Summer 2008

hurlingham polo association magazine

SUMMER 2008

polo association magazine

Q2 SUMMER 2008

ON TOP OF THE WORLD [Chile’s Mexican triumph] MIND YOUR HEAD [helmet safety tests] PICTURE PERFECT [polo’s ‘nomads’ in the frame] SPORT FOR EXPORT [Britain’s global legacy] Hurlingham Cover.indd 1

6/6/08 18:07:37

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hurlingham [ contents]

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SUMMER 2008

polo association magazine

Ponylines

News from around the polo world, plus interviews and the Chief Executive’s column

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Talk

Lyndon Lea, polo on a budget, sports therapy, and the La Quinta Beaufort Club

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ON TOP OF THE WORLD [Chile’s Mexican triumph] MIND YOUR HEAD [helmet safety tests] PICTURE PERFECT [polo’s ‘nomads’ in the frame] SPORT FOR EXPORT [Britain’s global legacy] Hurlingham Cover.indd

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On the cover: Pageantry at the FIP World Cup, Campo Marte, Mexico City (See page 44).

Photographer Aline Coquelle took the picture during her worldwide polo adventure

Interview

FIP president Patrick Guerrand-Hermès on his life in business and polo 5/6/08

09:51:24

26 History How British pioneers exported sport around the world

30

Safety

New scientific trials have put polo helmets to the test

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Legend

Player, breeder, innovator: Gonzalo Pieres is a giant of the modern era

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Travel

Polo has taken photographer Aline Coquelle to the furthest corners of the world

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Business

COVER IMAGE ALINE COQUELLE THIS PAGE DAVID LOMINSKA

USPA Properties is contributing millions of dollars to American polo

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Action

Reports and pictures from around the world, including the FIP World Cup, Florida high and medium goal, US and UK college polo, Eldorado Polo Club, Cortina, Argentine Polo Tour, Hurtwood Park

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Archive

Winston Churchill enjoyed a lifelong love affair with polo

6/6/08 10:21:26

foreword Roderick Vere Nicoll Publisher

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This issue is filled with topics close to my heart. As a child I heard stories about Cortina from my father, who was stationed there during World War II. So it was particularly interesting for me to finally see the majestic Dolminites and watch the polo in the snow.

Again, on a personal note, during the quarter-finals of the 2002 Gold Cup (on the very pitch pictured on page 30) I fell off and was unable to continue playing because of concussion. It was with great interest, therefore, that I read Herbert Spencer’s article on polo helmets – if I had been wearing a better helmet I might not have been hurt.

Have you, like me, ever wondered why polo and so many other British sports are played around the world? Simon Kuper looks at the history, and reaches some interesting conclusions about why the British have been so successful in exporting their games.

From 1986 to 1990 I lived in Mexico City and had the pleasure of playing at Campo Marta. In fact I spent almost every weekend in Tecamac playing polo. Pablo Rincon Gallardo was a great friend, and he introduced me indirectly to my wife Melanie. Thanks to his vision, and with the help of Patricio Mujica and many others, the recent World Cup was a great success, a few problems notwithstanding. The competition was fierce and it was good to see a new name – Chile - win the championship. This can surely only be good news for the development of polo internationally.

This spring I went to Florida and saw the first round of the US Open, which is always exciting because every team feels it has a chance. In the end it was the familiar teams in the semi-finals, but I saw first-hand many of the new clubs that Alex Webb writes about.

Speaking of new teams, the university polo scene in USA and the UK is booming, and we are covering the tournaments from both countries for the first time. In 1991 I played a season in Millbroook and often stayed with the parents of Parker Flannery, who was two years old at the time.

He spent most of his time in the barn with Russo Merlos, who was working for his parents. Parker certainly learned a lot from Russo, and in this issue he tells us about winning the US intercollegiates for the second year in a row.

When reading this issue a couple of themes crop up. First, there is a lot of prize money – for example the £50,000 winner-takes-all played for at Hurtwood. Secondly, Memo Gracida is becoming a master of the 18-goal, having won in Cortina and in the Grand Champions league.

Finally, as ever, I would like to thank all the people involved in the magazine for their efforts in making it come to life. And I look forward to see as many of you as possible at polo during the English season.

Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, no responsibility can be accepted for any errors or omissions. All the information contained in this publication is correct at the time of going to press.

HURLINGHAM (ISSN 1750-0486) is published quarterly by Hurlingham Media, distributed in the USA

by DSW, 75 Aberdeen Road, Emigsville PA 17318-0437. Periodicals postage paid at Emigsville PA. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Hurlingham, c/o PO Box 437, Emigsville PA 17318-0437.

Hurlingham magazine is designed and produced on behalf of Hurlingham Media by Show Media Ltd. Hurlingham magazine is published on behalf of the Hurlingham Polo Association by Hurlingham Media.

The products and services advertised are not necessarily endorsed by or connected with the publisher or the Hurlingham Polo Association. The editorial opinions expressed in this publication are those of individual authors and not necessarily those of the publisher or the Hurlingham Polo Association.

Hurlingham magazine welcome feedback from readers: hurlinghammedia@hpa-polo.co.uk

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contributors Simon Kuper is a Financial Times sports journalist who lives (and plays five-a-side football) in Paris. He is the author of Football Against the Enemy and Ajax, The Dutch, The War: Football in Europe During the Second World War. He writes a lot about the intersections between sports and politics, and sport and society. He discusses the British export of sport on page 26.

Alex Webbe is a former polo columnist for the Palm Beach Daily News, and has been covering the game for more than 35 years in publications such as Polo Magazine and Horse & Hound. Based in Wellington, Florida, Alex continues to report the news for a wide variety of publications. He writes about Gonzalo Pieres on page 32.

David Lominska is a specialist polo photographer. He played polo in college and then worked as a groom. Now resident in Wellington, Florida, David covers the winter polo season. In summer he travels with the US polo circuit to the Rocky Mountain Clubs, Santa Barbara, and then Aiken, South Carolina in the Autumn. His pictures appear regularly in Hurlingham.

Parker Flannery lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, and is currently a sophomore studying Animal Science at Texas A&M University. He began playing polo with his uncle, Owen Rinehart, in Aiken, South Carolina. The 2007-2008 season was his second in arena polo, and he writes about the American scene on page 54.

