Dominant U.S. wins polo gold again
RIO DE JANEIRO — One by one, each with a different reaction, the players on the best women’s water polo team ever leaned down to accept their gold medals. KK Clark looked at hers and mouthed, “Oh, my God.” Courtney Mathewson held back tears. Makenzie Fischer beamed. Kami Craig laughed, and then she cried through the entire national anthem.
Coaches do not receive Olympic medals, so Adam Krikorian watched from the side of the pool. He had led the United States on a dominant run, capped by their 12-5 demolition of Italy, under tragic circumstances. On Aug. 3, Krikorian’s brother, Blake, a renowned tech entrepreneur, died suddenly of a heart attack while surfing. Krikorian learned that night and flew home from Rio the next day. He returned in time for the United States’ first game Aug. 9. Blake Krikorian would have turned 49 Thursday, the eve of the final.
“The two days coming home, it was very therapeutic to be able to grieve with the family, and to have that time together,” said Anicia Mendez, Krikorian’s wife. “He had to come back. Everyone has sacrificed so much to get to this point. I know he wanted to be strong for those players, and to not take away from their experience. He would never allow anything personal to get in the way of that.”
Krikorian gathered his players at 7 a.m. the day after Blake died, before he flew home. They felt like they had lost a member of their own family, because that’s what they had become during four years of training.
“We’ve opened up,” driver Craig said. “We’ve been vulnerable.”
Krikorian wanted to ensure his tragedy would not impede their dreams. “Don’t worry about me,” he told them. “You be you.”
“We wanted to be strong for him, but he was strong for us,” captain Maggie Steffens said. “That’s why he’s the best coach in the world.”
The first game after Krikorian got back, a blowout of Spain, set an apt precedent. The U.S. romped through the field and in the final produced an ode to the sport, fast and elegant and powerful.
The U.S. stomped Italy by the widest margin of victory in any of the five women’s Olympic finals. The U.S. thrived on its typically balanced attack, five different players scoring its first five goals. Three players — Rachel Fattal, Makenzie Fischer and Kiley Neushul — each scored multiple goals. Goalie Ashleigh Johnson, the first African-American women’s water polo Olympian, made eight saves, including a block on a penalty shot, which are converted about 80 percent of the time.
For the tournament, the U.S. outscored opponents 73-32 and won all six games by at least four goals. In London, the U.S. had claimed its first gold medal on toughness and grit. In Rio, they became the first nation with two gold medals and laid claim to the title of best women’s water polo team ever.
“I think you could make an argument,” Krikorian said. “I think you could make a strong argument.”
“We played water polo different than any team has ever played this game,” Johnson said.
“One of the most athletic, creative, crafty teams to ever play the game,” Craig said. “Not in the U.S., but in the world.”
“We’re just good at water polo,” defender Melissa Seidemann said. “You know?”
When Seidemann walked into the mixed zone to speak with reporters, she buried her face in her hands and bawled.
“Sorry, I’ve been holding it in this whole time,” Seidemann said. “Everybody’s tears are coming from different places.”