A Closer Look: Kings Youth Water Polo Club

Official Club Name: Kings Youth Water Polo from Hanford, CA
 
On the web: N/A but email kingsyouthwaterpolo@hotmail.com
 
Director of Club: Jen Gudmundsson and Linda Wright
 
Club Coaches: Jan Wantland, Jordyn Holt and Sara Gordon
 
Age groups and genders: 5-14 boys and girls
 
How did the club get started?:  The local school district lost its junior high water polo teams due to budgeting this year.  After that the two high school water polo boards decided to join two small teams into one and at the same time offer the new Splashball program for the 5-9 year olds.  The club got started with a goal of providing a local program for the youth to play and develop water polo skills at an earlier age.

Where is home base?: The club has two pools, Hanford West and Hanford High.  Most practices and games are at Hanford High because there is a shallow end to accommodate small children.   
 
Who do they play?: The club has Wednesday night scrimmages and Friday afternoon scrimmages against other local teams. Additionally, they are hosting a 14U mixed tournament, while for the first time they will send their 12U coed team to a tournament in July.  
 
Five years from now: According to Gudmundsson, "Ideally, we would like to develop competitive 10U, 12U and 14U teams and a Splashball league.  Eventually, we hope to develop a year round program and host an annual Splashball tournament. Hanford is in the process of securing funds to build an Aquatics Complex- to be completed in 5 years. Keep your fingers crossed!"
 
New kids on the block: While many clubs have established tradition and sent a host of athletes on to the college game, this group is just getting started. "We are a brand new youth team.  What makes us unique is the interest and support we have from our small community.  We are proud of our players with special needs and of the high school volunteers who shadow them in the pool so they can play. We have grown from 12 youth players age 13 and under to over 80 in the last month and have over 20 high school water polo players as volunteers.  We are at full capacity and are sending any new players to the Lemoore, CA team, our sister program."
 
How to get involved: Email- kingsyouthwaterpolo@hotmail.com