What we learned: Water polo wrap-up from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics

From three stunning upsets, to the USA women winning a record third Olympic gold medal, we reflect on water polo’s most memorable moments at Tokyo 2020, recap the medals, and look forward to Paris 2024.

5 min

Water Polo

(2021 Getty Images)

Water polo is the oldest team sport at the Olympics, and it didn’t disappoint at Tokyo 2020.

The USA women’s team tasted defeat for the first time in years, before bouncing back to remind everyone that class is permanent.

Australia and Greece decided to flip the script in the men’s competition, pulling off some remarkable upsets against the traditional powers.

Below, we take a look back at the most memorable moments from the competition, recap who won the medals, and highlight who to look out for at Paris 2024 in just three years' time.

(2021 Getty Images)

Top 5 water polo moments at Tokyo 2020

1 - Greece lay down a statement

The Greek men’s team were the surprise package of the Tokyo 2020 when it came to water polo.

The Europeans laid down an early statement of intent by crushing the USA 14-5 to top their group, in a match that many thought would be considerably closer.

Dimitris Skoumpakis scored an early goal to set up the rout.

Greece were unbeaten in the group, and eventually lost to Serbia in the final. That silver was the nation’s first men’s water polo medal, and the team would appear to be on an upward trajectory.

2 - Australia upset World No. 3 Croatia

Australia’s men didn’t manage to make it out of their group, but did manage to take the sizable scalp of World No. 3-ranked side Croatia.

The team from Down Under took a single-goal lead into the final quarter, and showed clinical instincts to close out the game 11-8.

It was a special moment for Australia’s Croatian-born coach Elvis Fatovic, with his son Loren making his Olympic debut for the opposition.

3 - USA’s women finally lose

The US women’s water polo team has been described as the world’s most dominant team in any sport at the Olympics.

They won gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016, in addition to the past three world championships.

With that in mind, shock waves were sent around the water polo world when they were edged out 10-9 by Hungary in a group match in Tokyo. It was their first defeat at the Olympics since 2008.

“The game just doesn’t know who you are. The game doesn’t know where you come from,” US goaltender Ashleigh Johnson said after. “So every time you need to be ready. As the US team, as the Hungarian team, you need to be ready for each team to bring their best, and Hungary brought their best today.”

In a sign that perhaps the world is catching up, the USA also struggled past China during a rugged 12-7 victory.

(2021 Getty Images)

4 - USA land third-consecutive Olympic title

But while the world is catching up, there is no denying who is still No. 1 in women’s water polo.

The United States rebounded from their group loss to make the final, where they crushed European champions Spain 14-5 to win their third straight Olympic gold medal in women's water polo.

Coach Adam Krikorian and his assistants dived into the pool with the players in scenes of joy and wild celebration after the U.S. closed out the win at the Tatsumi Water Polo Centre.

Madeline Musselman was sensational in the final, top-scoring with three goals, while captain Maggie Steffens got one, extending her record as the all-time leading scorer at the Olympics to 56 goals. Star goalkeeper Ashleigh Johnson’s 11 saves made it the complete team performance.

They become the first women’s water polo team to win three consecutive Olympic gold medals, a feat only achieved by British (1908-1920) and Hungarian (2000-2008) men’s team’s before.

5 - Serbia seal gold

Rio 2016 men’s champions Serbia won their second consecutive Olympic gold medal in men's water polo beating Greece 13-10 in a thrilling final.

Having lost two group games (to Spain and Croatia), Serbia arguably were lucky to progress from their group.

But they were unmatched in their knockout matches against Italy and Spain showing that they were back to their best.

The key moment in the final came with the scores locked seven-all. Andrija Prlainovic was able to give Serbia the lead four seconds from halftime, which gave the reigning Olympic champions the momentum to open up a three goal-lead and close out the game.

(2021 Getty Images)

One last look

Croatian men’s captain Xavi Garcia decided that the Tokyo 2020 Olympics would be his last appearance.

The 37-year-old legend has won medals with two national teams. Playing for his native Spain, Garcia landed silver (2007) and bronze (2009) world championships medals, before switching allegiances to Croatia, where he became a world champion in 2017 and won silver at the Rio 2016 Olympics.

In 2016, he won club water polo’s greatest prize, the Champions League, with Jug Dubrovnik.

Hello Paris 2024

It will be interesting to follow the progress of the Greece men’s team in Paris. With only three years to go, and an Olympic silver medal now under their belts, they could have one eye on the top prize in Paris.

Elsewhere, the USA women’s team will feel confident that they can land a record fourth-consecutive Olympic gold medal. With current star Ashleigh Jonshon only 26 years old, she will be pivotal to their success in France.

When and where to watch water polo replays on Olympics.com

The answer is: olympics.com/tokyo2020-replays

When do the top water polo players compete next?

Many Olympians will be in action for their clubs in the Champions League, which begins 24-26 September, while Euro Cup qualification round 1 is scheduled for 1-4 October. The Women’s Euro League will start on 19/21 November.

The next major international water polo event will be the 2022 Aquatic World Championships, which take place May 13-29 in Fukuoka, Japan.