1 YEAR TO TO GO UNTIL TOKYO OLYMPICS

Today marks one year to go until the postponed Olympic Games Tokyo which will now open on 23 July 2021.

Over the next two weeks, in what would have been the original timing of the Olympic Games, Water Polo Australia will celebrate the Olympic movement. Stay tuned as we prepare to catch up with Olympians, past and present, Olympic hopefuls, referees and coaches, to celebrate the Olympics.

Start your catch up on the latest Olympic news… 

Kick starting today, IOC and Australian Olympic Team partners AirBnb will bring the spirit of the Olympics online in the five-day festival featuring Experiences hosted virtually by the world’s best athletes… including Rio Olympian and Aussie Stingers, Keesja Gofers. Check it out - click here.

To celebrate the One Year to Go milestone to the rescheduled Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, Channel Seven will broadcast two landmark Olympic Games specials that revisit all the magic moments of the Greatest Games Ever, Sydney 2000.

On Wednesday, July 29 Australians can rediscover Opening Ceremony in Sydney and all the unforgettable moments and, for the first time, hear the inside secrets behind the night’s spectacular successes and near-disasters.

Then on Wednesday, August 5, Seven will have a two-hour special on the Olympic Games Sydney 2000 Moments that Moved Us… featuring our own Yvette Higgins to talk about the historic Australian Women’s Water Polo gold medal win.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently announced the revised sports competition schedule as preparations continue to advance, with strong unity amongst all stakeholders driving the planning and delivery of next year’s Games.

The Aussie Stingers recently named their squad of 20 for the next 12 months, with the Aussie Sharks squad remaining in place with 17 part of the group.

Both squads are back training, albeit in a slightly different format with players training in their local home environments but remaining connected through technology.

Water Polo Australia announced this week that Head Coaches Elvis Fatovic (men) and Predrag Mihailovic (women), have extended their contracts through until the Tokyo Olympic Games next year, providing both teams with consistency in preparation.

From the Captains…. 

Next week we catch up with Aussie Stingers Captain Rowie Webster as well as Aussie Sharks Captain Aaron Younger, as both take a look back on their London and Rio Olympic experiences and look ahead to Tokyo.

Webster said the Aussie Stingers will be getting together virtually on Friday, to mark what would have been the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics.

“We're going to celebrate what would have been the Opening Ceremony this Friday together, with a glass of wine and a memory of what the Olympics would have meant to each of us. We're trying to stay as positive as possible, and refocus our goals,” she said.

For Younger, he said the Aussie Sharks, like most athletes, have taken the postponement the best they can, by adapting.

“Having the resilience and ability to adapt in situations like these (COVID-19), and refocus, is definitely important and I think that's a top characteristic of elite athletes.

“I've played amongst these guys (Aussie Sharks) for the good part of 10 years now, so it's an amazing feeling to lead such a good group and be involved in such a group like this,” he said.

Stay tuned to @WaterpoloAus for our full catch up with Aaron and Rowie next week.