The women’s national water polo team deserved to be on the podium at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha.
They lost the semifinal to Hungary in a penalty shootout, and now they suffered a bitter, harsh, and perhaps unfair 10-9 defeat to Spain in the game for the bronze medal.
Seven seconds before the end, with the score tied at 9-9, the Greek team took possession of the ball, playing with one player advantage in defense.
Alexia Kammenou gave instructions on how the attack should unfold to prevent a shot from the Spanish side. With goalkeeper Ioanna Stamatopoulou joining the attack to create a numerical advantage, the players of the national team did not even have time to change the pass.
A whistle for a foul at 2 meters, and suddenly chaos in the pool, two, three Greek players trying to prevent Elena Ruiz from throwing the ball into the empty Greek goal, with the Spanish player managing to beat the clock to score the final 10-9. On the bench of the national team, the players burst into tears.
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“We went down to make a shot at the end of the game, teams go down with a numerical advantage, and so did we. Now, what can I say… Those who know water polo saw, what can I say… The referee gave for something that has never been given before in history. Even if it is (i.e., an offensive foul), you don’t give it because it hasn’t even happened. We put that aside for now. How can I not be proud of my team? We deserved to be in the final. We saw the video of the semifinal, watched it again, and this match will haunt us, but only for a while because the team will manage to achieve distinctions. The team has evolved; in just a month and a half, it has done incredible things. Such situations make us stronger; we move forward. Obviously, we deserved something else. Competitively, we didn’t give up; it was evident, everyone saw even the simplest fan saw what happened in the last two games”, Alexia Kammenou said in her statements after the end of the game.
