“I thought I invented bike polo in elementary school but it turns out the hipsters came up with it first,” Henry Gray ‘20 said.

Sometime in the next few months, expect the sport of bike polo to make its way onto Denison’s campus.

What is bike polo you ask? Well, I didn’t know either, so I talked to Henry and did some research. Here is what I found.

While Henry thought he invented bike polo… he was actually a little late. And by a little, I mean over a century. The first recorded game of bike polo was played in 1891 in England. It even made a brief appearance in the Olympics in 1908. England beat Germany 3-1 to take home the only bike polo gold medal.

Since that point, the game has continued to grow. There is even a “North American Hardcourt North American Bike Polo Association.”

The game has also popped up on college campuses. Bleacher Report points to colleges like Pitzer College, Indiana University, and the University of Delaware as having some of the top teams.

Flash forward to today and the game has changed a lot. It is most often played on hardcourts in urban settings. This includes Henry’s hometown of Cleveland.

“I play it with my friends in Cleveland when I am home. We had to build our own mallets, find a place to play, and customize our bikes to be better suited for it.”

Despite the fact that the game has been around for hundreds of years, most Americans have no idea what the sport is.

“You get a lot of strange looks when people see you playing, it’s not something a lot of people have seen before,” Henry said.

To Henry and his friends, the strange looks don’t mean too much. It’s about getting out there and enjoying yourself.

“Bike polo is fun because it’s all unofficial and you have to do a lot on your own to play, but it’s really rewarding and fun when you’re able to get a game going.”

Who should look out for bike polo games? Well Henry says the skills play into the hockey team’s hands

“It plays a lot like hockey, so I’m sure some skills transfer over,” Henry said.

So, there you have it. The fast rising sport of Bike Polo will be coming to Denison’s campus once the weather gets nice. If you would like to join the bike polo club and be notified about upcoming matches, contact Henry Gray.