Goalkeeper Denis Sefik of Serbia attempts and fails to make the save from the shot of Guillermo Molina (#5) of Spain in the Men's Bronze medal Water Polo match between Serbia and Spain during the 2007 FINA World Championships. (Kristian Dowling/Getty Images)

Country

Serbia

Credentials

Serbia has been the champion of World Water Polo Super League for the past four years. They also won the world championships in 2005 and came fourth in the same event in 2007. In the Olympics, as Yugoslavia, the team won gold in 1968, 1984 and 1988, and silver in 1952, 1956, 1964 and 1980. They won Olympic bronze in 2000. As Serbia-Montenegro, the team placed silver at the Athens 2004 Games. "The team also as the world's leading scorer, Aleksandar Sapic, and possibly the best two-way player, Vladimir Vujasinovic," said CBC analyst George Gross, Jr.

Country

Hungary

Credentials

Hungary has podium finishes from 1932 until 1980. They're double defending Olympic champions (2000 and 2004), and have won a total of eight Olympic golds, three silvers, and three bronze. "This is the most storied team ever," said Gross, Jr. At the world championships, Hungary won silver in the last two competitions (2005, 2007), and Gross, Jr. notes that the team has several players going to Beijing for their third Olympics. One player to watch for, he says, will be Norbert Madaras.

Country	Croatia
Credentials	Croatia won an Olympic silver in 1996, and as Yugoslavia won gold in 1968, 1984 and 1988. As Yugoslavia, won silver in 1952, 1956, 1964 and 1980. In addition, the team won gold at the 2007 world championships. "They have perhaps the greatest coach of all time, Ratko Rudic," said Gross, Jr.

Country	Montenegro
Credentials	Gross, Jr., notes that this country has only been competing as an independent nation since 2006. It won the European championships in 2008 and gold at the Europe Zone qualifier in 2007. "They've also got several seasoned players from the former Serbia-Montenegro team," Gross, Jr., said.

Country	Spain
Credentials	Spain won Olympic gold in 1996, silver in 1992 and came 4th in 2000 and 2004. In the world championships, they came 3rd in 2007. Gross, Jr., said the team plays a fast, mobile game on both offence and defence. "One player to watch for is Ivan Perez, who's a great left-handed centre forward," he said. "Another is Guillermo Molina, who's just a really great all-round player."

Country	Germany
Credentials	Germany came 5th at the 2004 Olympics and has Alexander Tchigir, the best goalie in the world, said Gross, Jr. He also said Germany has an excellent draw by being in Group B, but their match against Italy will be an important one to win. "They also have two excellent power shooters in Heiko Nossek and Marc Politze," said Gross, Jr.

On a roll

Montenegro has had some big wins in Europe, said Gross, Jr., referring to the Europe Zone qualifier and 2008 world championship win. "They have a great desire to prove their worth after being part of, initially, Yugoslavia and then Serbia-Montenegro national teams," he said.

On a slide

Greece placed 4th at the last Olympics, which was a surprise to competitors who expected the country to win a medal. It placed 3rd at the 2005 world championships in Montreal. Gross, Jr., said that while the team has talented players, stars like Georgios Afroudakis are aging and could be past their prime.

Under the radar

Australia is in a tough group for the Olympics but has shown the potential to surprise. They've beaten world champion Montenegro in the past year and played a tough match against Croatia. They're one of the best swimming teams in the world, Gross Jr. said, noting that the team's size can match big-sized European players.

X-factor

Serbia's key starting player, Danilo Ikodinovic, suffered a near-fatal motorcycle accident on June 27, 2008, after Serbia won the world water polo league. "He'll never be able to use his right hand again. His sports career is finished," Gross Jr. said, adding that Ikodinovic's absence from the team will surely have an impact.

Referee assignments might also have a major affect on the Olympic competition. "The referees hold major power in water polo due to the reduced visibility in the water and the amount of harsh underwater physical play," Gross, Jr. said. "Some referees allow much more physical play than others, and this will favour the larger Eastern European teams."

The Canadians

This is Canada's first appearance in the Olympics since 1984, when they came 10th. Their best finish ever was 9th place in 1976. "This is the first time Canada has qualified through the front door," Gross, Jr. said. "Before, each time they got into the Games was as a fill-in for dropout teams [1972 and 1984] and as host [1976]."

The team is led by emerging superstar lefthander Kevin Graham, who had a top 10 finish in scoring at the 2007 world championships, and coached by Dragan Jovanovic of the former Yugoslavia. "Jovanovic understands European style of play and how to coach against it," Gross Jr. explained. "Realistically, a top 10 finish at the Olympics would be a good result."

The lowdown

The prediction of this Olympic Games is very difficult, said Gross, Jr., because "the top five teams could finish in any order." He says that one-goal games, overtime matches and shootouts have been the norm between these teams over the past year, indicating how closely played they can be.

Gross Jr. expects group A's Hungary and group B's Serbia to reach the semi-finals by winning their pools. One quarterfinal is likely to feature Croatia against Spain. The other quarterfinal will likely see Montenegro against either Germany or Italy.

"The final four is looking like Hungary versus Croatia and Serbia versus Montenegro in the semifinals. Hungary and Serbia likely will advance to the gold medal match," said Gross, Jr. "Croatia and Montenegro will likely face off for the bronze," adding that Spain could finish 5th by beating either Germany or Italy.