Strathclyde SportWater Polo
Mission
Due to our high-quality facilities and Professional Coaching infrastructure, Strathclyde will become the ‘destination of choice’ for talented water players wanting to study at a University in the UK.
The University of Strathclyde Water Polo Club values the pursuit of excellence through personal development and teamwork. Whilst we teach responsible and ethical behaviour both in and out of the pool, through engagement with water polo, players also develop leadership, resilience and sportsmanship. Furthermore, we create a positive team culture and work ethic that will develop important personal traits which also help with academic attainment, graduate employability and to instil a lifelong passion for sport and physical activity.
Vision
By offering a high-quality water polo training program and guaranteeing and adhering to our values, our players will achieve their social, physical, tactical and technical goals.
Goals
- Create a healthy and fun team environment for our players
- Teach respect for one's opponents; acceptance of victory with humility, and acknowledgement of defeat with grace
- Develop each player to their full potential by teaching individual skills, rules, and team strategy
- Model and teach competitiveness with an emphasis on good sportsmanship
- Promote increased self-esteem among our players
- Promote skill development over winning
- Create memories for life
Coaching
Following an agreement to undertake a collaborative approach to invest in water polo in the West District, the University has recruited a full-time Water Polo Coach to lead water polo development at Strathclyde Sport. Partners involved are SportScotland, Scottish Swimming, the University and three Community Clubs (Kirkintilloch and Kilsyth, Western Baths and Forth Valley).
Following an extensive International search, bilingual Dutch Level 3 Water Polo Coach Ton Kloosterman was appointed and joined the University in February 2023.
Kloosterman joins the University from the Dutch (KNZB) High-Performance Water Polo Regional Talent Centre in Zaandam, where he coached talented water polo children alongside their school commitments. However, spread over a 28-year coaching history, Kloosterman has a breadth of experiences in coaching males and females of all ages and abilities, which includes developing youth club programmes, mentoring of coaches and coaching of senior teams. Whilst not exhaustive, his achievements include coaching ZVL – Leiden to the Quarter-Finals of the European LEN Trophy, and obtaining league promotions with SG WZC Zoetermeer and BZ&PC Bodegraven. In addition to coaching, Kloosterman has worked in-and-around water polo for many years, including a 5-year stint as Chief Editor and Social Media Manager for Waterpolo.nl, and organising Holiday water polo camps on behalf of Waterpolokampen.nl.
World-Class Training facilities
The University of Strathclyde houses a 2.0m depth 25m six lane pool with FINA-approved floating water polo goals.
Swimming pool key features include a partial hydraulic floating floor to allow depth alteration for a variety of water polo activities.
The facility also houses a World-Class Strength and Conditioning facility for development of players’ athletic ability and meeting rooms for hosting of video analysis sessions.
Join the Water Polo Club
The Swimming and Water Polo Club allows members to take part in both sports as new or more experienced players/swimmers with a minimum level of basic swimming.
Water polo is open to all levels whether you are new to the sport or a more experienced player. Water polo hold their matches on Wednesday afternoons at Strathclyde Sport which are always great to go along to watch and support when possible.
The Swimming and Water Polo Club also has a great social side to the team with their socials generally being held on Wednesday nights-definitely not something to be missed!
Training
Strathclyde water polo has three training sessions per week. All sessions are on-site in our own pool at Strathclyde Sport.
Monday
17:45 - 19:15 Women’s water polo
19:15 - 20:45 Men’s water polo
Wednesday (Match Day)
16:30 - 18:30 Men’s and Women’s water polo (when no match)
Friday
19:00 - 20:30 Women's water polo (combined with KKASC)
20:30 - 22:00 Men’s water polo (combined with Western Baths)
Fixtures and results
Both Men’s and Women’s team are competing in British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) water polo Scottish Tier 1. BUCS is the home of higher education sport in the UK, with events & leagues across 52 sports, including water polo.
Contact us
Ton Kloosterman (Director of Water Polo)
160, Cathedral St. Glasgow, G4 0RF
ton.kloosterman@strath.ac.uk
+44 (0)141 548 2446
View our location
I’m dedicated, creative and passionate about water polo - I love the sport!
Director of Water Polo