Water Polo, not golf, is sport of choice for Marin athletes studying in Scotland

There’s been a bit of a pipeline of teens from Marin County to the birthplace of the sport of golf in St. Andrews, Scotland. These teens aren’t necessarily playing on the links, however. They are diving into the waters as they continue their water polo careers, as well as their education at university.

Redwood High grad Claire Henry just finished her second year with the St. Andrews University women’s water polo team, which defeated Cardiff in Wales to advance to the semifinals of the British Universities and College Sports playoffs against Durham. She’s not the only Marin-based player to pass through the halls of St. Andrews, with Mill Valley’s Mikaere Todd, San Rafael’s Amelia Downs and Corte Madera’s Libby Hughes also on the roster for the past season as the Saints tried to defend their BUCS title.

Being separated from home by such a distance can be trying at times, and the bus ride to and from matches can be exhausting. St. Andrews University doesn’t have its own pool for the team, and the nearest available pool for practice and competition is about four hours away.

“I really miss the sun. I get three shades lighter when I’m here,” Henry joked.

Henry, who shares an apartment with a student from Santa Cruz, continued, “There’s a big international group over here. Whether it’s the mass quantities of Americans or people from other countries, people stick around what they’re familiar with. I have a lot of American friends here, but I also have Scottish friends. People stick to what they are comfortable with.”

There are real positives to studying abroad. Henry is hoping to get a job with the popular TV series “The Crown”, which is rumored to be planning shooting near St. Andrews.

“Things are really good here,” said Henry, as she munched on real Scottish fish and chips, one of the culinary benefits to living in St. Andrews. And, yes, she has even tasted haggis, although it takes getting used to.

The food scene is a little different from Larkspur, just as Scotland’s notoriously foreboding grey and cool weather is different from the typically mild and sunny conditions in Marin County.

Henry’s travels retrace the journey of John Muir when he made his way to Marin County from his home Dunbar, Scotland, just across the bay from St. Andrews.

“The adjustment has not been that bad because this is a very small town,” Henry said. “I can walk from one end to the other in 30 minutes. There’s always something to do here in the student environment, social environment, whatever.”

And, who knows? Henry might even try learning golf.

It didn’t take much of a push to get Henry on a plane for Scotland.

“For me, I was part of the wave of students hit with the shutdown during the COVID pandemic, but I had to apply to college somewhere,” Henry said. “I applied to lots of universities in the United States and abroad. My sister studies in Leeds, England, now and whenever we’re visiting her I’d look at universities. I didn’t think much of it at first, but when I was a sophomore in high school, I saw one of my teammates on the website for St. Andrews. It was one of the universities my teammates had talked about.”

St. Andrews water polo coach Ian McCallum, who announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2022-23 season, offered Henry and the other Marin players a chance to compete, while the university offered them a unique education. Henry, a walk-on with the water polo team, is working a joint degree in film studies and environmental development.

“I’m a creative and artsy person and one of my hobbies is film,” Henry said. “I always saw film as a fun hobby, but it would be a dream job for me. At same time, I’m very much an environmentalist. … The double major gives me more options in a variety of career paths.”

Henry is already using her creative skills to launch a jewelry career.

“The sustainable fashion society wanted to put my pieces into their silent auction gala. I was happy to see people wearing my jewelry,” said Henry, who launched www.JuneauClaire.com in 2020 and has grown the business during her two-year stint abroad. She has donated proceeds from her sales to quake victims in Turkey and Syria.

“At first I just used beads and random designs,” Henry recalled. “My mom gave me her old orthodontic pliers and we made designs together. I made presents for friends, then people gave me beads to work with. There’s always a new design that pops into head. I’m trying to see alternatives, sustainable ways of pursuing business.”