WATER POLO AUSTRALIA LAUNCHES NEW HIGH PERFORMANCE STRATEGY

Water Polo Australia is excited to launch its 2024-2032 High Performance Strategy, as well as confirm Tim Hamill and Bec Rippon as Head Coaches of the Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks and Aussie Stingers, respectively, for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle.

CLICK HERE to view the 2024-2032 High Performance Strategy

The High Performance Strategy outlines horizons through to 2032, and is informed and connected to the broader 2032+ Australian HP Sport Strategy.

Over the next eight years, WPA’s High Performance Strategy will provide the blueprint for how the sport will collaborate with purpose and with system partners to enable the  Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks and Aussie Stingers to Win Well when it matters and inspire Australia.

Water Polo Australia President Trent Birkett said: “Over the last few months, we’ve been conducting a comprehensive, independent and stakeholder-informed review of our high performance  ecosystem, from which the outcomes have been used to shape our strategy.

“Our 2024-2032 High Performance Strategy has been designed to build, lead and deliver a system that provides the environments to sustainably enable our Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks and Aussie Stingers to Win Well when it matters.  The strategy is simplified, data informed, focused and most significantly is people first

“Success will be measured by not only podium performances, but through the people we develop and the culture we create,” he said.

On the green and gold runway to Brisbane 2032, Water Polo Australia’s actions for the next two Olympic cycles are clear:

1. Close the gap between our HP system and the world’s best

2. Develop and implement the plans, processes and people to ensure the HP Program is well governed, managed and delivered

3. Provide the Daily Performance support which prepares our Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks and Aussie Stingers to Win Well when it matters

4. Develop athletes and coaches who are ready to perform in the big moments

5. Have the systems in place to identify, support and retain the world class HP Human Resources model needed to effectively deliver our HP Programs.

Over the coming months, WPA will develop annual operational plans and budgets to guide the implementation and review of this Strategy, for the entirety of its lifespan. 

“The athletes remain at the core of everything we do in High Performance, and their feedback was integral to the development of this strategy,” Birkett said.

“We are one High Performance program, designed and delivered to meet the diverse needs of current and future Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks and Aussie Stingers athletes and teams.

“Over the next eight years, we will be focused on what is most important to enable our Ord Minnett Aussie Stingers to achieve repeatable Olympic Games podium performances, and to enable our Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks to continue their upward performance trajectory in Los Angeles 2028, and to podium for the first time in history in Brisbane 2032,” he said.

Birkett was also pleased to announce the first piece of the High Performance Strategy was to confirm critical leadership roles with Head Coaches Tim Hamill (Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks) and Bec Rippon (Ord Minnett Aussie Stingers) confirmed for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle.

“Our coaches play a vital role in being able to lead the implementation of our High Performance Strategy, and we’re pleased to be able to confirm their positions for the next four years,” Birkett said.

“Both Tim and Bec led with purpose and poise at the Paris Olympic Games, and we have full confidence in them as we prepare our teams for the next Olympiad.

“The strategy also identified key priority areas our support staff need to be focused on to help support our coaches and athletes but also deliver on the strategy. As a result, we are in the market for various high performance team roles. We haven’t added to the number of people in our high performance and pathways team, but simply better defined roles and ensure they align to our strategy,” he said.

Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks Head Coach Tim Hamill said he was honoured to be reappointed.

“It’s a great honour for me, it’s one of the greatest honours of my life to coach the national team of Australia,” Hamill said.

“It’s something that I invest a lot of time, energy and emotion into. It’s something that I am passionate about.

“I’m grateful to the Board for the opportunity, and also to our CEO Tim Welsford. But also really grateful for the playing group for getting on board. They are a wonderful group to coach and I’m also surrounded by a group of staff that you couldn’t wish for anything more from. I feel very grateful, and it’s a wonderful opportunity,” he said.

Hamill said the strategy for the next two Olympic cycles is clear, and he’s looking forward to getting stuck in.

“It’s been interesting to be part of the development of the High Performance Strategy. As a team, we’ve always been really clear with some of our themes and visions of where we wanted to get to in Paris.

“The Strategy provides us a really clear framework to work towards (LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032), and I’m excited to be a part of the execution,” he said.

Ord Minnett Aussie Stingers Head Coach Bec Rippon said her reappointment is exciting off the back of a silver medal in Paris, and looking forward to what the next four years to Los Angeles 2028, and next eight to Brisbane 2032 will look like.

“Paris was an amazing result and we’re still talking about it. There’s momentum there, there’s belief, so for us it’s about looking at Paris, reflecting on what are some of the things that we can take forward, what are we building on, and what are some changes we might need to make,” Rippon said.

“It really gives us a good look at what the landscape looks like in the international world at the moment, and a good opportunity to keep building from there,” she said.

Rippon said it’s been great to see the sport and the system come together to develop the new High Performance Strategy.

“It’s so exciting - I know we’ve always had a really strong program and we’ve always been working towards really big results, and we’ve always been really close to the Sharks too,” Rippon said.

“But to see us united, and to see the whole High Performance system on the same page, working really closely together and aligning a lot more than before…I think it’s a really exciting time for water polo and hopefully that sets us up for amazing results in the future,” she said.