Inner tube water polo

Inner tube water polo (ITWP) is a variation of the sport water polo with the important difference that players, excluding the goalkeeper, are required to float in inflatable inner tubes. By floating in an inner tube, players experience less contact and expend less energy than traditional water polo players, not having to tread water. This allows casual players to enjoy water polo without undertaking the intense conditioning required for conventional water polo.

This sport is predominantly played at universities by intramural coed teams, but can also be found in recreational adult leagues. The sport's rules resemble those of water polo, however, with no governing body the rules vary across different leagues. For example, while the winner is determined by the team which scores the most goals, some leagues award one point for a male goal, and two points for a female goal, while others award one for either.

The game was invented in 1969 by now retired UC Davis associate athletic director of intramural sports and sport clubs, Gary Colberg. Noticing how much fun the water polo team was having, Mr. Colberg thought up the idea of using tubes so that people with no experience in water polo could still enjoy the game.

There is no governing body or official rules, but the following details have been derived from a combination of innertubewaterpolo.com and the NYC Social Sports Club’s rules and instructions.

Most leagues have their own rules governing misconduct, flagrant fouls, and other more egregious penalties.

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