Support Aria at Underwater Hockey Age Group Worlds

Hi! My name is Aria Paul and I am asking for your support. I have the opportunity to represent Team USA at the 2024 Underwater Hockey Age Group World Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia this summer from July 16th to the 27th on the Under 24 Women’s team.

You may be asking, what even is Underwater Hockey?

Underwater Hockey (UWH) is the ultimate sport played at the bottom of a pool, with a typical depth of two meters or around 6.5 feet. The game is played six-on-six with players using a short one-handed stick to maneuver a weighted puck along the bottom of the pool. The game is played holding your breath while wearing a water polo cap with a snorkel and a mask. The goal of the game is to work as a team and get the puck into the other team’s goal on the other side of the pool. The competition is played in two 15-minute halves.

What is my story?

My story starts five years ago at Fog City Hammerheads Swim Team in San Francisco, California. I have been competitively swimming for well over a decade now and have been on multiple swim teams throughout my tenure as an athlete. One day, on one of our “Friday Funday” swim practices, Jordan Wood, our coach, pulled out a basket of weird-looking sticks and gloves and introduced us all to the sport of Underwater Hockey. I was hooked and would ask to play every Friday practice. I loved it.

But, at that point in time, my focus was still squarely on my competitive swimming career, and then my family moved across the country to Cary, North Carolina at the end of my freshman year. I left all of my friends and teammates behind, and while I looked for an underwater hockey team in North Carolina, there was no active club. I focused on swimming and didn’t think too much about underwater hockey until I came to Colorado for college.

I was walking downstairs, coming out of my biology lab and I noticed a poster on the wall advertising Colorado State University’s Underwater Hockey Club. Seeing that flier and recognizing the sport again reignited the same passion I had from years before. I took a leap and have not looked back since. I still swim competitively with CSU’s Swim and Dive Club, but hockey has become so much more to me than I could have imagined.

I am honored to represent the USA U24 women's team, and committing to this team has not and will not be easy. It requires a tremendous amount of time, dedication, and commitment. Currently, I am in the pool training five days a week, doing both swim practices and double hockey practice days once a week with the Denver Underwater Hockey Club. Not to mention, I am still a full-time second-year student at Colorado State University pursuing a degree in Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology with a minor in Zoology.

My fundraising goal.

I am seeking your support to accomplish my goal of preparing and participating in the age world championship event. I am looking to raise $5,000 to help pay for expenses. These include flights, gear and uniforms, team deposits, and other possible unanticipated expenses that I will incur.

Your support will help me as I continue the journey to Malaysia. I am honored by the support I’ve received up to this point, especially from my parents, and am grateful for your support and generosity as I pursue this goal.

Thank you for your generosity,

Aria Paul