Biomechanics of technical skills in water polo: A Scoping review

This scoping review mapped biomechanical assessment methods used in water polo, summarized key variables associated with technical skills and examined their relevance to performance and injury. The review followed the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews (PRISMA-ScR). MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched from inception to September 2025. Studies involving water polo players and biomechanical assessments of sport-specific skills were included, and findings were synthesized descriptively and thematically by skill type, body region, and biomechanical domain. Twenty studies involving 295 players were included. Most were cross-sectional (95%) and focused on highly trained male players. Throwing and eggbeater kicking were each examined in nine studies (45%), whereas sport-specific swimming was investigated in two (10%). Kinematic analysis was most common, with fewer kinetic, electromyographic, or mixed-method studies. Ball-release velocity, vertical force and foot speed, and swimming velocity were the principal performance variables. Evidence was largely based on isolated skills and body regions, with limited assessment of whole-body coordination or skill interactions. Injury-related biomechanical evidence in water polo also remains insufficient; although biomechanical variables for performance assessment may have some relevance to injury mechanisms, their value as injury-risk indicators remains unestablished.