Nicola Maree Zagame (born 11 August 1990) nicknamed Ziggy
and Nicky,
[ is an Australian ]water polo
Water polo is a competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the ball into the opposing team's goal. The team with the ...
centre back/driver. She has represented her country as a member of Australia women's national water polo team
The Australia national women's water polo team represents Australia in women's international water polo competitions and is controlled by Water Polo Australia. It was one of the most successful women's water polo teams in the world. It is curre ...
on both the junior and senior levels, and was part of the silver winning team at the 2010 FINA Women's Water Polo World Cup. She represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
and the 2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
, winning a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics.
Personal life
Zagame was born on 11 August 1990 in Sydney and grew up attending Kirrawee High School
Kirrawee High School is a comprehensive co-educational high school located in Kirrawee, New South Wales, Australia, adjacent to the Royal National Park.
The school was opened in 1966 and now caters for around 1,200 students, most continuing the ...
. Currently residing in Gymea Bay
The Gymea Bay is a bay on the upper estuarine Port Hacking River, fed by the Coonong Creek in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia
Location and features
The bay, the locality, suburb of and the adjacent suburb of Gymea ...
, New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, the tall[ right handed][
Zagame is a water polo coach.][ In 2017, she flew to ]Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
to compete as one of the 24 contestants on ''Australian Survivor
''Australian Survivor'' is an Australian adventure reality game show based on the international ''Survivor (franchise), Survivor'' format. Following the premise of other versions of the ''Survivor'' format, the show features a group of contesta ...
''. She came in 6th place.
Water polo
Zagame plays as a centre back/driver and prefers to wear cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...
number eleven.[ She keeps a rock that she considers lucky in her pool bag.][ She started playing water polo as a thirteen-year-old in ]Sutherland, New South Wales
Sutherland is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sutherland is located 26 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the Su ...
[ having been recruited from Cronulla SLSC where was involved with ]surf lifesaving
Surf lifesaving is a multifaceted social movement that comprises key aspects of voluntary lifeguard services and competitive surf sport. Originating in early 20th century Australia, the movement has expanded globally to other countries, inc ...
. At the time of her transition to water polo, she was a better surf swimmer than a stillwater swimmer.[ She has held a scholarship for water polo at the ]New South Wales Institute of Sport
The New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) is a high performance sports training institute located in New South Wales, Australia. The New South Wales government agency provides world leading coaching, performance support and daily training ...
. In 2008, she competed in the Women's International Series.
Club team
Zagame is a member of and plays club water polo for the Cronulla Sharks Water Polo Club
The Cronulla Sutherland Water Polo Club is an Australian club water polo team that competes in the Australian Water Polo League. They have senior men's and women's teams as well as multiple junior teams and are based in Cronulla, New South Wale ...
in the National Water Polo League.[ During the 2009 season, she scored 76 goals.][ She played for the team in 2010, including the finals tournament, during which she was named in the league final's All Star team.] She has twice set season goal-scoring records while playing in the league, with the second time coming in a 2010 game when her team beat Adelaide at home in the Sutherland Leisure Centre
Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later co ...
. She challenges opposition players in such a way that it frequently results in her fouling out of games.[ She was the captain of the team during the 2011 season.] In 2012, she played briefly with the club before taking a break from the team following their 18 February 2012 game to attend the national team training camp. Her last game before the break was against the Balmain Tigers. As a member of the team, she helped win the first two games of the season 8–4 and 7–4.
Junior national team
Zagame has represented Australia on the junior national level. In July 2006, she was a member of the Youth Girls squad that competed in an international series in Auckland, New Zealand.
Senior national team
Zagame is a member of the Australia women's national water polo team
The Australia national women's water polo team represents Australia in women's international water polo competitions and is controlled by Water Polo Australia. It was one of the most successful women's water polo teams in the world. It is curre ...
, nicknamed the Stingers. She made her senior team debut in May 2009. In 2009, she was part of the Australian side that finished third at the FINA World League Super Finals in Kirishi, Russia. This was her first major international tournament as a member of the senior squad. In 2009, she was part of the team that finished sixth at the FINA World Championships in Rome, Italy in 2009.[ She was also part of the Australian side that won the 2009 Holiday Cup in the United States.][
Zagame was a member of the 2010 Stingers squad that competed at the FINA World Cup in ]Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...
, New Zealand where Australia finished second. In the team's quarter finals 10–8 victory over the United States women's national water polo team
The United States women's national water polo team represents the United States in international women's water polo competitions and friendly matches. It is one of the leading teams in the world since the late 1990s.
On March 27, 2009, USA Water ...
, she scored three goals.[ In May 2010, she was a member of the team that competed at the FINA World League Asia-Oceania zone held in ]Osaka, Japan
is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third most populous city in Ja ...
and Tianjin, China
Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popula ...
.
Zagame was part of the Australian side that won a silver medal at the 2011 Kirishi Cup in June. In the game for the medal, they played Kazakhstan women's national water polo team
The Kazakhstan women's national water polo team is the representative for Kazakhstan in international women's water polo.
Results Olympic Games
*2000 – 6th place
* 2004 – 8th place
World Championship
*1994 – 12th place
*1998 – 12th pl ...
. In that match, she scored two goals. In July 2011, she was a member of the Australian Stingers that competed in the 2011 FINA World Championships in Shanghai. In preparation for this tournament, she attended a team training camp in Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
.
In January 2012, Zagame competed in the Pan Pacific Championships for the Stingers, and was a member of the squad that competed in the three-game test series against the United States. The Australian team won two of the three matches, with scores of 12–13 in an opening series loss, winning 11–6 in the second match and winning the third match 12–7 clash at Sutherland Leisure Centre. Zagame scored a goal in the second half of the final match in the series.[ This test series was the first time she had played an international match in her home swimming pool, Sutherland Leisure Centre.][
In February 2012, Zagame was named in the 17-member training squad for the ]2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
, and attended a training camp that started on 20 February 2012 at the Australian Institute of Sport
The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...
. She was part of the Stingers squad that competed in a five-game test against Great Britain at the AIS in late February 2012. This was the team's first matches against Great Britain's national team in six years. At the 2012 Olympics, Zagame was part of the Australian team that won the bronze medal.
Zagame stayed in the sport and qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
.[
]
See also
*
* List of Olympic medalists in water polo (women)
Women's water polo became an Olympic sport at the 2000 Olympics. Since then, the United States women's team has won six consecutive medals.
There are thirty-five female athletes who have won two or more Olympic medals in water polo. Heather Petr ...
*
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zagame, Nicola
1990 births
Living people
Australian female water polo players
Sportswomen from New South Wales
Water polo players at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Olympic bronze medalists for Australia in water polo
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Water polo players from Sydney
World Aquatics Championships medalists in water polo
Water polo players at the 2016 Summer Olympics
21st-century Australian women
New South Wales Institute of Sport alumni
University of Sydney alumni
Survivor (franchise) contestants
Participants in Australian reality television series