Anni Espar

Anna Espar Llaquet (born 8 January 1993) is a Spanish water polo player who won the gold medal at the 2013 World Championships in Barcelona.[1] She also won the silver medal at the 2012[2] and 2020 Summer Olympics.[3]

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Espar and the second or maternal family name is Llaquet.
Anni Espar
Personal information
Full name Anna Espar Llaquet
Born 8 January 1993 (1993-01-08) (age 30)
Barcelona, Spain
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Weight 67 kg (148 lb)
Position Driver
Handedness R
Club information
Current team CN Mataró
Number 3
National team
Years Team
2010—
 Spain Spain
Medal record
Women's water polo
Representing  Spain
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 0 2 0
World Championships 1 2 0
European Championships 3 0 1
Total 4 4 1
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place2012 LondonTeam
Silver medal – second place2020 TokyoTeam
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2013 BarcelonaTeam
Silver medal – second place2017 BudapestTeam
Silver medal – second place2019 GwangjuTeam
European Championships
Gold medal – first place2014 Budapest
Gold medal – first place2020 Budapest
Gold medal – first place2022 Split
Bronze medal – third place2018 Barcelona

College career

Espar joined the University of Southern California women's water polo team in 2012.[4] As a Freshman she was named to the ACWPC All-America First Team,[5] All-MPSF First Team,[6] MPSF All-Newcomer Team[6] and MPSF Player of the Week on 25 February after scoring 8 goals in her first major tournament as a Trojan.[7]

In 2013, she won the NCAA in the longest match in championship game history.[8] Espar scored the winning goal in the third sudden-death overtime period.[9]

International career

Espar played on the Spain national team which won the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.[2] She scored 15 goals and was named to the Olympic All-Star Team.[2]

In 2012 Espar was named Best European Female Water Polo Player by the LEN.[10]

Espar joined the Sidney Uni Lions women's water polo team in 2017 winning the Australian League and ending with an unprecedented undefeated season for the Lions (23 wins and a draw in 24 matches). Espar was also named to the 2017 NWPL All Star Team.[11]

Espar also played on the Spanish national team which won the silver at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[3] She scored again 15 goals and was named to the Olympic All-Star Team for the second time in her career.[12]

Family

Espar's younger sister, Clara, is also a professional water polo player.

International competitions
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2011 FINA Junior World Championships, Trieste, Italy, 1st place.[13]
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2012 Olympic Games, London, United Kingdom, 2nd place.
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2013 FINA World Championships, Barcelona, Spain, 1st place.
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2013 FINA Junior World Championships, Volos, Greece, 2nd place.[14]
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2014 European Championship, Budapest, Hungary. 1st place.[15]
  • 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 2014 FINA World Cup, Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, 3rd place.[16]
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2016 FINA World League, Shanghai, China, 2nd place.[17]
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2017 FINA World Championships, Budapest, Hungary, 2nd place.[18]
  • 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 2018 LEN Europa Cup, Pontevedra, Spain, 3rd place.
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2018 Mediterranean Games, Tarragona, Spain, 1st place.[19]
  • 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 2018 European Championship, Barcelona, Spain, 3rd place.
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2019 FINA World Championships, Gwangju, South Korea, 2nd place.[20]
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2020 European Championship, Budapest, Hungary. 1st place.
  • 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 2020 Olympic Games, Tokyo, Japan, 2nd place.

See also

References
  1. "Spain wins women's water polo title". ESPN. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  2. "USA Women Win GOLD! Team USA Tops Spain 8-5 In Olympic Games Final". USA Water Polo. 9 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  3. Brennan, Christine (7 August 2021). "US women's water polo team wins third straight Olympic gold, dominates Spain". USA Today. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  4. Anni Espar Archived 2013-08-26 at the Wayback Machine– University of Southern California athlete profile at USCtrojans.com
  5. "Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches 2013 All-American Teams" collegewaterpolocoach.org July, 2013.
  6. "All-MPSF Women's Water Polo" Archived 2015-09-11 at the Wayback Machine mpsports.org May 1, 2013
  7. "USC Wins UC Irvine Tournament" Archived 2015-09-11 at the Wayback Machine mpsports.org February 25, 2013.
  8. "USC Outlasts Stanford 10-9 In Five Overtimes To Claim 2013 NCAA Championship" usawaterpolo.org May 12, 2013.
  9. "Espar scores in third sudden death to secure third national title for USC" Archived 2017-05-24 at the Wayback Machine ncaa.com June 9, 2013.
  10. "Boskovic and Espar European Players of the Year" Archived 2019-08-17 at the Wayback Machine waterpoloworld.com October 24, 2012.
  11. "SYDNEY LIONS CLAIM BACK TO BACK NWPL TITLES" waterpoloaustralia.com.au April 9, 2017.
  12. "Olympic history repeats — USA's third gold medal". FINA Official website. 7 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  13. "Spain on the top of the world" Archived 2011-09-24 at the Wayback Machine fina.org September 18, 2011.
  14. "USA takes gold after 9-7 win over Spain" Archived 2013-08-27 at the Wayback Machine fina.org August 25, 2013.
  15. "World champions Spain also claim European Title" Archived 2019-05-26 at the Wayback Machine waterpoloworld.com July 24, 2014.
  16. "USA retains World Cup crown with repeat win over Australia" fina.org August 17, 2014.
  17. "USA crowned World League Champion for third consecutive year" fina.org June 12, 2016.
  18. "Day 7 Women's Water Polo: USA rolls Spain for fifth world crown" fina.org July 28, 2017.
  19. “Serbia and Spain reign the Mediterranean” waterpology.com July 1, 2018.
  20. "Day 7: Women's Water Polo: USA shoots down Spain for historic sixth crown". FINA.org. 26 July 2019.
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