Water polo duo stars on world stage

Redcliffe water polo stars Amelie Hoefel and Tian Markart have returned from top international tournaments with medals.

Amelie, a Redcliffe State High School student, won bronze with the Australian 16 and Under (16U) women’s team at the World Championships in Turkey.

Tian, who is at Mueller College, Rothwell, won bronze in a warm-up tournament with the Australian 18 and Under (18/U) men’s team, before the world titles.

One of nine Queenslanders in a 15-strong squad, Amelie said: “I hope this is just the beginning of my journey in water polo.

“I will endeavour to work hard in the hope of continuing to be chosen to represent Australia in future international competitions.”

Amelie pictures - click through

The 16-year-old, who plays for Mermaids (Yeronga) and Buderim, left mid-June for a training camp in Greece, then went to Budapest for games against the Hungarian 16U and 17U teams.

At the world titles, Amelie was among the top scorers, and had great defensive steals, against Ukraine 16-0, Italy 13-8 in quarters and Spain 7-14 in the semis.

Australia won a tight bronze-medal match 13-10 against powerhouse Croatia, before Spain beat Hungary to the gold medal.

Amelie - who also swims with Southern Cross - was presented with her playing cap by Stingers captain and Olympic silver medallist Zoe Arancini.

Tian pictures - click through

Tian, 16, was one of two goalkeepers in the Australian squad which also left in June for a warm-up tournament in Brazil, beating Canada 17-12 in a bronze medal match.

The Aussies then went to Argentina and started the world championships well with good wins. Tian was named goalie of the match for one of their games.

However, against strong opposition in Buenos Aires, Australia eventually finished 10^th.

Both will now draw on their experience in Australian colours when they represent Queensland at the national championships on the Gold Coast in September.