HURLINGHAM MAGAZINE Publisher Roderick Vere Nicoll Editor Ed Barrett Deputy Editor Herbert Spencer Contributing Editor Sarah Eakin Sub Editor Claire Kielczewska Hurlingham Media 47-49 Chelsea Manor St, London SW3 5RZ +44 (0) 203 239 9347 hurlingham@hpa-polo.co.uk www.hurlinghampolo.com SHOW MEDIA Editorial Managing Director Peter Howarth 1-2 Ravey Street, London EC2A 4QP + 44 (0) 203 222 0101 info@showmedia.net www.showmedia.net

2/7/08

09:22:25

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Hyatt AD.indd 1

6/6/08 15:30:34

ponylines [news] Governors Island, Palm Beach, Auidi Awards and much more

ONE TO WATCH: BEST AMATEUR

ALEX PACHECO

Michigan amateur Scott Devon, 46, is one of the most popular high goal patrons playing the winter season in Florida, and one of the most successful. His allnorth American Catamount team (American 8-goaler Nicholas Roldan and Canadians Brandon Phillips and Todd Offen) won both the 20-goal tournaments, the Joe Barry Memorial and William Ylvisaker, at International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPCPB) this year. Catamount was the only team to win two high goal tournaments at IPCPB. It was the third time Scott had won the Joe Barry. Catamount also captured the 2008 18-goal International Cup at Royal Palm Polo Sports Club in Boca Raton. Scott has also been successful in 26-goal, having won the C.V. Whitney tournament at IPCPB in 2004 and 2007. He has been one of America’s highest-handicapped amateurs, rated at 4 goals in his twenties and in 2004.

He was down to 2 this year, but was raised to 3 after his Florida successes.

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6/6/08 10:00:40

hurlingham [ ponylines]

Chief executive

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VEUVE CLICQUOT POLO CLASSIC There was a time when polo was played regularly on Governors Island, in the shadow of the New York skyline, and was enjoyed by many officers and cavalrymen, not least General George Patton. Today the area is shared by a number of baseball diamonds, but on Saturday 31 May, Veuve Clicquot, Asprey and Ralph Lauren hosted the return of polo after a 67-year gap, in a four-chukka exhibition match.

Black Watch polo were led into battle by Argentine 6-goaler Nacho Figueras. Meanwhile, Asprey entered the fray with 5-goaler Mauricio Devrient, the manager of the Meadowbrook Polo Club in Old Westbury – another link to polo’s fabled past in New York.

Heavy rain thinned the crowd, but a small, hearty group stayed on to cheer Black Watch to a 10-6 victory over Asprey (former sponsor of a polo team in Argentina and still putting a team on the field in England).

The Veuve Clicquot crowd, who also sponsor the British Open, had their champagne bar in top form. Other spectators chose to make their way to the invite-only VIP tent for lunch, tea and – what else? – champagne.

Leslie Koch, President of the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation said: ‘The polo match is an incredible highlight to our Opening Day, and we are thrilled to be hosting this exciting event.’ ALEX WEBBE

GOING FOR GOLD Newcastle University student Edward Batchelor received his gold Duke of Edinburgh Award at Buckingham Palace. Edward (20) chose polo as the ‘skill’ part of the award, having developed a passion for the sport while doing his bronze award as a 14-year-old schoolboy. The other sections of his gold award were a 50-mile trek, a residential project and community service.

Edward captained the polo team at Rugby School and was awarded an HPA overseas work bursary, which he took during his gap year, working as a groom in Argentina and New Zealand.

He has since set up a team at university. Edward is keen to acknowledge the part played by his school, the Duke of Edinburgh, David and Phillip Baker and the Rugby Polo Club, and hopes in turn to teach and encourage children to play polo.

DAN BURNS

08

Thanks to the weather during the off season in many parts of the country, the grass has hardly grown at all, which has not been helpful to polo grounds.

Looking back over the winter, arena polo has not only enjoyed a spurt in this country but also internationally, and England teams have been invited to the USA, France, India and South Africa in the autumn.

The main topic of conversation, not just amongst the polo community but countrywide, has been the economy, and to some extent, ‘non doms’. Polo is not a sport you can get into or out of quickly, but there is no reason to suggest that polo will not feel the effects of the credit crunch in due course, especially if things get worse.

The FIP 14-Goal World Championships in Mexico have just finished and congratulations are due to Chile for a welldeserved win, and to Mexico for hosting the tournament. For England, the loss of George Meyrick and John Martin (one of the reserves) due to injuries was an inauspicious start but we nevertheless sent a strong well-prepared team. Sadly, things just did not go our way but our players gave 100 per cent and in the end our chances hinged on a few seconds of play.

Looking forward to this season, the high goal looks healthy, with about the same number of teams as in 2007. Given the availability of top players, it does seem very difficult to produce more than 20 competitive teams, and it will be interesting to see if either of the Merlos brothers get picked up now that they are no longer required by Lechuza Caracas.

We very much look forward to playing Australia for the Coronation Cup at Guards on Sunday 27 July, when it is hoped that we will avenge our defeat of 2005, and to playing New Zealand for the Williams de Broe Test Match at Beaufort on Saturday 21 June. The opposition for the Cowdray Test match at the end of August has yet to be confirmed. We are delighted, however, that St Regis Hotels have agreed to sponsor the event.

This season will see the introduction of Junior HPA polo, which is designed to offer more four-chukka polo for the young within their own age groups. Split into three sections (under 15, 18 and 21), it looks as though there will be as many of 10 teams in each section, which is very exciting but also a lot of work – plus the extra demand for grounds. It is hoped that clubs and owners of private grounds will support the venture.

2/7/08 09:26:14

RL AD.indd

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6/6/08

09:52:12

hurlingham [ ponylines]

JUAN JOSE DRAGHI Juan Jose Draghi, the well-known San Antonio de Areco silversmith, has died at the age of 64. Draghi will be remembered as a supreme craftsman who worked in the 100-year-old tradition of silver in the Rio de la Plata, but he was also a great innovator. Draghi created buckles, knives, gaucho equipment, mate drinking vessels and polo trophies to previously unseen standards, earning him recognition as a

master craftsman. The beauty of his work is the superior workmanship in his unique pieces, each with its own distinct design.

This exceptional quality made Jose one of the greatest Criollo artesan masters of Argentina. In December we visited his museum and workshop in San Antonio de Areco, where we found innumerable beautiful pieces crafted to the highest standard. His wife and children now continue his work, following closely the designs of the great friend who has left us. EDUARDO FAGLIANO

SADDLE UP WITH...

JULIO ARELLANO Nationality United States Age 35 Handicap 8 in USA and England

PALM BEACH POLO STADIUM RAZED Palm Beach Polo and Country Club has closed, and the stands that overlooked the pristine Number 1 field have been demolished. Throughout its glamorous life it staged top-class polo and extravagant spectacles, and played host to Hollywood stars, Palm Beach socialites and British royalty.

‘There are just so memories that I can’t recall just one,’ said David Andrews, the former vice president of Wellington and the stadium’s polo announcer for 23 years. ‘What was so pleasant about polo at the old stadium was that everyone could enjoy the event. You could dress up or dress down, there was something for everyone.’

