(Reuters) – Rugby players diving to score tries can often make for spectacular viewing, but on a floating pitch on Lake Geneva they are accompanied by a big splash of water.
Water rugby is popular in Switzerland and 21 men’s and women’s teams took part in five-a-side tournaments at the weekend with games lasting 14 minutes each.
Competitors accessed the playing area by a floating pontoon that moved from the shore to the pitch and played touch rugby before scoring tries by plunging into Lake Geneva.
Yves Guignard, who participated in Friday’s warm-up event where sponsors put together mixed-gender teams, enjoyed the format.
“I was quite surprised because it’s a really slippery surface. It’s a little more difficult to find your footing than on normal ground, but otherwise, it’s extremely fun,” Guignard said.
“The water is good. There are good surprises and it’s a lot of fun to see people fall over the sides as well.”
The three-day event was organised by Water Rugby Lausanne to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Lausanne University Rugby Club.
There was also a one-hour free session to encourage more women to play rugby.
“Women’s rugby is a little less well represented in Switzerland, so we wanted to take advantage of this platform to offer one hour of rugby for free to all women who want to try rugby in a very playful way,” said Mathieu Falbriard, President of Water Rugby Lausanne.
(Reporting by Denis Balibouse, writing by Sophie Penney and Manasi Pathak, editing by Ed Osmond)
