Fathers and Sons: Water Polo Lives Through Generations
MANHATTAN, NY. It’s possible to say that likes—and dislikes—are hereditary. A parent’s preference can carry great weight, especially when it comes to athletics. A father’s passion for a team or a sport can decisively influence a son’s or daughter’s interest, sparking a life-long passion.
Such is the case of Mark and Jonathan Koganov, father and son water polo players. Last Sunday they were together in the Asphalt Green pool for a scrimmage between the house team and the Brooklyn Hustle Waterpolo Club. The elder Koganov is vice president of FINA’s Technical Water Polo Committee (TWPC) and therefore one of the chief decision-makers in international polo. FINA— Fédération Internationale De Natation—is the world’s leading federation for aquatic sports, overseeing Olympic aquatic competition, including water polo. FINA also holds world championship competition, typically every four years but—as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic—FINA Worlds will be held on three consecutive years, including earlier this month in Budapest, Hungary.
Scrimmage at Asphalt Green, New York’s finest pool. Photo: M. Randazzo
But Mark Koganov should not be confused with a bureaucrat leading from the board room. A native of Azerbaijan who played in his native country before emigrating to the U.S. three decades ago, he is also a respected referee who has whistled all over America and the world. Koganov’s crowning achievement in a distinguished international career came on the pool deck at the 2016 Rio Games where he refereed both men’s and women’s Olympic competition.
[Catching up with Mark Koganov about Proposed FINA Water Polo Changes]
His passion for polo was inherited by his younger son Jonathan, a former age group player for the Y Pro club out of Sheepshead Bay. Now a coach for the Hustle, the 20-something Koganov regularly jumps in the water with high school athletes to make a specific point or demonstrate a particular drill.
[Brooklyn Hustle Gains More Than Pride at South Florida Water Polo Invitational]
Which is to say that Jonathan is as passionate about polo as his father. That’s why there was little surprise when both Koganovs donned their Speedos and jumping in against polo players that in some cases were decades younger.
With the magnificent Asphalt Green pool as a backdrop, I spoke with father and son regarding their collective passion for water polo, a life-long obsession passed down through generations.
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Jonathan Koganov:
- Your dad is why you play water polo. How memorable is it to get in the water today?
It’s special when families have a sport in common—something to bond over, something to talk over and to share ideas about.
- You’re playing at one of New York City’s only Olympic-sized pools.
The pinnacle of New York water polo–Asphalt Green. New York water polo at its finest.
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Mark Koganov:
- Wherever you go you have your suit at the ready to get in and play!
Mostly for sauna—not for a boardroom.
- How special is it to get in the water with your son?
It’s very nice, I don’t know if we’ve been together… must be many, many years ago, not recently. It’s fun and I’m enjoying it.
- It’s clear that you love the sport that you’ve given so much time to…
This game is supposed to be fun. So, that’s what I’m here for… for fun!
Hustle Head Coach Irakli Sanadze and his son, Ethan. Photo: M. Randazzo
- Most people don’t think of water polo as a pick-up sport in the mode of soccer or basketball, but you and your son doing just that.
It can be a recreational sport—it’s just what perspective you’re watching it. Once in a week to come to a pool, but you’ve got to be in condition. You can’t come like soccer and play once in ten days—you have to swim, you have to do practice, you have to do something [regularly] and then you can play…
- … and you can play! I saw you score on that open shot! We’re in the best pool in New York City, which you’ve been in before.
The first time I was here was 1998. Then, in 2002 Pro Recco played here [against Team USA]—that was memorable. The national team of Hungary played two games here against USA in 2005 before the world championship in Montreal.
This pool is the best facility in New York.
- We obviously need more pools like this…
We need ten times more of this! It’s a pity. New York is one of the biggest cities in the world and it’s probably the only one that doesn’t have [a] proper Olympic-quality facility.
You go to Paris, you have it. You go to Rome, you have it. You go to Amsterdam, you have it. Budapest, Athens… everywhere.
But in New York it’s nothing.
It’s really a pity.