Now all that remains of the once regal stadium with its yellow and white canvassed roof is a pile of rubble and possible plans for an equestrian review stand. She was an elegant lady and takes with her many fond memories for everyone who met her. ALEX WEBBE

COMPETITION WINNER Raphael Alland, 14, was the winner of our competition for a pair of hand-made Lucchese polo boots worth $4,000. He entered the competition online, unbeknown to his mother Evelyn, who was surprised and delighted when she answered the phone and heard the news.

‘The moment my son Raphael saw his first polo game he was determined to become a player,’ she says. ‘An admirable accomplishment for a young boy not born into the tradition. His drive and work-rate has since enabled him to turn the impossible to the possible. He will treasure these boots and excel with them in the sport to which he is dedicated.’

Our current competition prize is a Brioni cashmere blazer. To enter, visit www.hurlinghampolo.com

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What are your polo highs and lows?

I’ve won three US Opens and lost three in the finals. The second victory, in 1992, was shortly after I met my wife, so that sticks in the memory as a high. I was also on the US team that won the 1989 FIP World Cup in Berlin.

And last year I played my first practice game with my wife and my oldest son, which was a special moment.

The Westchester Cup was a definite low: the horses had had a long season and I hadn’t been playing high goal. If you play your best and lose, you can accept it; but it is disappointing not to perform well. Having said that, it was a great experience: the crowd was huge and the trophies were presented by the Queen – which made it even worse, of course!

It would be wonderful of the Westchester were to be contested again, and I would love to take part if it happens.

What do you think of the English scene?

I’m very excited to be here. It’s one of the major seasons and to have 20 teams in the 22-goal is phenomenal. The quality of horses and teams is premium. I brought 10 ponies over, all Thoroughbreds from the US. I’m very grateful to Jean-Francois Decaux and Miguel Novillo Astrada for giving me the opportunity to play in this country.

DAVID LOMINSKA; GREGORY RATNER

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How did you start out in polo?

My father played amateur polo in Nicaragua and then in the Wellington, where we moved when I was seven. I started at nine, then at 14 Memo Gracida’s father-in-law George Oliver started giving me lessons. Memo gave me my start in high goal. At 16, I played my first high goal tournament - for La Diablo Blue, with Guy Willenstein, Memo, and Mike Azzaro. I was nervous but it was a lot of fun - a great team and organisation, they helped me out a lot.

6/6/08 10:09:45

hurlingham [ ponylines]

AUDI POLO AWARDS

Max Gottschalk, 35, is a founding partner and shareholder in Gottex, one of Europe’s largest fund of hedge funds. An amateur player, Max is patron of the Berkshire-based Les Lions II team playing in the Queen’s Cup and the British Open Championship this year. His father Joe leads the family’s original Les Lions squad in the same tournaments.

More than 500 polo players from around the world gathered at the annual Audi Polo Awards, the social event that kicks off the English season.

Winners of the Audi Polo Awards for 2008 included James Beim, who was recognised as the Apes Hill Most Outstanding British Professional. James was part of the Wildmoor team that won the 15 Goal Victor Ludorum Trophy, sponsored by Julius Baer (above, from left: James, Rob Archibald, Mark Booth, Ed Hitchman). The Caballus Lifetime Achievement Awards went to Julian and Howard Hipwood. This year saw the introduction of a new on-line voting system, allowing the players themselves (of which Britain has some 3,000) to register their opinions.

Another addition was the Audi Junior Bursary, to help both the England team but also young hopefuls whom the HPA believe will one day join the England squad.

‘When I was 16, my parents had a house in Palm Beach and I saw my first matches at Palm Beach Polo and Country Club, then in its heyday. I fell in love with the sport, and I was given lessons by Warren Shearer, whose father ran the club.

‘I then played intercollegiate polo at University of Virginia and later, while working in New York, I played grass polo at Peter Brant’s club in Greenwich, Connecticut and at the Hamptons on Long Island. I went from minus one to three in four years. I’ve been up and down between three and two, and I am now down to one.

‘I’ve been lucky to have instruction from some of the world’s best players who’ve been with our Les Lions teams, particularly Ernesto Trotz. He’s a real master and a great teacher.

‘My father and I have been the only fatherand-son combo in English high goal. It’s a lot of fun to be able to play together and still be competitive. Over the years, we have both played on the same team, Joe’s Les Lions, and on separate teams with me taking Les Lions II as we are doing this year for the second year running.

‘Patrons are spending more money on their teams nowadays, and it’s become more competitive, more aggressive. We’ve lost much of the old camaraderie between players, from the time when there were asados and other get-togethers where all the teams gathered.’

‘Polo is my passion, but I also play squash and golf and ski, and we holiday on Mustique every year. I like listening to hip hop; it reminds me of New York, when it was all the rage.’

For more information on hurlingham magazine, visit www.hurlinghammedia.com

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MUSICAL CHAIRS FOR THE ARGENTINE OPEN Although the Argentine Open is months away, there has been a great deal of team movement and many last-minute changes. La Dolfina will return with its 40-goal roster intact in an effort to make it four in a row, while last year’s other finalist, Ellerstina, replaced Matias MacDonough with Juan Martin Nero, and will be carrying a 39-goal team handicap to the field with them. Definitely an improved team. La Aguada will return the 37-goal Novillo Astradas to the field. It’s been a few years since La Aguada took the big prize, but talent and experience as a team are important ingredients for success.

Chapaleufu II picked up Juan Ignacio Merlos to play with Eduardo, Pepe and Nachi Heguy.

At 37-goals they’re a bit of a wild card, but will certainly make it an interesting Open season.

Augustine and Sebastian Merlos found a new home with Marcos Heguy and Santiago Chavanne. A talented 38-goal team for sure, but the chemistry on the field will have to be in synch if this yet-to-be-named team is to make it to the finals. The final ‘big six’ team is Nacho Figueras and his Black Watch team. Handicapped at a modest 34-goals, Black Watch boasts the services of Bautista Heguy, Paco de Narvaez and Matias MacDonough. All in all, it looks to be a very interesting season in Argentina this fall. ALEX WEBBE

JUMEIRAH CULU CULU Culu Culu, the world’s first polo lifestyle resort, is changing its name to Jumeirah Culu Culu.

Jumierah is now the operator of the six-star hotel to be constructed on lake Culu Culu in Lobos, Argentina. Jumeirah is most famous for its Burj hotel in Dubai. This will be Jumierah’s first hotel in Latin America and there will also be a limited number of homes for sale on Lake Culu Culu.

CASABLANCA LIGHTWEIGHT SADDLE Casablanca has produced the lightest-ever polo saddle, built with a carbon fibre tree. Most saddles weigh between 6.5kg and 9kg; this weighs 4kg, reducing the burden on the pony, boosting its stamina and helping achieve higher speeds for longer periods. By lowering the player’s centre of gravity it also increases manoeuvrability The saddle is available in a wide range of leathers and colour combinations and comes in two sizes: 18 inches and 19 inches.

