Finishing fourth in the world championships has stoked the fire for Australia's women's water polo team to return to the podium at this year's Paris Olympics, goalkeeper Gabi Palm says.
Australia clinched gold at the Sydney Olympics back in 2000, but their most recent medal, a bronze, came more than a decade ago at the London Games of 2012.
The Stingers were beaten 12-10 in the semi-finals at the world championships in Fukuoka in July, then lost the bronze medal play-off to Italy by the same margin.
While disappointed to leave Japan empty-handed, Palm told AAP the performance had given the players belief.
"To be back into that sphere of medal contention and being able to challenge the other teams was really exciting," she said.
"But to fall at the last hurdle is also really disappointing, so it's a mixed reaction to have made it to the top four but just missing out on the bronze medal.
"It's a nice feather in our cap leading into 2024, but it also keeps that fire in our belly, knowing that we still have that room to improve and do better."
Dual Olympian Rebecca Rippon last month took over as coach from Paul Oberman, who stepped down for personal reasons.
Palm said it was special to have a former player now overseeing the side.
Rippon played 266 games for the Stingers, collecting a bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and was Oberman's assistant.
"What's so special about having an ex-Stinger as head coach is that she knows first-hand how important that history and legacy is to all of us, having lived it herself," 25-year-old Palm said.
"For her to be able to take the reins, I'm really excited to be able to see where she takes us as a team.
"Our first taste of Bec (as head coach) will be when we go into camp in January, so I'm really excited to see what she'll bring and to work alongside her."
After a short Christmas break, team members are already back in training to prepare for this year's world championships in Doha, Qatar, in February.
Palm said playing a major tournament under their new coach would be an ideal way to gauge where they were at ahead of the start of the Paris Games in late July.
"It's always going to be different when a coach steps from an assistant role to a head coach role," said the Queenslander, who was part of the Australia team that bowed out in the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Olympics.
"I'm really excited to see what she will be like as a head coach, and it's really great for us as a team, so we know what we need to work on in the next few months in the lead-up to Paris."
