ABOUT THE PROJECT

We are raising funds to support sending eight young Australian canoe polo players to the Junior International Canoe Polo Championship 2023 in Belfast!

This is a fabulous opportunity for young athletes from the Victorian Youth Polo Academy to extend their development at the world level. We are a small, grassroots sports team that takes pride in inclusivity. Any donations would make a significant contribution to our development.

WHAT IS CANOE POLO?

Canoe polo is a worldwide competitive sport. Known simply as "polo" by its aficionados, polo combines boating and ball-handling skills with a contact team game, where tactics and positional play are as important as the speed and fitness of the individual athletes. The game requires excellent teamwork and promotes both general canoeing skills and a range of other techniques unique to the sport. Each team has five players on the pitch (and up to three substitutes), who compete to score in their opponent’s goal which is suspended two metres above the water. The ball can be thrown by hand or flicked with the paddle to pass between players and shoot at the goal. Pitches can be set up in swimming pools or any stretch of flat water.

In past decades, canoe polo was very popular in Australia and Melbourne, with the old Melbourne League hosting 50+ teams at the Richmond Recreation Centre and Australia winning 5 Gold medals over the 1990s at the Canoe Polo World Championships. Unfortunately, those days are past and polo has reduced dramatically in size around Australia, meanwhile other countries including New Zealand, China and many European countries have seen massive growth in the sport. This invitation for Australia to participate in the Junior International Championships is an excellent opportunity to further the development of our young players.

VYPA

The Victorian Youth Polo Academy (VYPA) is a not-for-profit organisation that has been created to help grow and develop canoe polo at a grassroots level throughout the state. We aim to offer opportunities for members of the public and local communities around Melbourne and Regional Victoria to become involved in canoe polo. The academy has a strong dedication to diversity and inclusion and endeavours to remove as many barriers to the sport as possible, whether they are financial, accessibility, or location. 

VYPA has partnered with the Australia Sports Foundation (ASF) and is accepting donations, fundraising and sponsorship opportunities from local businesses and individuals. Any donations made through the ASF website are eligible for DGR status and are tax-deductible. With the end of the financial year approaching, we hope that many charitable businesses and individuals who are passionate about kayaking, or just grassroots community sport, may look to support our programs and help us continue to offer opportunities for children and local communities throughout Victoria.