLO IS EXPENSIVE

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12/09/2026

NATIONAL WATERPOLO DAY !

Great to see waterpolo legends, current in Gabi Palm (Olympic Silver medal) and past in Eddie Denis (Olympian 2000) doing great things in South Australia on NATIONAL WATERPOLO DAY !

Let us know what your local club or state body did to highlight our great game to the aspiring youngsters !

📸waterpoloAUS

11/09/2026

WHERE ARE ALL THE PLAYERS?

Where is the environment that makes Queensland’s best young water polo players look around and think, this is where I want to stay, train, compete and build my future?

These are questions worth asking because some of our best young talent is already answering them,with their feet.

Players are looking offshore. Europe. Spain. Italy. Croatia. Hungary.

The NCAA system in the United States. They are spreading their wings because they can see environments where water polo can become part of something bigger, education, professional sport, high performance training, life experience and opportunity.

If a talented young Queensland player can go to Europe and train every day, sometimes multiple sessions a day, compete regularly, live inside a genuine club system and test themselves against quality players, what are we offering them here that makes staying the better option?

This should be the reality check for water polo in Queensland.

Instead of creating more barriers around where players can play, who they can play for and how clubs can build their teams, we should be doing the opposite.

Encourage players to find the environment that suits them. If one club can offer a player something another cannot, let them pursue it.

Competition between clubs should drive standards higher, not create another reason to regulate opportunity.

Our responsibility should be to make Queensland water polo so good that players want to stay, not to make movement so difficult that staying becomes their only option.

Because talented young athletes today have choices. They can see the world. They can contact overseas clubs, pursue scholarships, enter European systems and build pathways that barely existed for previous generations.

And increasingly, they are doing exactly that.

Perhaps the biggest warning isn’t that Queensland players are leaving. It is why they believe they need to leave.

If some of the best talent Queensland has produced looks at the landscape here and decides there is more opportunity 15,000 kilometres away, then the conversation shouldn’t be about how we control players more tightly.

It should be about how we build something good enough to bring them back and strong enough that the next generation doesn’t feel it has to leave in the first place.

10/09/2026

Sharks Ready for Test Two Against Asian Champions Japan

Australia’s Sharks return to the water this weekend looking to turn the tables on Japan in the second international of their Test series.

The opening encounter delivered plenty of attacking water polo, with Japan claiming a 20–16 victory over the Australians.

While the Sharks fell short, scoring 16 goals against the reigning Asian champions showed there is plenty to build on as the series continues.

Game two provides another valuable opportunity for Australia to test new faces, combinations, develop chemistry and measure themselves against a Japanese side renowned for its speed, movement and relentless style of play.

The teams meet again on Saturday, September 12 at 6:00pm at the Chiba International General Swimming Centre.

After 36 goals were scored in the opening international, expect another fast and entertaining contest as the Sharks look to square the series against the Asian champions.

07/09/2026

4x4xFAR THE BEST THING

Water Polo Dubrovnik has opened the door to something special

As the curtain comes down on the inaugural 4x4 World Championships, there is a feeling that we may have witnessed the beginning of something very significant for water polo.

And what a place to begin.

Under the UNESCO listed walls of Dubrovnik, surrounded by centuries of history and with the Adriatic Sea providing one of the most spectacular sporting arenas imaginable, a new version of our game was introduced to the world.

The United States emerged victorious in the women’s competition, while Spain claimed the men’s crown. But perhaps the biggest winner was water polo itself.

Most importantly, we saw a version of water polo that people could quickly understand, enjoy and embrace.

Yes, the event was held in Croatia, one of the great water polo nations of the world and home to one of the biggest Wild League competitions in the world but there is a strong argument that Dubrovnik should become the spiritual home of this competition.

Some sporting venues simply fit the product, and watching elite water polo played in the sea beneath those famous walls created something television cameras and spectators can instantly connect with.

But the biggest takeaway goes far beyond Dubrovnik.

This format has room to grow.

Look at the nations that were not represented. The women’s competition did not feature traditional powers such as Netherlands, Canada, Italy or Hungary.

On the men’s side, major water polo nations including France, Greece and Hungary were also absent.

Imagine when they arrive.

Imagine the depth of talent available when more countries embrace the format and begin identifying players specifically suited to 4x4 water polo.

That is where this becomes particularly exciting.

Rather than competing with traditional water polo, 4x4 can become another pathway within it.

