Underwater hockey
Two players competing for the puck at GB Student Nationals, Bangor in 2009. | |
Highest governing body | CMAS and WAA |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | UWH, Octopush, Water Hockey |
First played | 1954, Southsea, England |
Characteristics | |
Contact | limited |
Team members | up to 10 (6 in play) |
Mixed gender | Yes |
Categorization | Aquatic |
Equipment | diving mask, snorkel, fins, water polo cap, stick & puck. |
Venue | Swimming pool |
Presence | |
Olympic | no |
Paralympic | no |
Underwater hockey (UWH; also called Octopush and Water Hockey) is a globally-played limited-contact sport in which two teams compete to manoeuvre a puck across the bottom of a swimming pool into goals. It originated in England in 1954 when the founder of the newly formed Southsea Sub-Aqua Club invented the game as a means of keeping the club's members interested and active over the cold winter months when open-water diving lost its appeal. Underwater hockey was first played as a world championship in Canada in 1980 after a false start brought about by international politics in 1979.[citation needed] CMAS is the world governing body for this sport.
Play
Two teams of up to ten players compete, with six players on each team in play at once.[1] The remaining four players are continually substituted into play from a substitution area, which may be on deck or in the water outside the playing area, depending on tournament rules.
Before the start of play the puck is placed in the middle of the pool, and the players wait in the water whilst touching the wall above the goal they are defending. At the start-of-play signal (usually a buzzer or a gong)in-play members of both teams are free to swim anywhere in the play area and try to score by manoeuvring the puck into the opponents' goal. Players hold their breath[2][3] as they dive to the bottom of the pool (a form of dynamic apnoea, as in free-diving). Play continues until either a goal is scored when players return to their wall to start a new point, or a break in play is signalled by a referee (whether due to a foul, a time-out, or the end of the period of play).
![](/2014-wikipedia_en_all_02_2014/I/media/U/n/d/e/UnderwaterHockeyStrike.jpg)
Games consist of two halves, typically ten to fifteen minutes (depending on tournament rules; 15 minutes at world championship tournaments) and a short half-time interval. At half time the two teams switch ends.
A typical playing formation is the 3-3 (three offensive players or forwards, and three defensive players or backs). Other options include 2-3-1 (i.e., two forwards, three midfielders, and a back), 1-3-2, or 2-2-2. As important to tournament teams' formation strategy is the substitution strategy - substitution errors might result in a foul (too many players in the play area) or a tactical blunder (too few defenders in on a play).
There are a number of penalties described in the official underwater hockey rules, ranging from the use of the stick against something (or someone) other than the puck, playing or stopping the puck with something other than the stick, and "blocking" (interposing one's self between a team-mate who possesses the puck and an opponent; one is allowed to play the puck, but not merely block opponents with one's body). If the penalty is minor, referees award an advantage puck - the team that committed the foul is pushed back 3 metres from the puck, while the other team gets free possession. For major penalties, such as a dangerous pass (e.g. striking an opponent's head) or intentional or repeated fouls, the referees may eject players for a specified period of time or the remainder of the game. A defender committing a serious foul sufficiently close to his own goal may be penalized by the award of a penalty shot, or a penalty goal to the fouled player's team. Since this is an underwater sport, surface spectators may be unaware of just how physical underwater hockey is.
Often players who are most successful in this game are strong swimmers, have a great ability to hold and recover their breath, and are able to produce great speed underwater whilst demonstrating learned skills in puck control. It is also important that they are able to work well with their team members and take full advantage of their individual skills.
Equipment
![](/2014-wikipedia_en_all_02_2014/I/media/A/n/n/o/AnnotatedOctopushPlayer.png)
1. snorkel and mouthguard 2. hat with earguards 3. mask 4. fins 5. stick 6. puck 7. glove
Players wear a diving mask, snorkel and fins, and carry in one hand a short stick for playing the puck. A full list of equipment is given below:
Swimwear
There are usually no restrictions on swimwear, however, baggy style trunks or shorts are not recommended as they reduce speed and increase drag in the water. Typical swimwear is swim briefs for male players and one-piece swimsuits for female players.