TONY RAMIREZ

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HOOKED ON POLO

2/7/08 09:29:14

hurlingham [ ponylines]

CHUKKAS An England arena polo team will play the USA in a revival of the 85-year-old John R Townsend International Challenge this September at Great Meadow Polo Club, The Plains, Virginia. The transatlantic series was only played once, in 1923, when the USA won. The revival, taking place during the meeting of the US Polo Association Board of Governors, is being organised by Great Meadows president Phill Karber, chairman of the USPA marketing and arena committees.

The Johnston family of Chattanooga, Tennessee, were honoured for their many contributions to American polo during a gala at International Polo Club Palm Beach.

Skey Johnston, former USPA chairman, was there with his English-born wife Jill to receive the plaudits.

The late Emir of Katsina, traditional ruler of Nigeria’s Moslem north, will be honoured with a 16-goal UNICEF charity tournament at Kaduna’s Fifth Chukker Resort in August.

The emir, a 5-goal polo player in his heyday and Life President of the Nigerian Polo Association, died in March, aged 80.

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Congratulations are due to two HPA staffers who gave birth less than a month apart this spring. Sophie McPherson’s Hector Peter was born on 14 March, and Milly Hodges’ Charles Arthur William on 2 April.

THE LOVE OF MY LIFE… Texas billionaire Sir Allen Stanford, whose Stanford Financial Group is a major polo sponsor in the United States [see Spring issue], is continuing his multi-million dollar drive to raise the international profile of cricket. Recent headlining-making proposals include a groundbreaking $20-million winnertakes-all Twenty20 match between England and a West Indies all-star side, and an English version of the Indian Premier League. Shades of Australia’s late Kerry Packer, whose bold innovations changed the face of cricket back in the 1970s, before he began investing millions in polo…

Iranian-born American Tony Yahyai is staging an arena polo exhibition on the beach at the famous luxury resort town of Cabo San Lucas in Mexico’s Baja California on the 15th-16th November. The event is expected to host teams from North American and Europe, and will promote Tony’s new polo development, Club Polo Los Cabos, just inland from the Pacific resort.

Richard Britten-Long has been elected the new chairman of Cirencester Park Polo Club England’s oldest - in Gloucestershire. He also becomes a Steward of the HPA and a member of the association’s ruling council.

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Pony’s name Age Sex Colour Height Origin

Raptor 13 Mare Bay 15.3h New Zealand

In 1997 I bought, unseen, a three-yearold thoroughbred filly from an old friend in the Waikato. I paid NZ $100 for her. At the time I thought it was rather expensive because she nearly caused a serious rift between me and my 13-year-old daughter, Camilla. I picked the filly up on one of my regular trips collecting Camilla from boarding school. For Camilla, the primary point of the journey was getting her goldfish home safely; for me, the horse. We had to detour, and ran out of gas. It was raining and miserable and father-daughter relations were put under considerable strain.

We finally got the filly (and the goldfish) safely home. She had a long convex spine and tall shoulder – I call it roach-back – and looked a bit like a giraffe. We called her Harriet after Jean Paul Herriott, and discovered that she bucked. I knew that any horse who could buck like that was pretty athletic and thought she might be special.

Over the next few years she proved it.

I brought her along quietly – playing her in

three or four New Zealand Opens and other senior tournaments, but not pushing her.

By the time I took her to Santa Barbara in 2001, I knew she had the potential to reach the top. She was still learning the game, but had a great spin, and the beginnings of a spectacular stop. She disgraced herself soon after arrival by bucking off my new wife, Josephine (TWICE!) so she got worked pretty hard for a few weeks after that. I then offered her to Owen Rinehart. I knew she would suit Owen’s game, and I knew that with Owen she had a good chance of reaching her full potential. I know he looks after his horses, and was happy for her to go to him. Rumour from the Santa Barbara grooms was that she bucked Owen off, soon after he bought her . When I questioned him on this matter he denied it and said he had just ‘slid off the back’!

Owen renamed her Raptor. She steadily rose through his string, and has since played high goal on both coasts of the US for the last five years. In 2007, International Polo Club and the American Polo Horse Association honoured Owen with Best String of the 2007 US Open. Raptor was also named Best Playing Pony at the Florida 20-26 goal Cartier Gold Cup, and one of her embryos recently sold for a record $30,000.

With Owen, Harriet/Raptor has proved herself every bit the superstar I hoped she could be. NICK JONES

6/6/08 14:15:24

hurlingham [ talk ]

Above: The Apes Hill team (from left): Malcolm Borwick, James Beim, Mark Tomlinson and Ed Hitchman. Left: La Quinta Beaufort

Practice makes perfect 16

Apes Hill has a new base at the La Quinta Beaufort Club in Argentina and its all-English team are relishing the experience

The old adage ‘If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em’ springs to mind when first hearing about the new La Quinta Beaufort Club in Argentina. An Apes Hill team consisting of James Beim, Mark Tomlinson, Ed Hitchman and Malcolm Borwick scorched through the preliminaries to reach the final of the Provincia de Buenos Aires Trophy on the hallowed grounds of Palermo. They were the first all-English team to play at Palermo in a domestic tournament, and the mood at La Quinta Beaufort is buoyant.

Malcolm Borwick says: ‘For the team to play at all was special. But the inspiration we’d gained from the high goal practices in the preceding weeks at La Quinta Beaufort was undeniably a strong factor in producing such a result.’

Set in 38 hectares of prime pasture, with world-class stabling and pitches, La Quinta Beaufort is the brainchild of Mark Tomlinson, the youngest of the famous polo-playing family. ‘In 2005, my brother Luke and I qualified for the Argentine Open but we struggled to find a club where we could practise,’ he explains. ‘It became increasingly obvious that for English players to even attempt to compete with the Argentines, we needed a base in Argentina.’

Fortunately, partners of Alberto Reinoso wished to sell their share in La Quinta at

16 Tomlinson.indd 1

Pilar, the epicentre of the polo world and some 40 minutes from Buenos Aires.

In stepped the Beaufort Polo Club to secure a permanent training ground for high goal players.

In their first full season, the four English players have proved its efficacy, and the three established Argentine Von Wernick brothers have also enjoyed success.

‘I think it is generally accepted that if you want to improve your game to a global standard you have to go to Argentina and play at high goal level in practice and in competition,’ says Mark. ‘It adds a whole new dimension to your game in terms of reaction time, tactics and speed, which is something we struggle to do in England, even during the high goal season.’

With clubs and teams such as Ellerstina, La Alegria, Centuaros, Polo 1 and Pilar Chico all within 5km of La Quinta Beaufort, members are spoilt for practice partners, while their own pitch is the envy of many.

