There’s an Insane Canoe Polo Tournament Happening This Weekend in Bormla
Have you ever heard of Canoe Polo? Probably not, but the image you’ve got in your head is pretty much what it is.
Athletes in canoes, fighting over a large ball in an attempt to score: part water polo, part canoeing, part gladiatorial combat, this sport has been around since the 1970s, and has been growing in popularity in Malta since 2015.
This weekend, the Malta Canoe Federation will be hosting the third edition of the Malta International Canoe Polo Open. Yes, this competition has already been held twice before in Malta, and you missed it. Don’t make the same mistake again this weekend.
Karl Borg, the technical director at the MCF, starting training in canoe polo after a 10+ year long career in handball. He’s excited for today, and hopes to “captain my team to victory.”
Anyone who attends the tournament can expect “noise, goals, many Italian and local players, and surely a lot of goal action and kayaks smashing head on,” says Karl.
“Furthermore,” continues Karl, “the setting of Dock 1 in Bormla gives this venue a different dimension, bringing a beautiful architectural and cultural landscape to different form of vibrance.”
If you want to find out more about this new sport, Canoe Polo Malta is the local organisation to speak to. They promote and train players for this intense sport, a sport they describe as “dynamic and fast, technical and spectacular”, but still easy to learn, and most importantly accessible to athletes of all ages.