Mask
A diving mask is used for several reasons:
- Players can equalise their ears (using the Valsalva manoeuvre) as the nose is covered
- Unlike swim goggles a mask sits outside the eye's orbit, reducing the effects of any impact on the mask
- Improved underwater visibility
A low-volume mask with minimal protrusion from the face reduces the likelihood of the mask being knocked, causing it to leak and temporarily blind the player. In line with the rules any masks must have two lenses since a single lens mask poses a significant safety hazard in the event that an unfortunately placed puck should hit (and possibly pass through) the lens. A variety of webbing strap designs are available to replace the original head strap with a non-elastic strap that further reduces the chances of the player being de-masked.
Snorkel
A snorkel enables players to watch the progress of the game without having to remove their head from the water to breathe. This allows them to keep their correct position on the surface, ready to resume play once they have recovered. In order to maximise the efficiency of breathing and reduce drag underwater they are often short and wide bore, with or without a drain valve. They must not be rigid or have any unnecessarily acute edges or points.
The snorkel may accommodate an external mouthguard which may be worn in conjunction with, or instead of, an internal mouthguard.
Fins
Fins allow the player to swim faster through the water. A wide range of fins are used in the sport but large plastic/rubber composite fins or smaller, stiffer fibre glass or carbon fibre fins are commonplace at competitions. Once again they must have no unnecessarily acute or sharp edges, nor buckles.
Stick
The stick (also referred to as 'bat' or 'pusher') is relatively short (according to recent rules, not more than 350mm, including the handle) and is coloured white or black to indicate the player's team. The stick may only be held in one hand, which is usually determined by the player's handedness. The type of stick may affect playing style and is often a very personal choice. A wide variety of stick designs and construction materials such as woods and plastics are used.[4]
Puck
The puck is approximately the size of an ice hockey puck but is made of lead or similar material (Adult size weighs 3 lb (1.3-1.5 kg), Junior 1¾ lb (800-850 g)) and is surrounded by a plastic covering, which is usually matched to the pool bottom to facilitate good grip on the stick face while preventing excessive friction on the pool bottom. The puck's weight brings it to rest on the pool bottom, though can be lifted during passes.
![](/2014-wikipedia_en_all_02_2014/I/media/G/l/o/v/Glove-stick-puck.jpg)
Hat
Safety gear includes ear protection, usually in the form of a water polo cap to protect the eardrums[5] and as a secondary indicator of the player's team (coloured black/dark or white/pale/blue as appropriate). Water referees will wear red hats.
Glove
A glove should be worn on the playing hand to protect against pool-bottom abrasion and, in some designs, for protection against puck impact on knuckles and other vulnerable areas - no rigid protection is permitted though. Players may choose to wear a protective glove on both hands, either as additional protection from the pool bottom or, for ambidextrous players, to switch the stick between hands mid-play. A glove used in competition must be a contrasting colour to the wearer's stick, but not orange which is reserved for referees' gloves.
Goal
The goals (or 'gulleys') are three meters wide and are sited at opposite ends of the playing area on the pool bottom. They consist of a shallow slope leading up to a trough into which the puck may be pushed or flicked. Goals are commonly constructed from aluminium, galvanised or stainless steel. This helps to ensure that they are negatively buoyant and are durable in the chlorine water of swimming pool.
Referees
Refereeing the game are two (or three) water referees (i.e. in the pool with full snorkelling gear, and preferably wearing a distinctive red cap, and orange gloves and golden yellow shirt) to observe and referee play at the pool bottom, and one or more poolside deck referees to track time (both in the period and for each ejected player), maintain the score, and call fouls (such as excessive number of players in play, failure to start a point from the end of the playing area, or another foul capable of being committed at or noticed at the surface). The deck (chief) referee responds to hand signals given by the water referees to start and stop play, including after an interruption such as a foul or time-out, or indeed to stop play if he himself sees a rule infringement.