‘It’s generally accepted that if you want to improve your game to a global standard you have to go to Argentina’

‘October was unbelievably wet in Pilar and many clubs struggled to hold practices,’ recalls Malcolm. ‘The club’s new “wet” ground was one of the first to be playable, drying out incredibly quickly.’

A second pitch, taking advantage of the nearby stream and enhancing the natural drainage system, is in the pipeline, bringing the number of grounds at La Quinta Beaufort up to four. An exercise track is also being planned. The Club already boasts a stunning stabling complex for 150 horses and an indoor arena.

Past members continue their association and provide valuable input, both in terms of play and passing on legendary tales to the next generation.

‘The atmosphere at La Quinta Beaufort is not something you can buy, or bottle, but if we could we’d make millions,’ says Mark.

‘There’s a really supportive and exciting feel to the place. We want to attract high handicap players looking to develop their game to the next level and continue the club’s philosophy in this vein.’

To encourage such players to join, the traditional system of purchasing a life-long share in the club has been cast aside, reducing both cost and commitment.

‘We want people to approach us,’ says Mark. ‘The ambitious player, the patron who wishes to boost their team’s expertise over the winter months and teams heading for the Camera or Argentine Open. In so doing, our small club can help take 6 and 7- goal players to the next level and hopefully members can make more of an impact on the international polo scene.’

For more information on La Quinta Beaufort, email Mark Tomlinson at marcotomo@hotmail.com

6/6/08 10:35:05

CLUB POLO AD.indd 1

6/6/08 14:32:27

hurlingham [ talk ]

18

Sports therapist Jane Newnham, one of the speakers at a recent England team training day, tells Yolanda Carslaw how she keeps players’ match-worn bodies in good fettle How did you come to treat polo players?

I grew up in Hampshire in a horsey family – my mother was a Pony Club DC – and moved to Midhurst in my teens. At first, I worked with horses, including in polo, at Cowdray, and for Kerry Packer in Australia.

When I retrained as a sports therapist my first polo client was David Jamison. Now I work with teams such as Yindarra and Talandracas, and individuals such as George Milford Haven. Over the years I’ve treated most of the Midhurst-based England boys, and in winter I deal with other seasonal sports.

Which musculoskeletal injuries do you come across in polo?

Most common are tennis elbow, back strain, groin strain, ligament problems in the wrist, shoulder impingements and problems with the lower back. Just as a ‘desk posture’ creates problems over time, polo creates its own patterns of flexibility, and with these come injury patterns. Repetitive motion through one joint – for instance, in polo, the shoulder – creates muscle imbalance around it, with some muscles too long and others too tight, and players need to counteract this.

What does your work usually involve?

At my clinic I do manual therapy on the bench, including remedial and sports massage. I assess joint mobility and devise

18 Newnham.indd 1

exercise programmes that increase gradually in intensity, depending on a person’s mobility and joint strength. When I go to a client, we may exercise outdoors. With Yindarra we recently did a 3.5-mile run, sprint work, joint mobility and 45 minutes of Pilates-based exercises. I work on setting the body back in postural alignment after a game – for instance, polo players’ hip flexors get very tight and need lengthening.

Are players often ‘in denial’ about injury?

Many harbour an injury for years, working around it. When they warm up and play, the pain disappears, but it returns. Sometimes it’s years before it gets so bad they agree to get help. All that time the injury is doing damage. Also, players may be in their comfort zone on a horse, but the body is pulled out of shape by polo. When you’re on your feet, the pelvis and back are in a completely different position and standing or walking may cause pain. One player only realised he was in agony when his wife took him shopping.

Sometimes it’s years before an injury gets so bad that players agree to get help. All that time it is doing damage

What single thing would help players most?

A more in-depth understanding of core stability. The core holds the body together, and you can’t stretch effectively unless you understand how it works. Improving your core stability and working on flexibility enhances your performance, reduces your injury potential and keeps you playing for longer. Pilates is vital for the core, and even in a busy mid-season, players should find time for two personalised, Pilates-based strength and flexibility sessions each week.

Why must you tailor a stretching programme?

You need to understand what you’re doing and why. For instance, is a flexibility session about developing muscle length, maintenance or rehabilitation? A general stretching session is insufficient at high goal level because muscles that are already too long could be further lengthened, exacerbating injury potential.

Do players have much to learn about body maintenance?

Nowadays, more players work with personal trainers and sports therapists and awareness has kicked in in a similar way to mainstream sports. However, at a recent high goal practice I didn’t see a single player stretch before going out on field – and these were elite players of various nationalities. Stretching before a practice is as important as before a match. Of the components of fitness – agility, balance, coordination, endurance, flexibility, strength and so on – flexibility is very important for polo. But it’s given the least amount of time – bunged at the end of a training session – and is usually general rather than tailored.

Jane Newnham runs the Midhurst Sports Injury Clinic

PAUL TERRY

fighting fit

6/6/08 10:36:48

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6/6/08 18:13:45

hurlingham [ talk ]

From left: Pelon Escapite, Lyndon Lea, Carlos Gracida at the US Open

Playing for high stakes Canadian-born patron Lyndon Lea tells Yolanda Carslaw about the difference between high goal in the UK and the US

How did you get started in polo?

Seven years ago, I was on a business trip in Palm Springs and was looking for a retreat for my team. The choices were golf or polo: none of us had tried polo, so I booked a three-day clinic. The rest is history – I got back to the UK and signed up for lessons at Ascot Park.

Where do you usually play?

In England, the Queen’s and Gold Cups (22-goal), and in the US the Pacific Coast Open (20-goal) in Santa Barbara [which Lyndon won last year]. This year, we played the US Open for the first time [26-goal].

What do you enjoy most about the UK high goal circuit?

Most of the world’s top players are there and with so many teams, it’s very competitive, which makes tournaments exciting, fun and desirable to win. The history of tournaments such as the Gold Cup makes it special, too.

What do you think UK high goal could learn from the US? It’s clear as day to me that the UK should raise high goal from 22 to 26 goals. First, because it’s a better game to watch and play

20 Lyndon 1

when you have three high-handicapped pros: it’s a similar difference between 15 and 22-goal and between 22 and 26-goal. Second, it would help English players. The HPA system encourages them until they are three or four goals, but the structure makes it hard for 5 to 7-goalers to get a job in high goal.

When going up to 22-goal they suddenly have to be the number-two guy [ie, the second most important] on the team. If you had 26-goal, with, say, two nines in the middle, you’d have a space for a 6 or 7-goaler as the number three guy, which would give English players an opportunity to develop. In an effort to protect English polo, the existing structure is stifling it.

Would you like to see the ‘passport rule’ abandoned?

Teams find ways to get round this anyway, and with or without the restriction the structure makes it hard for 5 to 7-goalers to get a job in high goal. As with any industry in the world the solution is rarely regulation.

Wouldn’t introducing 26-goal polo price some patrons out?

