US Women’s Water Polo Swimming Through Choppy Water in Pursuit of a Fourth Straight Olympic Gold

With the Paris Olympics arising subsequent yr, U.S. girls’s water polo coach Adam Krikorian is feeling the strain of time. As in not sufficient of it.

There’s historical past at stake, too.

No water polo group — males or girls — has received 4 straight gold medals on the Video games. The U.S. girls, led by Maggie Steffens, have received three in a row, however there are indicators that the American grip on the game is weakening.

“To be fairly frank, this group is not pretty much as good. They hate it after I inform them that, however it’s the reality,” Krikorian stated in a telephone interview. “We’re inferior to we as soon as had been. We do not have as a lot offensive firepower, and we do not have as a lot of a balanced assault as earlier than.”

A few of Krikorian’s concern is simply normal apply for the longtime U.S. coach. Through the group’s long term on the high — even with Krikorian’s most dominant rosters — he has carried round a psychological record of strengths and weaknesses the complete approach, maybe most notably, together with criticism of his personal teaching efficiency.

However the U.S. had received 4 straight world championships earlier than it completed fifth final month in Japan. It was the primary time that the U.S. girls did not medal in a serious occasion for the reason that 2013 world championships in Spain.

Earlier than rolling to gold on the Tokyo Video games, it was defeated by Hungary in group play in its first loss on the Olympics for the reason that 2008 remaining.

The U.S. opened this yr’s world championships with three straight wins by a mixed rating of 40-16. However it went 2 for 14 with the person benefit throughout an 8-7 loss to Italy within the quarterfinals — an anemic statistic that Krikorian wasn’t able to brush off as simply an aberration.

“We had some good days from an offensive standpoint or an effectivity standpoint on our energy play through the summer time,” he stated. “However we additionally had some moments the place we actually struggled, and so it did not come out of the blue.”

A number of the U.S. bother will be attributed to its combination of youth and expertise, and the expansion of the newcomers could be the most important key to its pursuit of gold subsequent summer time. Simply six of the 15 gamers on the U.S. roster for the world championships had been a part of the Tokyo group.

A era that worshipped Steffens and different U.S. stars is sporting the American caps now, and it is a tough transition. Krikorian is in search of what he calls a balanced assault — offensively, defensively and from a management standpoint.

“That begins with me and it extends to the veterans and the leaders of this group and our capability to have the ability to create an setting and a tradition by which permits them to and empowers the youthful ones to have the ability to play with a ton of braveness and even at occasions, some reckless abandon,” he stated. “And I feel that is not simple to do.”

The U.S. group will get again within the pool on Monday. Its subsequent alternative to qualify for Paris is the Pan American Video games in Chile starting in October.

Whilst Krikorian worries aloud concerning the group’s shortcomings, he’s nonetheless working with a ton of expertise. Steffens and Maddie Musselman, the 2022 World Aquatics girls’s water polo athlete of the yr, are again. The U.S. additionally has two of the world’s finest goaltenders in Ashleigh Johnson and Amanda Longan — a scenario value watching within the runup to Paris.

“I nonetheless have Ashleigh as our No. 1 goalie, however Amanda’s an in depth second,” Krikorian stated, “and once more, in my thoughts, Amanda’s simply too rattling good to not give her some alternative to play … particularly at this level of the quad.”

Krikorian, who almost walked away after the Tokyo Olympics, additionally raved concerning the make-up of his new group as nicely.

“I feel this group is a wonderful group close to their selflessness and their dedication to one another,” he stated. “They’re a implausible group of people who I do know will actually get pleasure from this course of. I do not suppose it’ll be tough for this group to have the ability to discover that happiness and that pleasure, even by the tough occasions.”

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