PONYLINES
CHUKKAS The San Jorge Open (30 goals) was played at Palermo in September. 9-goaler “Barto” Castagnola was top scorer with 13 goals (8 in the final), followed by Malaysian Joevy Beh with 11 goals (5 in the final) and 65-year-old James Beh with 10 goals. It should be noted that James played one game fewer than Barto and Joey!
3-goal player, Moritz Gädeke is the organiser and host of the 12-goal German Championship. The tournament is played in Berlin at Maifeld, where the 1936 Olympics was played. 2022 will be the 50th anniversary of the German Polo Federation.
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The Santa Barbara Polo Club has decided to raise the level of polo in the summer (July and August) for the 2022 season from 16 to 18 goals. They are expecting 8 teams, up from 6 in 2021. The featured tournaments are the Robert Skene, the USPA Silver Cup and the Pacific Coast Open.
The East Coast Open was played at the Greenwich Polo Club in September. Via the club’s social media programmes, between 4,200 and 4,600 spectators attended on each Sunday. This is a bigger crowd than many clubs achieve on any final!
The Townsend Cup (arena) was first played for in 1923 between the USA and England. The 9th edition was played on 9 October in Aiken, South Carolina. (The series stands at USA 7 – England 1.)
The XIII European Championships (6-8 goals) organised by FIP was played in Sotogrande. Six teams participated. Italy beat Austria in the final and Spain beat the Netherlands for third place.
HPM: When and how did you start to play polo? LH: I started playing from a very young age with my family, as my dad played polo his whole life too. HPM: What makes polo special for you? LH: I love the connection you form with your horses, as they aren’t like machines – they have their own minds and feelings. I think it’s a very special thing to play a sport relying on an animal, as it shows how much trust you put in them. HPM: Who do you respect most in polo? LH: Obviously, I have always respected and looked up to my father from a very young age, as he has taught me most things I know. He has been to every one of my games, so has always been there to help me and tell me important things. I also massively
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respect my mum, as she does a huge amount behind the scenes, and is also always there for me. HPM: What level of polo do you play? LH: This year was my first season playing high goal, and I also played some medium and a bit of low goal. HPM: What is your most memorable polo game? LH: Definitely the Gold Cup final. This was, by far, the biggest moment of my career to date and I will never forget it! It was incredible playing with Nico Pieres and James Harper, and I’ve always loved playing with my brother. HPM: What are your plans for the winter? LH: I went back to school in September and will hopefully go out to Argentina during late October for the season, then back to England to study.
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