A few, but you’d create a 20-goal league by

raising the 18-goal tournaments. Then you’d have a perfect system. Now is the time to do it because you’ve got 20 teams in high goal.

How does umpiring in the US compare to that in the UK? Umpiring is a thankless and difficult job, and it’s notoriously hard to get people to do it. However, there’s more accountability in the US. In the US Open, a call not made lost us a game, but at least the officials had a meeting about it afterwards. They agreed that it was the wrong call and the chief umpire apologised to us. In England, we had a bad call against Atlantic and it took six months to get the HPA to review the video. They eventually wrote to apologise and admit that it was the wrong call. Umpiring will never be perfect but when you’re spending that kind of money, losing a game on a bad call feels like flushing it away. You spend more on 22-goal in the UK than on 26-goal in the US, but as a patron I’d pay more if I were convinced there was a proper professional umpires’ association with coaching, feedback, videos after the game and suspensions for umpires when it’s done badly.

What can US polo learn from the UK? The draws in American tournaments can be a little confusing, but the way the draw is done in the Gold Cup means it’s very difficult for a game to be fixed.

This year, Lyndon Lea’s Zacara (the name is a blend of his children’s names, Zachary and Chiara) is formed around Javier and Eduardo Novillo Astrada.

RATNER SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

20

6/6/08 10:38:54

Pilara AD.indd 1

6/6/08 11:44:23

hurlingham [ talk ]

22

polo for all Anna Williamson hadn’t set foot on a polo ground for two years when she spent a morning at the Beaufort Polo Club…

On arrival at the Beaufort we were greeted by the enthusiastic proprietors, Simon and Claire Tomlinson. The place has certainly undergone a few changes since my last visit.

In 2006, Sir Charles Williams, owner of Apes Hill Club Barbados, offered sponsorship to four non-Argentine polo players to play under his club name. Two seasons later, the team is back at the Beaufort for the summer, with Luke and Mark Tomlinson, Tom Morley and Ed Hitchman living under one roof and undergoing a training regime akin to that of Olympic rowers.

For the majority of players in the UK, however, this is not a professional sport but an expensive hobby. Sponsorship is limited to a very small number of high goal teams.

To become a high goal player you have to play with the best, and to keep up with them you need a string of very good ponies and a lot of equipment. This is not a sport that is easily taken up if you are not fortunate enough to be born with a silver stick in your hand. Thanks to organisations such as the Pony Club, though, the game is becoming more accessible. The idea is that with a pony and a stick, anyone can try their hand at a young age. The danger, of course, comes when you get hooked...

22 open day.indd 1

Polo differs from other sports in that there are animals involved, and it differs from other horsey sports in that you need more than one pony. So while it might be possible for someone to afford one horse at livery, having four match-fit ponies is an expensive proposition. Teams tend to be made up of young pros and older wealthy businessmen. There is very little middle ground in which players can keep up the sport and a career without compromising one or the other. Having had to do this myself I am very aware of the compromise. Having ridden all my life I had the opportunity to learn to play at school (Marlborough College). I went on to play at Pony Club and the Beaufort, until the necessity to get a real job stopped me just when I finally reached 0 goals and a level where I might be of some use to a team.

It’s generally accepted that if you want to improve your game to a global standard you have to go to Argentina

I absolutely loved playing, and chukkas during the week at the Beaufort were a wonderful opportunity to play and learn from some of the best players in the UK. Outside the short Pony Club season, however, I often felt like Cinderella – all dressed up with nowhere to go.

In my experience, however much encouragement you are given, once you have learnt to play, then money still talks when trying to get a place in a team, even at low goal level. Beyond Pony Club there seems to be a market for low goal teams with all members on similar handicaps and no patrons or professionals involved.

The team would share entry fees equally.

Essentially amateur leagues could be introduced throughout the country in a similar way to the Pony Club system. This would provide an opportunity to play with friends of similar age and standard, rather than relying on the older generation to bankroll the younger.

Polo is the best adrenalin kick in the world, and a hard habit to beat despite the blood, sweat, tears and huge quantities of ibuprofen involved. There is a great thrill in playing dangerous team sports, and the added element of the pony increases the unpredictability. I’m sure I am not the only one trying to forge a career while whingeing about not being able to play polo. In Jane Austen’s day, the only way out of an unaffordable situation was to ‘marry well’.

This is one solution. My phone number is [This has been cut for reasons of space.]

CHRISTOPHER FEAR

Anna Williamson (second left) surveys an ‘economy’ pony at the Beaufort Club

2/7/08 09:31:19

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14/2/08 10:42:30

hurlingham [ interview ]

the diplomat FIP president, successful horse breeder and scion of the luxury goods dynasty, Patrick Guerrand-Hermès is a passionate polo enthusiast and an unstinting ambassador for the sport, says Herbert Spencer IllustratIon phil disley

24 25

Patrick Guerrand-Hermès, president of the Federation of International Polo (FIP), has popped across the Channel from his château outside Chantilly to lunch with me at the charming Cottage Inn, a favourite watering hole of polo players and supporters near the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club.

We’re very late, but the jovial proprietor, Bobby King, offers us a bottle of well-chilled champagne on the house and rustles up a light lunch of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs.

The dapper Monsieur Patrick sheds his jacket in the unusual heat of the May afternoon, revealing bright yellow braces bracketing his customary black knit tie, and launches into an account of his life and times. The Frenchman is a great raconteur, full of self-effacing humour, his delivery in the accented English of an aristocratic anglophile.

One of his favourite tales is from his days in the family firm of Hermès in the time of Charles de Gaulle as president of France. One of Patrick’s tasks was convincing the general to leave the lights of the Elysée Palace ablaze to add to the glamour of the annual street party of luxury boutiques in the capital’s Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

‘The president always went to bed early,’ says Patrick, ‘and, as a very frugal man, ordered the lights of the palace turned out when he retired. Leaving them on for our fête was a great concession. If the national economy was healthy, he would give us until 11 pm. If it wasn’t, it was lights out at 10:30.’

Patrick, born in Paris 75 years ago, is proud of his long career at Hermès, the firm that started life as a maker of carriage harnesses for the aristocracy in 1837 and grew to be one of world’s most famous upscale brands with its saddles, silk scarves, high fashion and fragrances. It is respected ‘old family’ money that has enabled Patrick to live the good life and travel the world, at his own expense, as president of FIP. Despite the Hermès clan’s longestablished equestrian image, there was no polo in the family until Patrick came along, and he himself first hit the saddle in other horse sports. ‘I was given my first

horse by a Marshal of France, a week after the liberation of Paris,’ he recalls. ‘From that day on, horses and horse sports have always been a very important part of my life.’ He began competing as an amateur first in show jumping, then dressage, eventing and steeplechase racing. Slight of stature, he had a typical jockey’s build. ‘I was such a lightweight that I had to add weight to the saddle to qualify for some races,’ he recalls.

