Ah, Captain!
Maggie Stephens: Aiming to make history with fourth gold medal
Three-time Olympic champion Maggie Stephens is widely regarded as one of the greatest water polo players in history. Along with her sister Jessica, Maggie won her first Olympic gold medal in London 2012, repeating the feat in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. In 2021, Stephens set the record for most points scored by an individual player in women’s water polo. Her 56 goals at the Olympics cemented her status as the sport’s all-time leading female scorer.
Beginning her collegiate career as an Olympic champion, Stephens helped Stanford win three national championship titles in 2014, 2015 and 2017. Her stellar performances earned her multiple NCAA Tournament MVP honors and she also won the MSPF Player of the Year and ACPWC Player of the Year awards.
Stephens, captain of the USA, is a three-time Olympic champion and a five-time world champion, winning in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2024. If the U.S. team wins gold in Paris, Stephens would become the first water polo player to win four consecutive Olympic gold medals. A fourth medal of any color would tie the women’s water polo Olympic medal record.
Stephens is a leader in and out of the pool and will once again lead the team in Paris, but her influence extends beyond the water as she recently helped secure a sponsorship for the team from rap legend Flavor Flav.
Ben Hallock: Team USA Giant
At 6’6 and weighing 245 pounds, Ben Hallock is a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the pool. Hallock first emerged in high school, where he was a California State Champion and soon began training with the national team. Like Stephens, he played at Stanford University, leading the school to NCAA Men’s Water Polo Championships and winning back-to-back Catino Awards as the nation’s top collegiate player in 2018 and 2019. Hallock made his U.S. Men’s National Team debut in Rio and joined the team in Tokyo four years later.
Now playing for Italy’s Prorecco, one of the top teams in Europe, Hallock has competed against some of the best players in the world and helped the elite team win back-to-back Champions League titles. The 26-year-old Hallock is poised to be a key player for Team USA at Paris 2024, and he’s joined by his college roommate and fellow national team member, Dylan Woodhead.
