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Zoe ARANCINI
Sport Water Polo
NOC Australia   
GenderWomen
Born14 Jul 1991 in Perth, AUS
Height1.70 m
 Human Interest 
Sport Specific Information
Club / Team
Fremantle Marlins: Perth, WA, AUS
Further Personal Information
Higher education
Health Science - Curtin University: Perth, WA, AUS
General Interest
Famous relatives
Her parents and her aunt have all represented Australia in water polo. Her mother Wendy Meloncelli and aunt Megan Meloncelli both won gold at the 1986 World Championships in Madrid, Spain. Her mother was also inducted into the Australian Water Polo Hall of Fame in 2009. Her father Peter Arancini played for Australia at the 1981 World Junior Championships in Milan, Italy, and was a regular state and national league player. (fina.org, 11 May 2012; waterpoloaustralia.com.au, 07 Jan 2010; au.news.yahoo.com, 27 Dec 2010)
Sport Specific Information
Why this sport?
She followed her parents into the sport. "It was much more enjoyable than swimming."
General Interest
Hero / Idol
Swiss tennis player Rodger Federer. (waterpoloaustralia.com.au, 01 Jul 2013)
Awards and honours
She was named the 2019 Sportswoman of the Year at Curtin University in Perth, WA, Australia. (curtin.edu.au, 07 Nov 2019)

She received the Debbie Watson Medal as Most Valuable Player [MVP] of the 2019 Australian Water Polo League season. (wais.org.au, 06 May 2019)

She was named in the All-Star team at the 2015 World Championships in Kazan, Russian Federation. (au.news.yahoo.com, 07 Dec 2015)

She was selected for the 2015 National League All-Star match in Australia. (waterpoloaustralia.com.au, 25 Mar 2015)

She was named the 2009 Australian Junior Women's Player of the Year. (waterpoloaustralia.com.au, 20 Dec 2011)
Sport Specific Information
Name of coach
Paul Oberman [national]
Preferred position / style / stance / technique
Driver
Handedness
Right
When and where did you begin this sport?
She began playing Flippa Ball at age eight and then, at age 12, she progressed to water polo at the Melville Water Polo Club in Perth, WA, Australia.
International Debut
Year
2009
Competing for
Australia
Opponent
China
Location
Auckland, NZL
Further Personal Information
Languages
English
General Interest
Sporting philosophy / motto
"Fortunately, I'm very flexible as to where I can play in the field. I don't ever feel out of position and believe I adapt and respond very quickly to the game and basically play what's in front of me. I process quickly and possess the necessary skill level to contribute to positively change a game." (fina.org, 11 Feb 2022)
Most influential person in career
Her parents. (amazonaws.com, 28 Jul 2016)
Nicknames
Zo, Cini (melvillewaterpolo.com.au, 12 Feb 2017; rio2016.olympics.com.au, 19 Aug 2016)
Further Personal Information
Residence
Perth, WA, AUS
General Interest
Memorable sporting achievement
Competing at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (thewest.com.au, 08 May 2019)
Further Personal Information
Occupation
Athlete
General Interest
Ambitions
To compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (fina.org, 11 Feb 2022)
Hobbies
Spending time with family and friends. (fina.org, 11 Feb 2022)

 Competition Highlights
Olympic Games
Rank Year Venue Event Result
5 2021 Tokyo, JPN Team  
6 2016 Rio de Janeiro, BRA Team  
World Championship
Rank Year Venue Event Result
6 2024 Doha, QAT Team  
4 2023 Fukuoka, JPN Team  
6 2022 Budapest, HUN Team  
3 2019 Gwangju, KOR Team  
8 2017 Budapest, HUN Team  
4 2015 Kazan, RUS Team  
2 2013 Barcelona, ESP Team  
World Cup
Rank Year Venue Event Result
3 2018 Surgut, RUS Team  
2 2014 Khanty-Mansiysk, RUS Team  
2 2010 Christchurch, NZL Team