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As far as extreme sports go, underwater hockey, also known as “Aqua Challenge,” will not be at the X Games anytime soon. Often ridiculed for being a hobby and not a sport, Aqua Challenge is frowned upon by most mainstream athletes. However, fourth-year student Louise Daley has managed to push past the sceptics and achieve victory for the New Zealand Under-19 Women’s Team in 2011 at the World Champs. She now hopes to continue her form with the New Zealand Women’s team this year.

Tell us about how you got into underwater hockey. Was there a natural progression from underwater hockey’s half-brother field hockey?
Well, no. I am really uncoordinated on land. I used to do swimming, but I wasn’t very competitive with it. Most people in New Zealand start playing at the beginning of high school, but I actually started quite late when my friend took me along in year 11 and I loved it. As a swimmer they just told me to swim in a straight line with a puck.

For those oblivious to the game of underwater hockey game, how is a game played?
We play with fins, snorkel, a mask and a glove. The stick looks like something you would beat someone with and you flick the puck along the bottom. A lot of people think it can be hit but it is too heavy.

What position do you play? And what other positions are there?
There are six people in a team. In New Zealand we usually play two forwards and a backline of three and goalie. In the back three is a centre and two wings. I play as a winger. Even the goalie scores quite a few goals and doesn’t strictly play like other goalies.

How well does New Zealand perform on the international underwater hockey scene?
For New Zealand Under-19 it is a lot like rugby and you are expected to win. If you don’t, then this is bad. This is usually because we start playing at high school and other countries don’t start until university. We have World Championships this year and we will be hoping for a win.

Have you sustained any serious injuries playing underwater hockey?
I broke my little finger before I was trialling for Under-19s and got selected wearing a hand cast. This was revolutionary for underwater hockey and I had to have my hand taped to my stick. Otherwise just a few black eyes.

What do you hope to see in the future for underwater hockey? Do you think Olympic recognition could be achievable?
I’d like to see a few more people give it a go because people seem to forget it still exists down here after high school. As far as the Olympics go there are a lot of loopholes you have to jump through first. Currently they are trying to get to the Commonwealth Games first and then move on from there.

Is it possible for spectators to enjoy underwater hockey?
At social club nights it’s mainly “fins up and bums in the air.” Sometimes at national tournaments we have cameras. At World Champs we have divers in the pool who stream it live on the Internet so my parents back home could watch. The majority of the time it’s a hard spectator sport. Most people just say, “what are they doing?”