Am I eligible to play U16?
Rule- South Africa
- Swimming South Africa
- Water polo
- U16
- World Aquatics rules
- 2025/26
- Players
Under World Aquatics age group rules (Part Six, Appendix 6), U16 is for players aged 15 and 16 years and under. You're eligible if you are 16 or younger on 31 December of the year the competition starts, in other words you won't turn 17 on or before 31 December that year.
The next junior age groups are U18 (17 and 18 and under) and U20 (19 and 20 and under), worked out the same way.
National federations and organisers may adopt different age rules for their own competitions. The SSA U16 National Championship is SSA's main age group event and is used to select players for the World Aquatics U16 World Championships, which use the World Aquatics age rule.
Added 22 Oct 2026