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The sport : Canoe Polo |
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Really popular in Europe, canoe polo (also known as Kayak Polo in some countries) is relatively new to the North-Americas (mid 90's). This sport is a spectacular team game, which combines elements of water polo, basketball and canoeing. The game is played by two teams of 5 players trying to score goals with a water polo ball in nets that are hanging 2 meters above the water. The goalie, who is basically the closest player to the net, has to use his paddle in the air to protect his goal. The area of play is either outside like the picture or in a pool for the winter time. Matches are composed of two halves of 10 minutes each with a short break in between. |
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What make this sport even more exciting is the more aggressive part where you are allowed to tackle another player's boat, fight for the ball and even hand push the opponent in the water if they are in possession of the ball. This is where the equipment comes handy: helmets with face guard and padded life jackets specifically made for this sport. Also there's a lot of different rules overseing these contacts in order to keep the sport safe for players. But even with these, expect lots of exciting moments and better learn that paddle/hand /ball roll!! |
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Overall, polo combines a lot of individual skills such as paddling, boat handling, throwing, passing, rolling and adds all the team skills you would need for organised plays in offence or defence positions. It is really nice to watch and extremely fun to play! For world wide competitions,
canoe-polo is not yet an Olympic sport event but it is part of the World
Games, PanAm Games and World Master Games. There are also
World Championships every two years and World Cups every year all
across the globe! So it is to say, that it can be a really competitive
sport! |
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