Underwater hockey has been played inAustralia since 1966 and is played in most states and territories. As of September 2013,Australia has been very successful at the international level finishing in the top three 43 times including being the world champion in various divisions 23 times out of 53 appearances at 17 international events.
Underwater hockey has been played in Australia since 1966. Its introduction is attributed to Norm Leibeck, an Australian who returned from Canada both with Marlene, hisCanadian bride, and a recently acquired knowledge of underwater hockey then known as Octopush. The first Australian Underwater Hockey Championships was held in 1975 atMargaret River, Western Australia as part of the Australian Skindiving Convention (now called the Australian Underwater Championships). A Women's division was added to the championships in 1981 and a Junior division commenced in 1990.[1][2][3]
The peak body is the Underwater Hockey Commission (known asUnderwater Hockey Australia) of theAustralian Underwater Federation (AUF). There are state commissions in all states and territories with the exception of theNorthern Territory.Underwater hockey has a coaching stream as part of the AUF's coaching program in underwater sport with two levels being accredited with the Australian Government's National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS).[4][5]
Underwater hockey is played at venues in theAustralian Capital Territory,New South Wales,Queensland,South Australia,Tasmania,Victoria and Western Australia.[6] The national championships are held annually and as an event separate from the Australian Underwater Championships since 1994.[7][8]
As of 2017, the Australia nationals have six separate divisions based on age and gender – Under 15, Under 19 Mixed, Under 19 Women's, Masters, Elite Women's and Elite Men's.[9]
Australia has played at world level since the inaugural world championship event in 1980. Australia did not send teams to the 15thCMAS World Championship in 2007 or to the 16th CMAS World Championship in 2009.[10][11][12]
| Year | Championship | Location event | Elite | Masters | U-19 | U-23/24 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | |||
| 1980 | 1st CMAS World Championship |  Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada[13] | 3 | No event | No event | No event | No event | No event | No event | No event |
| 1982 | 2nd CMAS World Championship |  Brisbane, Australia[14] | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| 1984 | 3rd CMAS World Championship |  Chicago, United States[15][16] | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| 1986 | 4th CMAS World Championship | Adelaide, Australia[17] | 2 | 1 | ||||||
| 1988 | 5th CMAS World Championship |  Amersfoort, Netherlands[18] | 1 | 3 | ||||||
| 1990 | 6th CMAS World Championship | Montreal, Quebec, Canada[19] | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| 1992 | 7th CMAS World Championship |  Wellington, New Zealand[20] | 1 | 2 | 1 | |||||
| 1994 | 8th CMAS World Championship |  Grand Couronne, France[21] | 1 | 1 | 3 | |||||
| 1996 | 9th CMAS World Championship |  Durban,South Africa[22] | 1 | 2 | 2 | |||||
| 1998 | 10th CMAS World Championship | San José, United States[23] | 3 | 2 | 4 | DNP‡ | ||||
| 2000 | 11th CMAS World Championship | Hobart, Australia[24] | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||
| 2002 | 12th CMAS World Championship | Calgary, Alberta, Canada[25] | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | DNP‡ | |||
| 2004 | 13th CMAS World Championship | Christchurch, New Zealand[26] | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | DNP‡ | ||
| 2006 | 14th CMAS World Championship |  Sheffield, United Kingdom[27][28] | 4 | 1 | 6 | DNP‡ | ||||
| 2007 | Disputed 15th World Championship (Part of 1st CMAS Games) |  Bari, Italy | DNP‡ | |||||||
| 2008 | Alternative 15th World Championship and 1st Junior World Championship (1st WAA World Championships) | Durban, South Africa[29][30] | 4 | 1 | 5 | No event | DNP‡ | |||
| 2009 | 16th World Championship |  Kranj, Slovenia | DNP‡ | No event | ||||||
| 2011 | 17th CMAS World Championship |  Coimbra, Portugal[31][32] | 1 | 2 | ||||||
| 2013 | 18th CMAS World Championship |  Eger, Hungary[33] | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | Held separately | |||
| 2016 | 19th CMAS World Championship | Stellenbosch, South Africa[34] | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| 2018 | 20th CMAS World Championship | Quebec City, Canada | 7 | 6 | 6 | 2 | ||||
| 2023 | 21th CMAS World Championship | Gold Coast, Australia | 6 | 1 | 4 | 2 | ||||
‡ DNP= Did not participate
| Year | Championship | Location event | Men's U-19 | Women's U-19 | Men's U-23/24 | Women's U-23/24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2nd Junior World Championship | Eger, Hungary | 4 | 4 | 2 | ? |
| 2015 | 3rd Junior World Championship |  Castellón de la Plana, Spain | ? | ? | 2 | 4 |
| 2017 | 4th Junior World Championship | Hobart, Australia | ? | 2 | ? | ? |
| 2019 | 5th Junior World Championship | Sheffield, United Kingdom | Did not participate | 6 | Did not participate | |
| 2024 | 6th Junior World Championship[35] |  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