After retiring from competition in those disciplines, Patrick remained active in equestrian affairs. Following the tragic death in a road accident of his 17-year old son, one of France’s most promising young show jumpers, he established the prestigious Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Memorial Trophy,

‘I was given my first horse by a Marshal of France, a week after the liberation of Paris.

From that day, horses and horse sports have always been a very important part of my life’ presented annually to the rider aged 16 to 21 who best exemplifies the ideal of sportsmanship and horsemanship.

Patrick finally came into polo through cavalry service in Fez, Morocco. There was still conscription in France in 1953, but Patrick volunteered before he could be called up so he could choose his regiment.

‘When I arrived as a raw officer cadet in Fez, I suddenly heard my name shouted out,’ he remembers. ‘What had I done wrong, was I headed for the stockade?’ A major had been injured in a polo match and, knowing Patrick’s reputation as a rider, the regiment drafted him in as a substitute. ‘Never having played the game, I hardly knew which end of the stick to use to hit the ball, but actually managed to score a goal. It was great fun and

I was well and truly hooked for life on a new horse sport.’

Once young Patrick had completed his national service, he joined the family firm and Hermès packed him off to the US to learn the luxury retail trade from the ground up. ‘I went first to Neiman Marcus, one of Hermès’ biggest clients, in Dallas,’ he says.

‘In my spare time, I got a real grounding in polo playing there with the Texans, many of whom came straight off the ranch.’

After a stint at Harvard Business School, Patrick was recalled to Paris to become the first member of his generation of the Hermès family to work in the firm’s headquarters in the Faubourg Saint-Honoré. ‘I didn’t even have a title at first, just “Monsieur Patrick”.’ Then, with a wry smile: ‘Coming straight from Harvard, I must have thought I was really hot stuff.’ Eventually he rose to become director of Hermès International.

Continuing his polo career in Europe, Patrick competed at Polo de Paris, Deauville, in England, and at Sotogrande in Spain. One of his last triumphs in high goal polo came in his seventies, when he won the coveted Deauville Gold Cup. Meanwhile, Patrick established his own polo club and horse breeding and training operation outside Marrakech in Morocco: ‘I’ve produced around 200 horses there, mainly through embryo transplant. I now keep 38 polo ponies, all but one of which I bred myself.’

In 1995 Patrick founded a new club just up the road from his château near Chantilly, France’s ‘Capital of the Horse’. The Polo Club du Domaine de Chantilly is France’s largest, with nine tournament grounds, two sand arenas for winter polo, and stabling for 400 ponies in the high season.

Patrick became an FIP Ambassador in 1999, and in 2004 hosted the final stage of the federation’s World Cup at his Chantilly club, organised with typical French flair. It was partly the success of that event that led to his election as president of FIP in November 2005. It did no harm, of course, that Patrick is a man of considerable means and master of his own time.

Patrick’s two-and-a-half years as president of FIP has not been all smooth sailing. He inherited a global organisation that has now grown to include more than 80 countries, from small ones where the seeds of the sport have only recently been sown, to the ‘big three’ polo-playing nations – England, the USA and Argentina – with their thousands of players. Their needs and aspirations do not always coincide.

‘I am well aware that some players and even executives of various national associations have questioned the usefulness of their federation,’ says the president. ‘Polo has come a long way since FIP was founded a quarter-century ago. More countries,

players, clubs; more money from corporate sponsorship; higher standards in such things as ponies, pony welfare, grounds, how tournaments are organised, governance – overall, a more professional approach to the sport. It is right that our members expect a similar degree of professionalism from their federation.

‘For its first 25 years the federation has depended almost entirely upon the voluntary efforts of the many dedicated individuals who have served on our Executive Board, Council of Administration, and as Ambassadors. They are to be honoured for their contributions.’

Most of the FIP’s officials, however, have been volunteers from the amateur sector in both small and large countries. ‘There is a feeling now that we need to recruit some respected professional players who may also have strong organisational skills,’ he continues. ‘Their expertise could prove invaluable, but we cannot expect them to always volunteer their time and pay their own expenses.’

Herein lies one of FIP’s dilemmas.

The federation operates on a shoestring budget, with an income of less than $300,000 anticipated for 2008. ‘If the national associations want us to bring in professional support, they must help us find ways to increase funding to pay for it,’ says Patrick.

Meanwhile, the FIP president says, ‘it is very important that the federation is as open and above board about its problems as it is proud of its achievements, and we want to get all the feedback we can from the whole polo community.

‘This is why, towards the end of our eighth World Cup in Mexico earlier this month [see page 44], I invited representatives of all eight competing teams to appear before our Council of Administration to air their views. The teams thanked our Mexican hosts for their tremendous efforts, as one of our smaller polo countries, in organising such a big international event. At the same time, there was a frank and open discussion of how we should improve procedures for the next World Cup wherever it is held.

‘The FIP is a democratically constituted body, and so, in the end, it is up to our member associations, including the larger ones, to decide how their federation can become stronger and more professional.’

A few days after his flying visit to the UK, I get a phone call from Patrick in Chantilly, just returned from Morocco. Three of his Arabian Thoroughbreds had taken win, place and show in the royal Grand Prix in Casablanca over the weekend. For this consummate horseman, that must be on a par on the satisfaction scale with winning the FIP Ambassadors Cup alongside Adolfo Cambiaso, the world’s top professional player.

hurlingham [ history]

26 27

Britain’s global games The story of modern sport is closely connected to the story of the British empire, says Simon Kuper

26-29 sport.indd 2

6/6/08 10:40:02

Left: The Great Britain polo team that won bronze at the 1924 Olympics in Paris

IOC OlympIC muSeum /AllSpOrT

In the late nineteenth century, British sailors, merchants and missionaries were busy spreading British games around the world like viruses

In smoggy Buenos Aires, amid all the Italian surnames, Edwardian Britain lives on.

Sometimes in this town you can imagine you are in a former British colony, a Spanishspeaking version of India or Australia.

Once the British built the railways here and exported the beef. Now the chicest club in town is the Jockey Club, the tearoom on the Calle Florida is called the Richmond, and you can find the Anglo-Argentines with their outdated accents in the Club Inglés. They drive out to the Hurlingham Club in the suburb of Hurlingham to play rugby, cricket, tennis (on the only grass courts in South America) and, of course, polo.

Outside Buenos Aires, somewhere in the Pampas, on David Shennan’s ranch ‘El Negrete’, the first polo was played in Argentina in 1875. A few years later, the English-language Buenos Aires Herald newspaper could comment: ‘We are glad to see that this noble game has been introduced into this country by Englishmen.’

