# emergency water polo question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 13, 2000, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968 "2000-09-13T00:26:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/1 "2000-09-13T00:26:08Z")
How deep is the pool for the WP competition at the Olympics? The only sources I’ve found have said that the minimum depth in “major competitions” is 1.8m. The Public Library thanks you. PS: we close in 40 min, and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna stick around longer. ---
**Author:** ![iampunha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/74df32/32.png) [@iampunha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iampunha)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/2 "2000-09-13T01:29:42Z")
from [ask.com](http://ask.com): 1.8m minimum depth for international play. Dunno if olympic is the same or not. ---
**Author:** ![Nurlman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Nurlman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nurlman)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/3 "2000-09-13T02:38:36Z")
In many colleges or other places where pools have to be multi-use, polo is often played in the deep end of the swimming (lap) pool, which is often also used as the diving well. This could be anywhere from about 13 feet deep to more than 20, depending on a number of factors such as the height of the diving boards, length of pool, and so on. At the Olympic level, I’d assume that most pools where water polo matches are played are in the neighborhood of 8-15 feet deep, but that’s mostly a WAG. Not that it matters much. 1.8 m is more than deep enough to keep you from touching bottom during ordinary play. (Water polo players stay afloat using an “eggbeater” style kick that involves keeping your knees up towards your hips, and players almost always have their shoulders out of the water. Anyone with a shoulder - hip length \> 1.8 m would me much more successful and much better paid playing basketball.) And anyone that uses the bottom to push off will be noticed by the refs and penalized. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/4 "2000-09-13T02:43:19Z")
Don’t the Horses drown? \ ---
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/5 "2000-09-13T03:04:47Z")
just to let you know… I eventually found it, after slogging through the USOC site… no thanks to you people… heh… It’s 2m. I wonder if Rwanda is feilding a team, cuz Tutsi players would definitly see to be at a disadvantage when it comes to penalties for touching bottom… ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/6 "2000-09-13T16:07:46Z")
Booker57:They use SEAHORSES! ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/7 "2000-09-13T16:41:10Z")
Short of "How do you rescue someone who’s drowning?, " how can you have an _emergency_ water polo question?? 🙂 Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2000, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/8 "2000-09-13T22:28:27Z")
Does anyone else think that “Emergency Waterpolo Question” would make an excellent name for a band? ---
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2000, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/9 "2000-09-14T00:08:56Z")
Yeah. it would probably work best with some sort of faux-homosexual/NAMBLA New Wave schtick, along the lines of GIL MANTERA’S PARTY DREAM, who I caught in Columbus a few weeks ago. I was amazed. Check em out: [http://www.partydream.com](http://www.partydream.com) Or maybe sumpin like The Frogs. Anyways, there has to be some sort of feigned Freddy Mercury-ishness involved, given the obvious homoeroticism implied by the fine sport of Water Polo. It sounds awfully close to “waterports” to boot. I’m a sucker for that kind of stuff. It really makes my girfriend wonder. Like when I blast Turbonegro’s “Rendezvous with Anus.” Hmmmm… I’ll shut up now. ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2000, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emergency-water-polo-question/32968/10 "2000-09-14T03:37:45Z")
Yeah, when I read “Emergency [!] Water Polo Question” I had visions of black455 standing beside a construction site in Sydney, Australia with the bull dozers, back hoes and cement trucks waiting for instructions.