What the fuck is water polo and why are there no horses?

I was once a person who did not know what water polo was. Growing up in the Northeast, I hardly knew anyone who swam for sport, let alone played this sport (which I have come to learn is just an excuse to fight in the pool). However, as I have begun to make friends from California, I have become increasingly familiar with the concept of water polo. By chance, two of my good friends here at Barnumbia play, so I decided it was time for me to see what this misleading, horseless version of polo was all about. On Sunday, I had the privilege of joining CU Club Water Polo for an evening practice, and let me just say this—I have been converted to a water polo enjoyer. 

Gathering at the pool in Dodge, they begin practice with a (to someone who literally can’t even swim a lap freestyle) diabolically difficult warmup. Even with a kick board, I was struggling. The sprints? Absolutely not. These swimmers have some Greek god level strength. 

After they’ve swam their warm up sets, they move on to some passing drills. This is the craziest shit I’ve ever seen. They keep themselves afloat with their legs ONLY and pass the ball back and forth with one hand. Hello? Not to mention the crazy arm position they use to pass. I promise, you have never seen an arm look like this. 

I had the privilege to help with moving the cages (goals) into the pool, and I was even humbled there. Apparently they just float in the pool? For some reason that feels crazy. So sorry to the girl who I was helping move them—I was so useless.

Next was the scrimmage, where the women’s and men’s teams came together to play an actual game of water polo. This is where the sport really shines—somehow, these players keep themselves above the water while using one arm to pass and catch the ball. It is the strangest looking sport I’ve ever seen, but so interesting. I will say that it moves much more slowly than I had anticipated, but after being in the pool and even attempting to do what they do, it makes much more sense.

The last thing I want to comment on is the demeanor of the team. These were some of the kindest, most welcoming people I’ve ever met on campus. Every team member made me feel so welcome, even though I can’t even swim a 50m without feeling like I’m gonna die. If you are actually skilled at water polo or even just want to try it out, I highly recommend giving CU Club Water Polo a visit. 

Photos via author