Polo; sounds extremely posh and upper class, and this could explain why the nearest polo club is in Richmond, West London.
However, hidden under the veneer of horse polo is the world of kayak polo.
It’s a BUCS university sport, an Olympic discipline and is played all across the country from the South of England right up to Northern Scotland.
Yet the sport flies way below the radar, posing the question of why is it largely unnoticed and more importantly what is it?
What Is Kayak Polo?
Kayak polo is a rough and contact affair. The sport features collisions, crashes and the all too familiar gasps and winces from the crowd as a heavy impact is reflected by the sound of carbon cracking.
Helmets and buoyancy aids are worn for obvious reasons, especially during an attack when there’s a flurry of paddles in a tough skirmish between the two teams; it frequently gets difficult to keep track of what is going on.
The Format Of The Matches
Kayak Polo is a very intense sport and features two seven to ten minute halves whilst swapping sides midway.
Depending on the tier and league of the teams within the sport, timings can vary depending on where and how big the pitch (pool), is in which the game is being played on.
The teams consists of 5 players on either side with a maximum of three substitutes sat behind the goal line, whilst the game begins with all five of the players lined up against their own goal line.
The referee will then throw the ball into the middle of the pitch. As soon as the whistle has been blown the action kicks off.
One player from either team is the sprinter who will paddle as fast as they can towards the ball and the opposing player with the intent of getting to the ball first.
The faster paddler will aim to get to the ball first and use their boat and body to shield the ball so that the other player cannot get to it, before beginning play with the possession of the ball.
The ball can be picked up using the hand or the paddle of the player as well as being able to be thrown by the hand or the paddle and shot at the goal as well.
The way that this sport differs from other sports is that the game is very contact dependent. Pushing another player over and under the water is a perfectly legal aspect of the game, with the exception of a few rules.
Should any player be pushed under the water there is a skill that is expected to be learnt before playing known as ‘rolling’ where the player will bring themselves round and back up from being upside down.
Goals are scored by throwing the ball into the goal, the only difference is that the goals are suspended roughly 2 meters in the air with a goal keeper underneath the goal.
The aim is that the keeper will lift their paddle up and use the paddle to block the shot and prevent the ball from going in.
The Equipment
Like every sport the equipment that is used is very specialised and important for safety of the players.
The boats can be made of a variety of materials with the heavier slower boats being made of plastic whilst the more commonly used boats are made of carbon or carbon kevlar.
The paddlers are required to wear helmets with face guards, the nature of the sport means that being hit in the face with a paddle or the ball is extremely likely, making the helmets very necessary.
The paddles are also an extremely important bit of kit used by all the players. The paddle scan varies on size and feather – the paddle feather are the angles that the paddles are at in relation to each other.
The paddles are required to be extremely durable as they take a lot of impact both in training and matches, as is that nature of contact sports.
“It Is A Very Enjoyable Game”
Jake Barber is a member of the East End Canoe Polo club, a polo team in the East End of London, who has been involved in the sport for a decade.
“I’ve played Canoe Polo on and off for about 10 years, having first come to it when actively looking for a new hobby and just by chance living near to a canoe club. I was immediately taken with Canoe Polo over and above other kinds of canoeing like white water or racing.”
“I think this is probably down to the excitement of it being a team sport, and the fact that it’s a real workout trying to get strong enough to play matches. I’ll keep playing Canoe Polo as long as I can, but I wish it was more developed in this country, but it is a very enjoyable game.”
The sport, although difficult to get into is well worth the time taken to play.
The game being only a five on five makes the tactical plays and tough match-ups a great watch, plus a great opportunity to try a new sport and see where kayaking can take you.
