Water polo glamour couple Nicola Zagame and Johnno Cotterill chasing double gold at Rio Olympics

WATER polo glamour couple Nicola Zagame and Johnno Cotterill kickstarted their relationship at the London Olympics. Now they’re hoping for a golden anniversary in Rio.

Water polo couple Johnno Cotterill and Nicola Zagane.

WATER polo glamour couple Nicola Zagame and Johnno Cotterill kickstarted their relationship at the London Olympics.

Now they’re hoping for a golden anniversary in Rio.

Stingers ace Zagame was confirmed in the women’s Olympics squad on Tuesday, and strong recent form has Cotterill closing in on making the cut for the Aussie Sharks side due to be announced in two weeks’ time.

Water polo couple Johnno Cotterill and Nicola Zagane.

Australia feels as though it has a serious point to prove in the polo pool in Brazil.

Zagame’s Stingers aren’t satisfied with the bronze finishes they’ve had in London and Beijing, while the men are determined to end an Olympics medal drought dating back more than half a century.

Four years is a long time to be treading water in one of the most physically taxing sports there is.

But Zagame and Cotterill haven’t done it alone.

“It’s such a massive commitment training as a fulltime athlete,” Zagame told The Daily Telegraph.

“You’re constantly away or training at night time or having to say no to significant events and all that.

“So it’s good — we understand each other. I imagine it would be hard in a relationship where the other person doesn’t really understand.

“We both understand that training has been first our whole relationship.

“We were kind of fresh in London, we’d only been going out for a few months. We didn’t really get to spend much time together but just being able to see him in the food hall and have a smile it was just cool.”

Zagame insists there are other topics covered at the dinner table other than water polo, although she admits their sport does become all-consuming at times.

“His family is a massive polo family and so is mine really so there is a lot of water polo chat,” she says.

Holly Lincoln-Smith (left) and Nicola Zagame in action during the Australian women’s water polo team training camp at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.

“But I don’t think there’s as much as people think!

“It’s good to have someone there to debrief after a game and give you a good perspective. Someone who actually knows what they’re talking about.”

Zagame is proud of the bronze she won in London, but far from satisfied.

As far as the Stingers are concerned, the gold belongs to Australia.

Motivation is coming in waves for Zagame, Holly Lincoln-Smith and co, with each player in the squad inspired at receiving an individual call of support from a member of the 2000 women’s champions.

“I’m so proud of my bronze medal from London but even in London we were going there to win the gold and that’s why I’ve been training the last four years — to get another shot at it,” she said.

“I’m so proud of it but at the same time everyone goes to the Olympics so they can get the gold. And we know we can do it. That’s what inspires me every day.

“It was so special for us (to receive the call from the 2000 team). To know the stars of the past are following us and all have our back and believe in us.”