The Official Rules which are available for download in PDF form without charge and define (with illustrations) a valid goal, the fouls and signals, and the dimensions of the playing area, sticks, and goals.[6][7]
Spectators
![](/2014-wikipedia_en_all_02_2014/I/media/O/c/t/o/Octopush.jpg)
At a club or training level, underwater hockey is not particularly spectator friendly. Very few pools have underwater viewing ports, and since the action is all below the surface, one usually has to enter the water to see the skill and complexities of the game. Spectators may either put on mask, fins and snorkel and enter the pool for a view of the playing area, or possibly take advantage of the work of underwater videographers who have recorded major tournaments.[8] Such tournaments often have live footage on jumbotron-style screens for the spectators which makes it a very exciting spectator sport. The 2006 (Sheffield, England) and 2010 (Durban, South Africa) World Championships were screened poolside and simultaneously webcast live to spectators around the world, while the 2008 European Championship in Istanbul, Turkey had excellent video coverage but no live streaming.[9]
Filming the games is challenging even for the experienced videographer, as the players' movements are fast and there are few places on the surface or beneath it which are free from their seemingly frenzied movements. Games are often played width-wise across a 50 metre pool to provide spaces in between simultaneous games for player substitutes, penalty boxes, coaches and camera crews. However, research and development of filming techniques is ongoing.
Organizers of major tournaments are usually the point of contact for acquiring footage of underwater hockey matches. Although no official worldwide repository exists for recorded games, there are many websites and instructional DVDs. A wide variety of related footage can be found on video sharing sites.[10]
History
Underwater Hockey was started in the United Kingdom by Alan Blake in 1954. Blake was a founder-member of the newly formed Southsea Sub-Aqua Club and he and other divers including John Ventham, Jack Willis, and Frank Lilleker first played this game in Eastney Swimming Pool, Portsmouth, England.[11] Originally called "Octopush" (and still known locally by that name in the United Kingdom today) the original rules called for teams of eight players (hence "octo-"), a bat reminiscent of a tiny shuffleboard stick called a "pusher" (hence the "-push"), an uncoated lead puck called a "squid", and a goal known at first as a "cuttle" but soon thereafter a "gully". Apart from 'pusher' and to a lesser extent 'Octopush' much of this original terminology is now consigned to history.
The first rules were tested in a 1954 two-on-two game and an announcement was made in the November 1954 issue of Neptune, the then-official news sheet of the British Sub-Aqua Club. The purpose behind the game was to keep members of Southsea Sub-Aqua Club #9 from abandoning the new club during the winter months when it was too cold to dive in the sea.[12] The first octopush competition between clubs was a three-way tournament between teams from Southsea, Bournemouth and Brighton in early 1955. Southsea won then, and they are still highly ranked at national level today (they won again in 2009 and 2012).[13]
The sport spread to Durban, South Africa in the mid/late 1950s by the spearfishermen of the Durban Undersea Club (DUC),[14] when dirty summer seas prevented the young bloods from getting their weekly exercise and excitement. The first games were played in the pool of club member Max Doveton. However it soon became so popular that weekly contests were held in a Municipal pool. The UK's Octopush used a small paddle to push the puck whilst the South Africans used a mini hockey stick. The UK's version prevailed.
In the Americas, the game first came to Canada in 1962 via Norm Leibeck, an unconventional Australian scuba diving instructor and dive shop owner, who introduced the sport to a Vancouver dive club. Ten years later, the Underwater Hockey Association of British Columbia (UHABC) was formed and received support from the BC government.
Down under, Underwater Hockey has been played in Australia since 1966, again because of Norm Leibeck, an Australian who returned from Canada with his Canadian bride Marlene, and now attracts players from a wide range of backgrounds.[15] The first Australian Underwater Hockey Championships were held in Margaret River, Western Australia in 1975. A Women’s division was added to the championships in 1981 and a Junior division commenced in 1990.[16]
In Asia, the game first came to the Philippines in the late 1970s through the scuba diving community that became aware of Octopush.
Underwater hockey enjoys great popularity in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States, as well as to a lesser extent in other countries such as Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Japan, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey and Zimbabwe, and is gaining a foothold in numerous additional countries (but not Moldova apparently).[17]
British Pathe footage of an early game at Aldershot Lido in 1967 [18] is evidence of the evolution of the sport in terms of equipment and playing style. It can be seen that the game was much slower and the puck was not flicked at all, in contrast to the modern sport[10] where the substantial changes in equipment, team size, and other factors have helped make the game the international sport it is today, with 44 teams from 17[19] countries competing at the 14th World Championship in 2006 at Sheffield in the United Kingdom making this the pinnacle in terms of international competition to date.
