21st European Championship – Sheffield (England) 1993
Back on the island
After 55 years (London 1938), water polo returned to its cradle, the British Isles. The city, once an iron factory and now a major university centre, hosted the best aquatic athletes including water polo players from all over Europe, but in very cold, rainy, and typically English weather, although the championship was held from 29 July to 8 August.
Problems with the swimming pool
This is not to be expected in a championship like this, but there were problems because the competitions were held in only one swimming pool in Sheffield, so the water polo players played most of the tournament in nearby Hillsborough.
Debutants
The 12 national teams in the men’s competition included some new national teams such as Croatia, Ukraine, and Slovakia. The women’s part of the competition was played in Leeds in northern England.
European Champions 1993 (men) – Italy: Francesco Attolico, Alessandro Bovo, Alessandro Campagna, Francesco Porzio, Mario Fiorillo, Massimiliano Ferretti, Frdinando Gandolfi, Giuseppe Porzio, Marco D’Altrui, Paolo Caldarella, Aedeo Pomilio, Carlo Silipo, Roberto Calcaterra, Paolo Petronelli, Gianni Averaimo
European Champions 1993 (women) – Netherlands: Karla Van Der Boon, Janny Spijker, Edmee Hiemstra, Carla Quint, Ingrid Leijendekker, Alice Lindhout, Karin Kuipers, Ellen Bast, Gillian Van De Berg, Rianne Schram, Helen Boering, Hedda Verdam, Sandra Scherrenburg
22nd European Championship – Vienna (Austria) 1995
Swimming pool on the athletics track
The Austrians installed a prefabricated swimming pool in the football stadium, the famous Prater, but on the athletics track, in one of the curves. This caused certain difficulties, both for the journalistic work and for the spectators themselves, who were several dozen metres away from the pool. The idea was never taken up again.
4 groups of 3
The men’s tournament still comprised 12 teams, but was divided into 4 groups of 3 teams each, the top two of which formed the two quarter-final groups.
Hosts without a point
The Austrian national team participated in this tournament only because it was the host, but that it no longer belongs to the water polo elite was also shown by the fact that it did not win a single point. The absolute triumph went to Italy because it was the first time that the men’s and women’s teams from the same country won the gold medal.
European Champions 1995 (men) – Italy: Francesco Attolico, Francesco Postiglione, Alessandro Bovo, Angelo Temellini, Roberto Calcaterrra, Alessandro Calcaterra, Alberto Angelini, Amedeo Pomilio, Paolo Petronelli, Leonardo Sottani, Carlo Silipo, Albetro Ghibellini, Fabio Bencivenga, Marco Gerini, Luca Giustolisi
European Champions 1995 (women) – Italy: Francesca Conti, Martina Miceli, Carmela Alluci, Stefania Lariucci, Milena Virzi, Monica Vaillant, Antonella Di Giacinto, Cristina Consoli, Giusi Malato, Francesca Romano, Marica Carrozzi, Melania Grego, Daria Starace, Maddalena Musumeci, Paola Sabbatini
