Competition water polo splashes off at the Aquatic Centre on Friday 12th August at 8:15 a.m. when the 3rd Annual Barbados Open Invitational Water Polo Tournament begins. The Barbados Sharks will start the excitement as they clash with Army West Point. This should be an interesting battle between the warm-water sharks and the military from the north.
Three games will be played in the morning session. The Asphalt Green from New York will challenge the Utah Water Polo Club and the Dynamo/Titanes , a combined team from New York and Columbia, will clash with Army West Point. Games will continue in the afternoon starting at 5:30 p.m. The Official Opening Ceremony will take place at 6:30p.m. at the Aquatic Centre.
Seven games will be played on Saturday with the morning session starting at 9:30 a.m. and the evening session at 5:30 p.m. Medal games will be played on Sunday morning at 9:30 a.m. The Grand finale of the tournament will be an All Star beach game at the Barbados Cruising Club. This beach game is considered the highlight for the visiting teams since they do not normally play water polo in the sea. It is a novel idea and one that caps the end of each tournament. For the locals this area, north of The Radisson’s jetty is the birthplace of water polo in Barbados.
Asphalt Green played in the tournament last year and immediately confirmed their intent to return. This is the first visit for the Utah Water Polo Club, the Army West Point and the Dynamo/Titanes. This year two FINA accredited referees will run the tournament, Mr Valeriy Vasilchikov and Mr. Has Ortega. The tournament is expected to be very competitive and entertaining. A donation of at least $5 per session or $20 for the weekend would be appreciated. Awards will take place immediately after the beach game.