The Underwater World of Octopush
There’s more beneath the surface of underwater hockey!
© Mohd Rasfan—AFP/Getty Images
In this 2019 photo, players fight for the puck during an Octopush training session. Unlike regular hockey, underwater hockey requires the use of tiny sticks.
What do you get when you combine hockey with snorkeling? Underwater hockey!
Underwater hockey—also known as Octopush—is just what it sounds like. It’s a hockey game that’s played completely underwater. Wearing goggles and flippers, players race around the bottom of a swimming pool using small hockey sticks to try to push a puck (a heavy disc) into the other team’s goal. Teams of players score points each time they make a goal.
© Mohd Rasfan—AFP/Getty Images
Octopush pucks and sticks
Octopush players have the added challenge of being underwater as they work to score points for their teams. They use snorkels to breathe air near the surface and then hold their breath while they dive down to push the puck. Teammates work together to make this happen, trading off passing the puck to each other and going up for air.
“Most people expect it to be quite slow-paced, but people are always surprised how fast it is,” said Sam Birt to the BBC. Birt is part of the Octopush club in York, England.
© Mohd Rasfan—AFP/Getty Images
Octopush players wear snorkeling equipment, which allows them to get air when they are near the surface of the water.
Octopush was invented in the 1950s at a scuba diving club in Portsmouth, England. The scuba divers needed a winter activity they could do in a pool when it was too cold to dive in the open water, so underwater hockey was born.
The sport is gaining an army of fans among people who enjoy swimming. It’s a lot more entertaining to play Octopush than swim back and forth in a pool, said Birt.
That could be why Octopush has spread beyond England’s borders to many other countries. While it’s not an Olympic sport, there are international tournaments each year where national underwater hockey teams can compete.
