Irvine, CA – December 14, 2021 – Once again the USA Men's and Women's National Teams will wield a major presence on the European club scene. A year after 19 members of the Men's National Team capped up for some of the top clubs abroad, a variety of countries have welcomed Team USA athletes for the 2021-22 season. Some athletes have been competing for their clubs since September while others just arrived with more on the way come early 2022. It's all part of preparation for the 2022 National Team slate which includes the rescheduled 2021 FINA World Championship, now set for Fukuoka, Japan, this May 13-29. The international water polo landscape features a host of athletes with experience at the USA Water Polo and NCAA levels; here's a closer look at current members of the Team USA pipeline.
Seven members of the men's roster
from the Tokyo Olympics are competing abroad, including Ben Stevenson who moves
from Glyfada in Greece to Olympic Nice in France as well as Max Irving who also
departs Greece (Olympiacos) for Telimar in Italy. On the heels of becoming the
first-ever USA Water Polo men's athlete to win a Champions League title, Ben
Hallock stays with Pro Recco in Italy for a second-straight season.
Wherever Alex Bowen has landed in
Europe, his goals have followed. He'll keep chopping this season with Partizan
in Serbia, making the move from Apollon in Greece. Bowen will be joined in
Belgrade by Marko Vavic who departs AS Roma after one season for Partizan. Drew
Holland stays with Chios in Greece while Dylan Woodhead also stays in Greece
but will go from Glyfada to Ethnikos.
Fellow National Team athletes who
were part of the training group leading up to Tokyo also are back in Europe,
including Matt Farmer who sticks with Peristeri in Greece and Kacper Langiewicz
who keeps a familiar cap with Kaposvary in Hungary. A year ago, Jack Turner
trained with Croatian power JUG, but this time around he'll man the cage for CN
Mataro in Spain. Last but not least, lefty Tyler Abramson will make his
European debut in the new year, joining CN Posillipo in Italy.
"We are excited to have so many
of our athletes competing in Europe with some of the best club teams in the
game. High-level competition is very valuable and only makes our team better as
we prepare for international competition in 2022. Team USA athletes continuing
to play abroad is part of our long-term plan, and I know these athletes,
through their play, will continue to become names to know across the water polo
world," said Dejan Udovicic, Men's National Team Head Coach.
While the lead-up to Tokyo saw the
USA Men set up shop abroad, the USA Women hunkered down at their home base in
Los Alamitos for extended residential training during the pandemic. It was the
first time in years no one from Team USA played abroad, but that changes this
season.
Three-time Olympic champ and Team USA
Captain Maggie Steffens is in Barcelona for a return engagement with CN
Sabadell. She's joined there by center Brigitta Games, no stranger to Spain as
she capped up with CN Mataro in recent years after time in Hungary. Further
south, Olympic teammates and Gold Medalists Ashleigh Johnson and Stephania
Haralabidis once again will join forces in the Greek league, this time for
Ethnikos. The pair had suited up with Vouliagmeni in the 2018-2019 season. The
Greek league remains flush with Team USA talent as World Champion Jordan Raney
moves from Vouliagmeni to Olympiacos.
"Competing within the various
National Leagues and also at the widespread LEN competition gives our athletes
an opportunity to expand their minds and skill sets through the exposure to
different teammates, training, and style of play. This provides a unique
combination for each of them to play professionally while also broadening their
minds as they are inserted into a culture that differs from ours. We are
thankful for those clubs, and the people within, for welcoming them as one of
their own," said Adam Krikorian, USA Water Polo Women's National Team Head
Coach.
Between competitions in their
country-specific leagues alongside the LEN calendar, Team USA athletes will get
no shortage of important competition as they prepare for the summer of 2022.
Keep an eye on USAWaterPolo.org as we share updates from the athletes abroad
throughout next spring.
Men's National Team Abroad
Ben Stevenson* – Olympic Nice –
France
Matt Farmer – Peristeri – Greece
Drew Holland* – Chios – Greece
Dylan Woodhead* – Ethnikos – Greece
Kacper Langiewicz – Kaposvary –
Hungary
Max Irving* – Telimar – Italy
Ben Hallock* – Pro Recco – Italy
Tyler Abramson – C.N. Posilipo –
Italy
Jack Turner – CN Mataro – Spain
Alex Bowen* – Partizan – Serbia
Marko Vavic* - Partizan - Serbia
*2020 Olympian
Women's National Team Abroad
Jordan Raney – Olympiacos – Greece
Ashleigh Johnson* – Ethnikos – Greece
Stephania Haralabidis* – Ethnikos –
Greece
Brigitta Games – CN Sabadell – Spain
Maggie Steffens* – CN Sabadell –
Spain
*2020 Olympian
Greg Mescall
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