Underwater hockey is one of nine sports making its debut at the 2019 SEA Games.

Singapore wins two gold medals

On Wednesday (Dec. 4), the Singapore men's and women's team won a gold medal each at the 4x4 underwater hockey event.

The men's team beat Philippines 5-0 while the women's team also defeated the hosts with a score of 4-2.

Both teams will be competing in the 6x6 event starting Dec. 4.

The underwater hockey teams' win brings Singapore’s total gold medal tally to 11.

Congrats.

What is underwater hockey?

Despite Singapore's victories, many are still unaware of what the sport entails.

Underwater hockey essentially intertwines disciplines from both ice hockey and swimming.

And as the name suggests, players are fully submerged underwater as they use short, curved sticks to hit a 1.5kg puck into the opponent's goal.

However, only about 80 per cent of the game is underwater.

Players will have to strategically and continuously swim up during the game to breathe before going back down.

https://giphy.com/gifs/XG7HAiNUYRbAHKxnWc

Players and equipment

According to the Singapore Underwater Federation (SUF), each team typically consists of 10 players.

Only six players will be in the water during the game.

The remaining four players act as rolling substitutes, similar to ice hockey.

But unlike ice hockey, the underwater version does not have any goalkeepers.

The stick that the players use is roughly 30 cm long and is attached to their glove.

Players are also dressed in swimsuits, large fins, diving masks, snorkels, ear protectors and thick latex gloves.

The pool that they play in is usually around 25m in length, 12m wide and two to four metres deep.

Rules of the game

The rules of underwater hockey are simple.

The game consists of two 15-minute halves with a five minute rest period in between.

A goal is scored when a team manages to hit the puck into their opponent’s goal using their stick.

No other equipment or body part can be used in the game.

Any goal that comes off a player's body will result in a foul.

The team with the most goals by the end of the 30 minutes wins the game.

If there is a tie, an extra 15 minutes will be added until there is a winner.

Here are other rules to take note of:

• Underwater hockey is a non-contact sport, so a player cannot interfere with another player with their free hand.
• The puck must not rest on the glove or be carried on top of the stick.
• Any infringement of the rules is judged by two in-water referees who will signal to the out-of-water referee to sound the buzzer to stop play.

To give you a better idea of what it looks like, you can watch the Great Big Story's coverage of the sport here.

Underwater hockey in Singapore

Although it's not exactly considered mainstream, the sport has a dedicated following in Singapore.

The Stirling Underwater Hockey Club (SUHC) was established in 2004 to introduce and promote underwater hockey in Singapore.

The players in the club range from 16-year-old teenagers to seniors in their fifties.

SUHC has also worked with other countries like Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the Philippines to engage in friendly competitions.

In 2007, the first Asian Underwater Hockey Championships (AUHC) was hosted here in Singapore.

Top photo via Team Singapore.

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