ponylines POLO NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WORLD
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
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{ CarmignaC gESTiOn’S SECrET rOlling STOnES gig On 29 October 2012, Paris-based investment company Carmignac Gestion took to the stage at the intimate Theatre Mogador in Paris to welcome the world’s greatest rock’n’roll band, the Rolling Stones. The (badly-kept) secret gig, performed in front of around 600 of Carmignac’s clients, journalists and exclusive guests, lasted for 90 minutes, during which Mick Jagger, above left, and his band played some of their best-known hits, including ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’, ‘Honky Tonk Women’, and ‘Start Me Up’. The musician joked to the audience that he had not met polo patron and winner of the 2011 Queen’s Cup, Édouard Carmignac, above right, ‘but the Queen has said some very nice things about him to me’. Earlier in the year, Carmignac Gestion had invited another famous rocker, Rod Stewart, to perform at a similarly high-octane private concert for clients.
{ HPa gauCHO inTErnaTiOnal POlO aT THE O 2 The HPA Gaucho International Polo returns to London in 2013 and, once again, the O2 Arena will no doubt prove to be a fantastic venue. The event kicks off at 5.30pm with a festival of music and complimentary wine tastings – representatives of 40 of Argentina’s top wineries will fly over especially for the occasion, presenting over 200 wines. The evening will climax with the headline match, IG/England vs Cheval des Andes/Argentina, at 8pm, when England will be looking to repeat their 2012 victory over Argentina. After the match, guests can enjoy music – both live and provided by DJs – as well as a VIP after-party at neighbouring IndigO2. Veuve Clicquot will be creating a champagne garden for the evening and Tanqueray gin will host ringside entertainment. What’s more, team sponsor IG will be bringing IGnatius, its mechanical polo-pony horse to IndigO2, offering the opportunity for curious visitors to have a go at playing polo. One of the UK’s biggest supporters of polo, IG is a world-leading provider of Contracts for Difference (CFDs), financial spread-betting and forex.
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Throughout the British winter, there has been plenty to focus on overseas, but perhaps the highlight was the final of the Argentine Open, when Ellerstina defeated La Dolfina, who were generally considered to be the favourites. So many games are won on penalties, but, on this occasion, it was perhaps one that was lost due to missed penalties. England’s own great achievement was its victory over America in extra time in California – the first time in its 90-year history that it has taken the Townsend Trophy. An away match always presents an extra challenge and it was all the more challenging because Sebastian Dawnay had to replace Chris Hyde, who was unable to obtain the necessary visa, and Oli Hipwood was struck down with a bout of flu. Just before Christmas, a party of eight young players went to Buster MacKenzie in South Africa for training and another slightly older group is about to head off there for February half-term. At the same time, two younger groups are going to Argentina – one to Coronel Suarez and one to Pilar. On the international front, a three-man England team will be taking part once again in the FIP Snow Polo World Cup and we hope they do well, having been drawn into probably the toughest league, with USA and New Zealand. In addition, England teams – both captained by James Beim – will be playing Australian teams at Melbourne in February and Windsor near Sydney in April, an event to which a 21-and-under team has also been invited. Also during April, it is planned that England will field a 22-goal team to play in the Copa de las Naciones in Buenos Aires. At home, the decision to run four HPA Club Tournaments at different levels (two before Christmas and two after) appears to have worked well and provided competitive arena polo here over the winter months. Looking forward to the 2013 season, there are no significant changes in the programme or the rules, but the highlight of the season will be the Audi International at Guards Polo Club on 28 July, when England will defend the Westchester Cup against the USA.
