WATER POLO: Australia's women's water polo team are pushing each other to aim higher than the Olympic gold medal.

"It's not really just going out and winning that gold medal," captain Bronwen Knox told AAP.

"It's being the best players in the world, being the best team in the world and really excelling."

Knox is going to her third Olympics after winning two bronze medals and says the Stingers "definitely" have the potential to be the best.

"It's probably one of the better teams I've seen us put together," she said.

"We've got a lot of different skills coming together from a number of different girls."

The Stingers finished fourth at the World Championships in Kazan and that disappointing result has driven them to get truthful with each other.

"People have agreed to be completely honest and up-front with one another and really tackle things head-on because we're going to be living in each other's pockets for the next 10 months," Knox said.

"You're closer than family. Your family forgive you all the time for arguing with them, you may as well get it off your chest."

Injuries and illness robbed the Stingers of game time together before Kazan, and Knox said getting used to different combinations was key to the team's success.

Knox has played professionally in Greece and said Australia has been incorporating European styles into its play.

"We used to be a very strong and physical team and now we've got a bit more finesse in our game," she said.

The Stingers just finished a training camp in Sydney and will head to Rio in November for an Olympic test event.

AAP