SPEARFISH, S.D. (AP) - Unlike most sports, underwater rugby provides a 3-D playing field where other players can come from any direction, including above or below. But that challenge is part of the fun that drew Nicholas Smith, a 2005 Spearfish High School graduate, to the sport in 2007, and he recently competed with the U.S. team at the Underwater Rugby World Championships in Cali, Colombia.
“This was by far the highest level of tournament that I have ever played in,” Smith said. “Growing up, I was not an athletic/competitive person, so I never expected to get to play in a world championship of any kind.”
Smith dove in to the sport for the first time in 2007 when he was an exchange student studying in Norway. He had a classmate who played, and following an invitation to join in, Smith gave it a try, the Black Hills Pioneer (https://bit.ly/1M9bXxx ) reported.
“I showed up at the pool knowing nothing about the game, was lent some gear, and loved it right from the start,” he said.
Players are allowed a mask, snorkel, and fins, and basic play consists of two teams made up of 12 players. Each team may have six players in the water at a time, with the other half “on land,” breathing by the side of the pool. The players play for about a minute and then change out with a rested player to catch their breath, and a game consists of 15-minute halves. Underwater rugby is played across the deep end of a pool, with two baskets secured to the bottom at opposite ends. The object of the full-contact sport is to get the saltwater-filled ball into the other team’s basket. In formal events, two referees with scuba equipment are in the water at all times, along with a referee on the pool deck.
Smith graduated from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology following high school, and he returned to Norway in 2010 to get his master’s degree. He’s been living permanently in Norway since then, in Trondheim, and is currently working on his doctorate in material technology studies. Smith gets to play and train three times a week with an underwater rugby team there, and he hopes to play in at least six tournaments in addition to the world championships this year.
“Getting to play and train in Norway, I get to routinely play against some of the top teams and players in the world,” he said.
Smith knows a number of players on the Norwegian national team, and after talking at a tournament in January about the world championships, he decided to check with the Underwater Society of America to see about the possibility of a team from the U.S. competing in the event.
“As it turned out, they were sending a team for the first time since 2003,” Smith said. He got the contact information for the manager, took a trip to New York in April for a tournament and national team training where he meet the coach and most of the other players, and got placed on the roster of 15 for the national men’s team after playing underwater rugby for the first time in the U.S.
The world championships was only the second time he played with his teammates, but the U.S. men’s team won against South Africa, Australia, and Spain during the course of the competition, taking ninth place out of the 12 teams competing. Smith said that going in, the team had no expectations of winning a medal, knowing they were up against significantly more experienced teams. Rather, the team wanted to gain experience and work to spur interest in and develop the sport in the U.S., where it is a new sport working to gain the kind of solid footing found in Europe and parts of South America.
“Our goal was to go in, play well as a team, (and) develop our team play for the later matches,” Smith said. “Our last three matches were against teams that were more on our level, so it was a little more stressful. Against Spain and Australia, we won by one point so even the smallest mistake could have resulted in a different result. All in all it was a great experience, and I hope to get to go again in four years.”
When asked about his favorite part of the world championships, Smith answered, “That is hard to say.” Time spent in the pool, getting to know the rest of the U.S. team better, and making friends with players from around the world were all on his list.
“Outside of the pool, underwater rugby is a very friendly sport and group of people, so many hours were spent at the pool meeting players and talking underwater rugby with them,” he said.
Smith encouraged others to check out the sport.
“First . contrary to what you might think, having a large lung capacity is not that important,” he said. “With just a little bit of practice anyone can have lungs to play.” He added that the sport requires limited equipment, so it is relatively easy to get a team started, and underwater rugby teams are more than happy to help out with advice and recommendations.
“All teams that I know of are open and welcome new players, so if you are traveling, especially to the East Coast . there is a good chance that there is a team nearby, and they would be happy to have you on a training and show you the sport,” Smith said.
“The next world championships is in four years, which is plenty of time to learn the sport and get in condition to play on the national team,” Smith added.
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Information from: Black Hills Pioneer, https://www.bhpioneer.com
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