© UWR Luxembourg
Pioneering the wettest fitness craze, Luxembourg Underwater Rugby (UWR) club is enjoying the notable status of being the first club of its kind in the country, boasting over 40 members.
It's up there among the more unique sports and is possibly something you have never heard of.
Speaking to The Home Stretch host Melissa Dalton on RTL Today Radio, Laure "Eiti" Stein, President of UWR (underwater rugby) Luxembourg, said the club has been running for a decade and attracts members from all backgrounds.
The sport, which originated in Germany, involves a team of six members in the water with the game consisting of two segments of 15 minutes each. The aim is to score points by getting the ball into a metal basket at the bottom of the pool.
Eiti, who works as an economist, explains that the club is a mix of men and women, ranging in age from 16 to members in their 60s.
Despite calling itself underwater rugby, it has in fact very little to do with the popular sport, Eiti admits.
"The only thing that it really has in common with rugby is that it is a contact sport and you are allowed to tackle and be tackled if you are holding the ball and push other players out of the way."
The ball itself is filled with salt water to ensure it doesn't float and is not spherical shaped but round.
As the players are submerged, it is much less aggressive, she notes. "It's much safer and because it is underwater it is much easier on the knees and on the feet than above ground sports."
So, the good news is that injuries are rare, but bruising can happen at times, she cautions.
The club has evolved in the past 10 years from humble origins, Eiti explains.
"In the beginning it was very improvised, let's say. We didn't have any goals or any materials and they played with plastic buckets instead of goals at the bottom of the pool."
"It was quite tricky at the beginning because there were a few people who knew the rules but most people didn't. So, it was quite entertaining to have a team where most people didn’t know what’s going on. The first tournaments were quite entertaining," she recalls.
Those who play come from varied backgrounds – some are swimmers, divers, have played ball sports and there are those who have done no sports at all.
There are people of "all shapes and sizes" and everyone plays a role in the games, she emphasises.
"You don't have to be amazing at everything in order to play, but the one prerequisite is that you need to be able to swim. You don't need to have a high fitness level, making the sport even more inclusive."
As team sports revolve around good communication, Eiti points out that there is no need to worry about that here and players only need to be aware of their surroundings and who is close by.
"The positive is there is no yelling at the referees or anything like that."
UWR Luxembourg was set up in 2012 by Tom Ketter, who came across the sport at university in Germany and Felix Benedikt, who was a former German national team player and coach.
Today, the club has two teams playing in leagues in Germany as well as participating in a number of tournaments.
The club has gone from strength to strength and the first team participated at the World Cup in 2019, as well as at the Champions' Cup (the Champions League of UWR) in 2022.
Eiti, who has been playing underwater rugby since 2018, praises the social aspect of the club, which is very important for members. It was in fact through being a member that she met her husband. The couple now have a three-month-old baby and the committed duo still ensure they both make their training sessions each week.
"I think when I personally joined that was a very important thing for me and yeah, we go for a cheeky kebab after training," she laughs.
With the focus very much on building on the success of the club, one of the medium-term objectives is to create a full women's team.
They club is always looking for new members and would love to hear from anyone interested in getting involved.
You can find more information about Luxembourg Underwater Rugby here.
