Ananova:

Switzerland has started an underwater rugby competition with dozens of teams signed up for the new sport.

The Swiss Underwater Sports Union says it's been flooded with requests from people wanting to learn the game.

It is now organising introduction days for newcomers. Underwater rugby is a six-a-side game for both men and women who are equipped with flippers, a snorkel and goggles.

The ball is filled with salt water and weighs 13lbs, and the aim of each team is to place it in the basket of the opposing team on the ground of the swimming pool. Players have to come to the surface to breathe.

Jan Maisenbacher of the Swiss Underwater Sports Union says: "Underwater rugby is the only three-dimensional sport."

The game was first developed in Germany to help train divers and has become the new hit sport on the continent this year.