BL Water Polo is one of Barts and The London's largest mixed clubs offering training sessions, matches and socials for both males and females.
As BL Association Cup winners in 2021-2022 and BLSA Club of the Year in 2019-2020, BL Water Polo provides some of the best fitness and skill sessions available, as well as our very friendly social side to the club.
Throughout the year, we offer 2-3 training sessions a week, weekly socials, a National and an International Tour, Alumni events, and the infamous Barts to The London Pub Crawl!
A standard Student membership entitles you to all of this and so much more!
Taster Session
Giving Water Polo a go can sound like a daunting prospect, however, the vast majority of our players and members had never even heard of the sport before coming to university. Even if you have never played before, do not let that stop you from joining our Taster Session where we start with the basics - perfect for any beginners! If you have played before and are keen to continue to do so, we would love to welcome you into our club too!
Date: Thursday 28th September 2023
Time: 20:00 –21.30
Location: Poplar Baths Leisure Centre and Gym, 170 E India Dock Rd, Poplar, London E14 0ED. We will also be meeting Freshers at Dawson and Floyer from 19:30pm and then heading to the pool together!
- Swim and warm up
- Basic small group skills and rule explanations
- Fun Matches
A swimming costume and a towel are the only things required - goggles and shampoo are optional.
There is no formal selection process for teams - there is a team for all abilities!
Training
Our normal training week consists of four sessions: three in the pool and one fitness session. For the first term our training times are as follows:
Monday: 8:00-9:30pm at Poplar Baths Leisure Centre
Wednesday: 2:00-3:30pm at Victoria Park or BLSA Fitness Room
Thursday: 8:00-9:30pm at Poplar Baths Leisure Centre
Equipment: A swimming costume and a towel are the only things required - goggles and shampoo are optional.
All other equipment will be provided.
Competitions
We have four teams within the club, our Men's and Women's teams compete in BUCS. And our two equal ability, mixed gender teams play in LUSL. Every member of the club can play in matches, we have no formal selection process for our teams so it does not matter if you are a complete novice!
How to get involved
1. Join the Facebook group, or you can get in contact with any of our club committee members or social media platforms.
2. Attend the taster session in September or come along to any session - the first session is free!
3. Purchase your subs online.
4. Enjoy! Attend the training sessions and take part in matches.
Contact Details
Club Captain - Christina Carrington (waterpolo@bartslondon.com)
Women’s Captain - Abigail Cavanagh
Men’s Captain - Harry Collier Smith
Mixed Captain - Isabel Palmgren
Mixed Captain - Kate Hollister
Testimonials
Kate (Third Year)
I joined water polo because I wanted to try a new sport! Having not swam much and never held a water polo ball this did not limit my journey with the club. Having a mixed-ability club is great for supporting beginners and helping to gain experience and advance other players by learning new skills and tactics. Aside from gaining better cardiovascular fitness, the club also is fantastic for meeting new people and making friends, as well as receiving academic support from peers in other years. Alongside training, the club offers regular drinking and non-drinking socials, which allows great integration into university life. I would recommend water polo to anyone looking to challenge themselves with a new sport, make new friends, and join a friendly community.
Isabel (Second Year)
Joining BLWP has been one of the best things I’ve ever done, I couldn’t imagine getting through first year without water polo. I was really nervous to join but everyone was incredibly welcoming and is just so lovely and fun. From international tour in Malaga to weekly swim training sessions, I have so many beautiful memories from last year. Water polo is quite a niche sport but there is no pressure to be a star player, it’s literally just about having a good time in the pool and drowning people (in the nicest way possible)! But if that doesn’t tempt you to join, at least come to a social and see how much fun you could have with us!!
Charis (Final Year)
When starting at Barts and The London I really wanted to join a sports team but didn’t have a clue which one. Deciding to try a new sport and join BLWP was the best decision I have made so far at med school. It combined my love for swimming and netball. The club is super welcoming and open to all abilities. There is a vibrant social life and regular training which really makes BLWP have its own special community. Come along to the taster and try it out! You won’t regret it :)
Alfie (Fourth Year)
As I had been studying from home during my first year, I was keen to meet people and take opportunities in my second year, and the decision to join BLWP was a fantastic one! From the beginning, the club is welcoming, and accommodating to people of all levels in the pool. I had not tried the sport before, but the club provides so many opportunities to train and get better. The socials are a massive highlight, happening every week and open to everyone! The main thing is that the people part of BLWP genuinely care about the club, and do all they can to make sure you get something out of it.
Brandon (Second Year)
Having never played water polo before, joining BLWP was an unexpected start to my time at uni, but looking back, it's easily one of the best decisions I've made this year! Despite being apprehensive at first, I really enjoyed the taster session where the club helped introduce me to the sport. After a few sessions, I even got to play my first match! Right from the start, it was clear that everyone having a good time mattered so much more than winning. A wide variety of weekly socials allowed me to get to know a great group of people, and this has really helped me settle into uni life. I genuinely don’t think I would have had half as much fun this year if I hadn’t joined BLWP!
Abigail (Third Year)
I first joined BLWP as a fresher to keep up my swimming but also try something new. The club was really welcoming, with a fab social scene, and it was a great way to integrate into the Bart’s community. It’s a very exciting and fun sport and I’d encourage everyone to give it a go!