Historically, World Championships have been held every two years. At the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS) 14th World Underwater Hockey Championship held in August 2006 in Sheffield, England, the 44 teams mentioned competed in six age and gender categories and included teams from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Hungary, France, Jersey C.I., Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States. At the subsequent, though less well-attended, World Championship held in 2008 in Durban, South Africa, the winners of the Elite divisions were Australia in the Women's division and France in the Men's (Open) division.
Governing Bodies
Political turmoil within the CMAS Underwater Hockey Commission (CMAS),[20] the Underwater Hockey world governing body, came to a head soon after the 2006 World Championship, resulting in the CMAS Underwater Hockey Commission members resigning en masse and soon thereafter forming an alternative 'world governing body' solely for the sport of UWH, known as the World Aquachallenge Association (WAA), and which was officially ratified at the 1st WAA World Championship in April–May 2008.[21] Consequently, from this point the UWH community had two world governing bodies - CMAS and WAA.
CMAS has continued to organise international world competitions on a bi-annual basis during years ending with an odd number. CMAS tried unsuccessfully to hold another World Underwater Games event in 2009 after a successful event in 2007. These were intended to be multi-disciplinary events thereby grouping UWH with other CMAS-represented sports including fin swimming and underwater rugby. The 1st World Games were held in Bari, Italy in 2007 while the 2nd was scheduled for Tunisia in 2009 but was cancelled and re-scheduled as an UWH-only event held in Kranj, Slovenia during August 2009. It was billed as a World Championship but only one non-European country competed (South Africa); France won the Open division while Great Britain took the Women's title. In the years in between World Games CMAS holds Zone Championships (e.g. the 12th European Championship in Istanbul, Turkey during 2008).
WAA attempted to continue with the original World Championship series on a bi-annual basis during years ending with an even number. The 1st WAA Championships (renumbered - it would have been the CMAS 15th) was held in 2008 in Durban, South Africa. The 2nd competition was scheduled for Medellin, Colombia in August 2010 but it proceeded as an International Event without WAA sanctioning and became the precursor for the development of the independent America's Cup International Tournament.[22]
The European (CMAS) and the rest of the World (WAA) events following the split were held over exactly the same period in 2008 a continent apart. This dichotomy of championships coupled with the real possibility of future sanctions by CMAS on their member countries' organisations and athletes led to many countries being forced to choose which competition to send their team to. As a result, neither competition in 2008 was as well attended as had been the case in previous years, nor as competitive. Subsequently, no WAA sanctioned events have taken place since 2008. However in Europe at least, well-organised international tournaments without CMAS or WAA influence (such as at Breda in the Netherlands, Barcelona in Spain, or České Budějovice in the Czech Republic) continue to be regularly attended by a range of club teams from across the continent.[23][24][25]
In 2009, a new CMAS Underwater Hockey Commission was appointed for a 4-year period to guide the sport on a technical level and gradually it has reconsolidated the sport and produced a development plan to cope with future growth. The commission continues to work to develop relationships with CMAS Board of Directors and obtain support for its development plan.
As part of this plan the Commission developed an Age Group based International Championship incorporating Under 19, Under 23 and Masters (Men >35, Women >32) Grades. This Championship was held in July 2011 in Dordrecht, Netherlands. The event was to be sanctioned by CMAS but the Dutch organising team withdrew their hosting bid and proceeded to host the event successfully with 36 teams participating. As the event was non-compliant with the CMAS Competition procedures, Scotland was able to compete as a separate country rather than within a combined entity as Great Britain.[26]
The 17th CMAS World Championship (billed at the time as European (Zone) Championship) was held in Coimbra, Portugal in August 2011, witnessed participation from non-European countries. Eighteen Teams including Australia, Canada, Colombia, New Zealand and South Africa participated.[27]
The 18th CMAS World Championship[28] was held in Eger, Hungary in August 2013. This event saw all Age Group grades as well as Elite Men and Elite Women compete - there were 68 teams competing across eight age/gender divisions and from 17 participating countries, making this World Championship the largest in the history of the sport. At Elite level France are the current Men's World Champions, and New Zealand are the current Women's World Champions. Teams representing Australia, Colombia, France, Great Britain, Netherlands, New Zealand and South Africa shared all 24 medal positions in the 8 age/gender divisions between them.[29]
As the surviving governing body, as of August 2013 CMAS has the following countries and territories affiliated with its Underwater Hockey Commission: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, United States of America.[30]
See also
- British Octopush Association
- Hoci Tanddwr Cymreig Underwater Hockey Wales
- Underwater hockey in Australia
- Underwater Hockey World Championships
References
- ↑ CMAS (September 2005). International Rules for Underwater Hockey: Rules of Play 2 (9.10). Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques. Retrieved 2012-08-30.
