Azevedo’s Farewell: Meaningful, Memorable Exhibition Set for Sunday

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Photo Courtesy: Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

Sunday, June 11 at 3:30 pm will mark a historic, bittersweet moment for USA Water Polo – Azevedo’s Farewell.

At this time, Stanford’s Avery Aquatic Center will host an exhibition game between the United States and Croatia, which will feature five-time Olympian Tony Azevedo and his final match of water polo.

The match was created specifically for Azevedo to honor his time as a Cardinal and as a member of the U.S. National Team. Before announcing his retirement in May, he earned four-straight Cutino Awards and led Stanford to two NCAA titles.

Arguably the greatest men’s water polo player in USA Water Polo history, Azevedo is the all-time leading scorer in FINA World Championship history. He has earned five Pan-American Games gold medals, two FINA World League Super Final silver medals and was named the Pac-12 Conference Men’s Water Polo Player of the Century in 2015.

After his time at Stanford, Azevedo also embarked on a professional water polo career that saw him play with some of the top clubs in the world including: CAN Bissolati (Italy), J.K. Primorac (Montenegro), VK Jug Dubrovnik (Croatia), Fluminense (Brazil) and most recently Sesi (Brazil). Domestically he’s been an anchor for the New York Athletic Club, helping the team to multiple National Championships.

“It’s crazy to think that after playing water polo for 27 years I am finally finished. I have often been asked how long I could go and my answer was the same: ‘When the time comes I will know.’ I still love this sport and will never leave the water polo community. But I’m ready to shift my focus from playing to working outside the pool to grow and innovate the sport in general. I am starting programs that I hope will take water polo to the next level,” Azevedo said.

Azevedo’s Farewell: USA vs. Croatia Exhibition

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Photo Courtesy: Adam Pretty

The match between the USA and Croatia will lead into a four-game series at Stanford which serves as a warm-up for the FINA World League Super Final taking place June 20-25 in Moscow, Russia. USA and Croatia will meet again to open competition at the FINA World Championship this July 17 in Budapest, Hungary.

According to Stanford Coach John Vargas, a game like this rare. The exhibition was specifically designed and created to honor Tony Azevedo.

“We’ve never done this before,” said Vargas. “But if you’re going to do it, this is the guy you do it for. We want to sell this place out. When Tony was here, we would get full crowds because he was so exciting to watch play. It’s really fitting that it’s here, and just one more sellout for Tony.”

Fans, players and many people who have have been affected by Azevedo throughout his 27-year water polo career will come together to honor him on Sunday. Azevedo said he is incredibly grateful for this experience and all the meaning and effort put into the event:

“I couldn’t be more excited to play my last game at Stanford, because during my four years at the University I was molded into the person/player I am today. I met my wife at Stanford, won four Cutino awards as a student, and made best friends for life on campus. To officially retire at Stanford is a dream scenario: with my Team USA boys, in front of USA fans, and playing against Croatia (I lived in Croatia for three years and my son was born there).”

Tickets for all games are on sale now. To purchase tickets for the Tony Azevedo Retirement Game at Stanford University click here. To purchase tickets for any of the three Southern California games, please click here.

The Mercury News and USA Water Polo contributed to this report. 

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