Alumni Services

Swimming and Water Polo Club Celebrates 125 Years

The University of Edinburgh Swimming and Water Polo Club is delighted to celebrate its 125th anniversary this year.

Water polo

It is marking this milestone occasion with a special day of activities for past and present members on Saturday 16 March 2013.

Races and matches at St Leonard’s Land swimming pool will be followed by a gala dinner and ceilidh at the Carlton Hotel on North Bridge.

If you would like to join in, please contact Megan Duff, the Club’s Alumni and Publicity Officer at:

meganduff@msn.com

Did you know?

To whet your appetite, here’s our top five did you know? facts about swimming and water polo:

Archive water polo
  • The earliest record of swimming dates back 10,000 years, with the rock painting images in the Cave of Swimmers in south-western Egypt. Swimmers also appear in artwork from the early Minoan, Incan and Babylonian empires.
  • The Japanese were holding competitive swimming galas in 36BC.
  • Modern water polo can be traced back to William Wilson, a Scot who drew up a set of rules for a game with elements of soccer, rugby, wrestling, and American football — all while treading water. The first game took place between the banks of the River Dee at the Bon Accord Festival in Aberdeen in 1877.
  • The game was soon called water polo, based on the English pronunciation of pulu, the Balti word for ball.
  • The special kick used by players not only to tread water but also to rise up out of the water for shooting, passing or defending is called the eggbeater.

Alumni Sports Day 2013

If sport is your thing then you might also be interested in our Alumni Sports day which takes place on Saturday 20 April 2013.

Some of our most successful sports clubs will be taking part in the day, including Volleyball, Basketball, Ladies Rugby, Trampoline, Badminton, Korfball, Netball and Rifle, and will use the facilities offered by the Centre for Sport and Exercise; Pleasance, St. Leonards and Peffermill.

Alumni Sports Day 2013