Women’s water polo strides closer to Rio
After advancing out of the pool competition at the Women’s Water Polo Olympic Games Qualification Tournament, Canada’s team is one victory away from securing a spot at Rio 2016.
In order to clinch an Olympic berth, the Canadians must place top four in the tournament hosted in Gouda, Netherlands. After finishing fourth in pool A, the squad successfully advanced to the quarterfinals, where a win will book the team’s ticket to Rio.
Read: Women’s water polo strikes silver at TO2015
Canada’s Emma Wright, center, fights for the ball during a match at the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games
In Saturday’s quarterfinals, Canada will go up against Italy, the top finisher from Pool B. The Canadians will be led by team captain Krystina Alogbo, as well as speedster Dominique Perrault and defender Christine Robinson. Robinson is the only Olympic veteran on the squad, after competing in Athens 2004, during the nation’s last Olympic appearance. The roster also includes several players from Canada’s 2015 Pan Am Games silver medal winning team, who will be looking to not only earn another medal, but secure the nation’s first Olympic berth in eight years.
Here’s a recap of Canada’s pool A matches:
Spain 10 – 6 Canada
Canada 15 – 7 Japan
Grenada 11 – 4 Canada
United States 14 – 7 Canada
Canada 17 – 2 Russia
