Colorado Water Polo
14th Annual · Colorado Springs, Colorado
The Grier
Grier Laughlin Invitational
Every year since 2011, Colorado's water polo community has filled the pool in Grier's name.
Dates
February 19–21, 2026
Location
Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO
Divisions
5 divisions, boys & girls
Grier Laughlin · Founder, Colorado Water Polo
Why we play this weekend
The man the tournament is named for
Grier Laughlin was a state-record swimmer and multiple-time All-American at Cherry Creek High School before heading to Dartmouth, where he captained the swim team and found water polo through the college club.
He brought the game home. In 2003 he pulled together eight boys from Aurora-area high schools, called them the Pirates, and started Colorado Water Polo out of nothing but borrowed pool time and stubborn enthusiasm.
Grier coached the way the best coaches do, with hard work and humor in equal measure, and with a genuine interest in his players' lives well outside the pool. He was killed in a car accident in February of 2011.
Every year since, the club he built has filled a pool in his name. The Grier is our biggest weekend of the year, and it is not really about the bracket.
February 19–21, 2026
Divisions & format
We run five brackets across the weekend, and every team that enters is guaranteed at least four games.
12U Coed
This division plays Saturday only, in a four-team round robin.
14U Boys
Pool play on Saturday leads into a bracket on Sunday.
14U Girls
Pool play on Saturday leads into a bracket on Sunday.
18U Boys
This division runs the full weekend, from pool play into a bracket.
18U Girls
This division runs the full weekend, from pool play into a bracket.
- Entry fee
- $450 per team
- Registration closes
- January 30, 2026
- Format
- Minimum 4 games guaranteed
- Officials
- USA Water Polo certified
Visiting clubs
Enter a team
The Grier is open to USA Water Polo member clubs across the Mountain Zone and beyond. We accept entries until January 30, 2026, or until the brackets fill. The older divisions usually fill first.
Online registration for this year opens soon. Until then, email us and we'll hold your spot in the bracket.
Spectators & families
Come watch
- Admission is free, and you should bring a chair because deck seating goes fast on Saturday.
- Concessions run all weekend, and the proceeds fund club scholarships.
- Live brackets and results post to @cowaterpolo throughout the weekend.
- The pool deck stays warm, so dress in layers you can shed.
From the deck
Grier weekends past
