Underwater hockey has been played in Australia since 1966 and is played in most states and territories. As of September 2013, Australia has been very successful at the international level finishing in the top three 43 times including being the world champion in various divisions 23 times out of 53 appearances at 17 international events.
History Underwater hockey has been played in Australia since 1966. Its introduction is attributed to Norm Leibeck, an Australian who returned from Canada both with Marlene, his Canadian bride, and a recently acquired knowledge of underwater hockey then known as Octopush. The first Australian Underwater Hockey Championships was held in 1975 at Margaret River, Western Australia as part of the Australian Skindiving Convention (now called the Australian Underwater Championships). A Women's division was added to the championships in 1981 and a Junior division commenced in 1990.
Governance The peak body is the Underwater Hockey Commission (known as Underwater Hockey Australia) of the Australian Underwater Federation (AUF). There are state commissions in all states and territories with the exception of the Northern Territory. Underwater hockey has a coaching stream as part of the AUF's coaching program in underwater sport with two levels being accredited with the Australian Government's National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS).
Domestic competitions Underwater hockey is played at venues in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The national championships are held annually and as an event separate from the Australian Underwater Championships since 1994.
As of 2017, the Australia nationals have six separate divisions based on age and gender – Under 15, Under 19 Mixed, Under 19 Women's, Masters, Elite Women's and Elite Men's.
National team Australia has played at world level since the inaugural world championship event in 1980. Australia did not send teams to the 15th CMAS World Championship in 2007 or to the 16th CMAS World Championship in 2009.
At the World Championships
YearChampionshipLocation eventEliteMasters U-19U-23/24 Men Women Men Women Men Women Men Women19801st CMAS World Championship Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada 3 rowspan="6" rowspan="9" rowspan="11" rowspan="12" rowspan="18" rowspan="18" 1982 2nd CMAS World Championship Brisbane, Australia 1 1 1984 3rd CMAS World Championship Chicago, United States 1 1 1986 4th CMAS World Championship Adelaide, Australia 2 1 1988 5th CMAS World Championship Amersfoort, Netherlands 1 3 1990 6th CMAS World Championship Montreal, Quebec, Canada 1 1 1992 7th CMAS World Championship Wellington, New Zealand 1 2 1 1994 8th CMAS World Championship Grand Couronne, France 1 1 3 1996 9th CMAS World Championship Durban, South Africa 1 2 2 1998 10th CMAS World Championship San José, United States 3 2 4 2000 11th CMAS World Championship Hobart, Australia 1 1 1 2 200212th CMAS World Championship Calgary, Alberta, Canada 1 1 5 2 2004 13th CMAS World Championship Christchurch, New Zealand 2 3 2 2 3 2006 14th CMAS World Championship Sheffield, United Kingdom 4 1 6 colspan="3" 2007Disputed 15th World Championship (Part of 1st CMAS Games) Bari, Italycolspan="6" 2008 Alternative 15th World Championship and 1st Junior World Championship(1st WAA World Championships) Durban, South Africa 4 1 5 colspan="2" 200916th World Championship Kranj, Sloveniacolspan="2" rowspan="2" colspan="4" 2011 17th CMAS World Championship Coimbra, Portugal 1 2 201318th CMAS World Championship Eger, Hungary 3 4 1 1 rowspan="4" colspan="4" 201619th CMAS World Championship Stellenbosch, South Africa 1 6 1 1 201820th CMAS World Championship Quebec City, Canada7662202321st CMAS World Championship Gold Coast, Australia6 142 ‡ DNP= Did not participate
At the Junior World Championships
Year Championship Location event Men's U-19 Women's U-19 Men's U-23/24 Women's U-23/2420132nd Junior World Championship Eger, Hungary442?20153rd Junior World Championship Castellón de la Plana, Spain682420174th Junior World Championship Hobart, Australia425620195th Junior World Championship Sheffield, United Kingdomcolspan="2"620246th Junior World Championship Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia412520267th Junior World Championship Gebze, Türkiye5836
See also
References
External links AUF Underwater Hockey homepage Underwater Hockey Australia – Official website of the Australian Underwater Hockey Commission