- ↑ Davis FM, Graves MP, Guy HJ, Prisk GK, Tanner TE (November 1987). "Carbon dioxide response and breath-hold times in underwater hockey players". Undersea Biomed Res 14 (6): 527–34. PMID 3120387. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
- ↑ Lemaître F, Polin D, Joulia F, Boutry A, Le Pessot D, Chollet D, Tourny-Chollet C (December 2007). "Physiological responses to repeated apneas in underwater hockey players and controls". Undersea Hyperb Med 34 (6): 407–14. ISSN 1066-2936. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ Taylor B (2007). Concepts of UWH stick design. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ Landsberg PG (December 1976). "South African Underwater Diving Accidents, 1969-1976". SA Medical Journal: 2156. Retrieved 2013-03-29.
- ↑ Hockey Rules Volume 1 and 2, & , retrieved 30/08/2012.
- ↑ Rules Volumes 1 and 2, & , retrieved 30/08/2012.
- ↑ "New sport is not out of its depth". BBC News. 17 December 2005. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ "2006 CMAS Underwater Hockey WC". 247.tv. 2006. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Various UWH clips". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ Blake, A. "Octopush: An original name invented on the same night as Octopush an original sport was invented". Retrieved 2008-07-22.
- ↑ Blake, A. "The evolution of Octopush". Retrieved 2009-09-28.
- ↑ http://www.gbuwh.co.uk/index.php?component=page&id=214
- ↑ CMAS. "Underwater Hockey in South Africa". Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ↑ Quilford, R. (17 December 2007). "Breath-taking fun for anyone". The Age. Retrieved 2012-10-03.
- ↑ "The History of Underwater Hockey in Australia". BBC News. 11 September 2011. Retrieved 2012-10-03.
- ↑ "Moldovans snorkel to new life". BBC News. 11 March 2003. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ "Underwater Hockey video newsreel film". British Pathe. December 1967. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ "2006 CMAS Underwater Hockey World Championships". August 2006. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
- ↑ "About Underwater Hockey". CMAS. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "2008 Meeting Minutes (on WAA News Page)". WAA. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "Open World Cup UWH 2010 USA results". USA Underwater Hockey. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "Teams for the Argonauta 2013 UWH Tournament". Retrieved 29 August 2013.
- ↑ "XIV International UWH Tournament Barcelona 2013 Results". Retrieved 29 August 2013.
- ↑ "6th International UWH Bud Pig Cup". Retrieved 29 August 2013.
- ↑ "NETHERLANDS OPEN YOUTH & MASTERS UNDERWATER HOCKEY TOURNAMENT". http://www.underwaterhockey-archive.com/. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "3rd CMAS WORLD UNDERWATER HOCKEY GAMES (17th WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP) ELITE TEAMS TOURNAMENT". http://www.underwaterhockey-archive.com/. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "Underwater Hockey World Championship 2013 Eger - Hungary. Information Pack is out". CMAS. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ↑ "18th CMAS UWH World Championship 2013-Eger, Results". Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ↑ "CMAS,Sport,UWH Commission, Member Federations". Retrieved 029 August 2013.
External links
- Official CMAS UWH Commission page
- Official WAA web page
- The History of Underwater Hockey on History of CMAS website
- Championship Records
- Underwater Hockey New Zealand
- Underwater Hockey Tourist
- Video of an underwater hockey game USA vs. South Africa at Archive.org
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