It can provide opportunities for athletes who may sit just outside senior national teams. It can create another international stream for emerging players.

And perhaps most interestingly, it could give experienced athletes approaching the end of their traditional international careers another opportunity to remain involved at the highest level.

Different formats suit different athletes.

The reduced numbers, increased space and speed of the game create different tactical and physical demands.

Players who thrive in movement, one on one situations, shooting and creativity suddenly have another international stage on which to perform.

And then there is the entertainment factor that had many a legend watching from the sidelines ( pictured Ratko Rudic, Vanja Udovicic and Dejan Udovicic )

Modern sport is competing for people’s attention. Shorter formats have transformed cricket, rugby has successfully developed sevens, basketball has taken 3x3 all the way to the Olympic Games, and now water polo has an opportunity to create its own alternative product.

It doesn’t need to replace the traditional game.

It needs to complement it.

What Hrvatski vaterpolski savez and World Aquatics have produced in Dubrovnik has demonstrated what is possible when our sport is prepared to think differently.

Take water polo out of the traditional swimming pool environment. Put it somewhere spectacular. Reduce the numbers. Increase the space. Let some of the world’s most skilful athletes attack.

Then bring the spectators close.

The result in Dubrovnik was something fresh, fast and visually spectacular.

Where this format goes from here will depend on the ambition and imagination of those responsible for developing it.

More nations, more events, greater broadcast exposure and potentially a genuine international circuit could transform 4x4 into another important part of the water polo calendar.

Dubrovnik gave us the first chapter.

Hopefully, it won’t be the last.

Because after watching what unfolded beneath those magnificent Croatian walls, there is one overwhelming feeling that 4x4 waterpolo is about to explode.

📸Matthew Gallagher and Academy Waterpolo it was our please to bring you the sights, sounds and tastes of 4x4 in Dubrovnik.

06/09/2026

It’s the people’s game !

Sporting organisations exist for a reason, to serve the sport and the people who make that sport possible.

Administrators, boards and governing bodies are entrusted with significant responsibility.

They make decisions about competitions, pathways, development, funding, eligibility and the future direction of a game.

But with that responsibility comes something equally important the obligation to remember who they represent.

The organisation does not own the sport. The community does !

Players, coaches, officials, volunteers, clubs, parents and supporters are the people who invest their time, money and energy into keeping sport alive.

Without them, there is no competition, no pathway, no governing body and ultimately no game.

That is why ‘good’ sports administration must always be built around service rather than control.

State and regional organisations should be asking themselves some very simple questions when making major decisions.

Does this help more people participate?
Does it strengthen clubs?
Does it retain players?
Does it develop coaches and officials?
Does it create better pathways?

And, most importantly, is it genuinely in the best interests of the sport as a whole?

Problems can emerge when administration becomes disconnected from the community it represents.

Personal interests, politics, historical relationships and narrow thinking can begin influencing decisions.

Rules can become more important than outcomes. Protecting structures can become more important than growing participation.

That is when trust begins to disappear.

Sporting communities place enormous faith in the people appointed or elected to administer their game.

That trust should never be taken for granted. Leadership in sport is not simply about having the authority to make decisions; it is about having the responsibility to explain those decisions, consult meaningfully and listen when the community raises legitimate concerns.

Consultation should not be treated as an inconvenience. It is part of good governance.

The strongest sporting organisations actively engage their clubs and participants before making decisions that significantly affect them.

They communicate openly, explain the reasoning behind policies and remain prepared to reconsider a decision when evidence shows it may be damaging the sport.

Changing direction after listening to the community is not weakness. It can be a sign of strong leadership.

There is also a broader responsibility.

State sporting organisations should be ambitious custodians of their game.

Their role should extend beyond simply administering competitions from season to season.

They should be looking at how to take the sport far and wide into more schools, more communities, more regions and more families.

They should be removing unnecessary barriers to participation rather than creating them.

Every major policy should ultimately pass one fundamental test.

Does this decision make the sport stronger?

Boards and executives may hold positions of authority, but the legitimacy of that authority ultimately comes from the sporting community itself.

Clubs affiliate. Families register. Players compete. Volunteers give countless hours. Coaches develop athletes. Officials make competitions possible.

The power of sport has always come from the people.

That is why leadership in sport should never become about protecting positions, defending personal interests or controlling the game.

The best administrators understand that they are not owners of the game.

And eventually, in every sporting community, the people will have their say.