Jafalete

As purists will tell you, it’s actually kayak polo. This debate does little to actually inform anyone who genuinely wishes to find out what on earth the sport actually is, but is somewhat entertaining if you are a bored linguist wanting to start a fight.

Let’s begin with the equipment

As you can see, the athlete has a a double bladed paddle, a water polo ball, a helmet, a sleek lifejacket and a flash, if rather flat and stubby, kayak. In canoe polo speak, that’s a paddle, a polo ball, a helmet, a bouyancy aid and a boat. Note how the boat has a bumper at the front and back, the paddle and kayak have no sharp edges, and the athlete is encased in safety equipment.

What happens in a game

The game is played on relatively deep flat water- so a lake, or a pool are suitable for canoe polo. The court itself is 30m long by 20m wide. At each end of the court is a goal, 1.5m by 1m, that is suspended so that the bottom of the goal is 2m above the water.

There are a maximum of eight people on each team. Five can be playing at any one time and three can be in the sub area. Each game is 20 minutes long, consisting of two ten minute halves.

At the start of the game, the teams line up at their end of the court. The ball is released into the centre of the pool and one person from each team sprints to retrieve it.

Players can hold the ball in their hands or flick it with their paddles. The rules mainly dissuade people from dismembering people with their paddles or crushing their opponents with their kayaks. There are also rules that attempt to make the game fair- such as not paddling with the ball on your lap. Of course, the game is so exciting because there are also rules that make it more spectacular! You can push over an opponent with the ball so that they hold onto it for five seconds or more. The rules state that you only have five seconds to pass or shoot…

If you would like to find canoe polo in your area, or find out more about it, you can lurk around here and pester me, or you can visit canoepolo.com, where hundreds of people who play it gather to comment, complain or cruise about.