Water polo players briefly leave the pool after shots fired near Under-20 World Cup game in Brazil

By Canadian Press on August 11, 2025.

SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian police said Monday there were no injuries after shots were fired near an Under-20 World Cup women’s water polo game between China and Canada in the city of Salvador.

China won 12-8 on Sunday — the opening day of the tournament — but footage showed the game being briefly interrupted as players got out of the pool, laid down and took cover by a small barrier after hearing gunshots outside the water polo venue in the Pituba neighborhood. China led Canada 3-2 at the time.

“The match stopped for about a minute. Our team saw that the police was taking care of it,” Marco Antônio Lemos, head of the Bahia state water sports federation, said in a statement.

Police said the cause of the shots was a confrontation with an alleged local thief who was outside the venue and tried to escape. No more details were given.

Spectators were told about the incident after the game had resumed.

Brazil is hosting the 16-team tournament for the first time.

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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

The Associated Press