Polo, and most of the rest of today’s global sporting landscape, is a relic of the British empire. Not just the official empire

– the actual colonies – but the ‘informal empire’, the network of British business that once dominated a country like Argentina. The story of sport is a story of two empires: the British (which contrary to popular opinion still exists) and the American (which contrary to popular opinion barely exists at all). This is why the Argentines and almost everyone else play British sports, not American ones.

An early form of polo was played in Persia before the birth of Christ. The story of the modern game, however, begins in the middle of the nineteenth century when British army officers in India encountered it in the Himalayas. Eventually, a version of the game was written up in The Field, which inspired officers of the 10th Hussars, on home leave in Aldershot to play ‘hockey on horseback’ using walking sticks. Around this time the British were infected by a mania for writing the rules of sports, of which football, in 1863, was only the most famous example.

In 1876 polo was codified in the Hurlingham Association Rules.

‘One has to make a distinction between the ancient game and the modern game,’ says polo historian Nigel à Brassard. ‘The modern game I would definitely call a British invention. Polo was being played by a group of Manipuris up in the foothills of the Himalayas, a slow game on very small horses, and would never have spread if a group of Britons hadn’t taken it back.’ Having codified the game, the British then re-exported it – chiefly to the US and Argentina – using the networks and prestige of their empire.

It’s no coincidence that all this happened in the late nineteenth century, the era that the historian Niall Ferguson calls ‘Anglobalisation’, when British sailors, merchants and missionaries were spreading British games like viruses. In 1889, for instance, the 21-year-old Englishman

Frederick Rea landed on the Scottish island of South Uist to start work as a headmaster.

Soon afterwards, two of his brothers visited carrying a football. Within 20 years soccer had conquered South Uist. Shinty, a stick sport played there for 1400 years, ‘was wiped like chalk from the face of the island’ according to Roger Hutchinson in the British football journal Perfect Pitch. In Argentina, polo similarly exterminated ‘gaucho’ games like pato, in which two teams on horseback fought for the possession of a live duck. Pato came to be viewed as uncivilised.

Football went around the world, but the other British team games – rugby, cricket, polo – tended to take root only in British colonies. Argentina was the exception, perhaps because it was so informally British.

Eduardo Archetti, the great Argentine anthropologist of sports, who died much too young thousands of miles from home in Norway, described the curious spread of polo at the bottom of the world. Argentina proved ideal territory because of its endless flat land and supply of good horses. By the 1890s, Archetti wrote, the game was being played mostly on estancias owned by landlords of British origin: ‘Descendants of British immigrants dominated polo until the 1930s.’

As with all British sports everywhere, polo got an initial boost from being seen as a game of British gentleman. Marketing people today would no doubt call it ‘aspirational’. Playing the game well was a way of borrowing some of the global prestige the British upper classes then possessed. This became obvious in 1924 after the Argentine polo team won gold at the Paris Olympics. ‘The victorious team,’ wrote Archetti, ‘was received in the harbour of Buenos Aires by thousands and thousands of people: they had won against the two economic world powers: they were champions of the world, and they had amazed the sophisticated Parisians and the European aristocracy.’

Judging by those cheering crowds, polo then carried about as much prestige as soccer.

But polo was doomed in the global battle, and not just because of the expense involved in playing it. Before television, the best way of marketing a sport was the Olympic Games, and polo disappeared from the Olympics after Berlin in 1936. When TV arrived, the games that took off were the ones that did best on screen, like soccer, American football and basketball.

hurlingham [ history]

26 28 27 29

1

The US was mostly immune to British sports, or preferred to convert them into ‘American’ games like baseball or gridiron football. A few wealthy Americans did take up polo, however. When the US won the Westchester Cup in 1909, England ceased to be the undisputed world leader. Around the same time, the US was also usurping Britain’s role as military superpower. Yet the curious fact remains that despite their empire, the Americans never exported their sports as the British had.

Take baseball, the undisputed ‘national pastime’ of the US until American football surpassed it in the 1980s. Only in 2006 did baseball try to stage a serious world cup (the ‘World Baseball Classic’) and the tournament made it painfully obvious that only about 10 countries play the game seriously. That’s not much for the national pastime of the greatest power of the last 100 years. Baseball’s failure to conquer the world suggests how limited the American empire is compared to its British predecessor.

Baseball’s diffusion – such as it is – is a story well told in two recent books: Robert

26-29 sport.indd 4

B. Edgerton’s Comparative Anthology of Baseball Around the World and Stefan Szymanski’s and Andrew Zimbalist’s National Pastime: How Americans Play Baseball and the Rest of the World Plays Soccer.

The US single-handedly made just two countries safe for baseball: Cuba and Japan.

Even the Japanese almost fell for soccer or cricket instead, but baseball triumphed there in the 1880s, when, according to National Pastime, ‘Americans came to outnumber all other expatriate communities’.

That was about the extent of the American conquest. You might assume that they at least spread baseball to their backyard of the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and the Yucatan region of Mexico. Yet according to Edgerton, it was Cubans – many of them slave owners – who in fact did most of the work.

The other great baseball colonialists were the Japanese. ‘Although baseball owed its birth in Asia to American sailors, educators, and missionaries, it was the Japanese who spread it across Asia,’ writes Edgerton.

Japan’s occupying soldiers and prisoner-of-

By the time the US girdled the globe, the British colonialists had got there first. Soccer, therefore, had firstmover advantage in most countries

1 Polo in the colonies, 1916 2 Polo at Hurlingham, 1890 3 English footballers, 1881 4 Persian polo, circa 1000 AD

6/6/08 10:42:52

2

3

mAry evAnS pICTure lIBrAry; BrIdgemAn ArT lIBrAry; HulTOn ArCHIve/geTTy ImAgeS

4

war camps brought the game to Korea and Taiwan with such success that South Korea now suffers from baseball hooliganism, and the Taiwanese bet more than $2bn a year on baseball by telephone alone in the 1990s.

The Japanese also took the game to Thailand, Mongolia and even Belgium. In Brazil baseball is dominated by ‘NippoBrazilian’ descendants of Japanese immigrants, while Moscow’s only baseball, Edgerton points out, was ‘funded by a wealthy Japanese fan’.

Americans did little proselytising for baseball, partly because they started late. As Szymanski and Zimbalist note: ‘The US had only an incipient political empire from the spoils of the so-called Spanish-American War of 1898 and only scant foreign investment until after World War I.’ By the time the US girdled the globe, British colonialists had got there first. Soccer, therefore, had first-mover advantage in most countries soccer. Nelson Mandela, to cite one example out of millions, played soccer at his British-inspired boarding

school and university. It’s significant that none of the 10 strongest baseball nations had much of a British tradition.

Even at its zenith the American empire didn’t help baseball much. This was chiefly because Americans seldom bothered spreading it. John Gray, a London School of Economics professor writing in the New York Review of Books recently, suggests why.

‘America lacks most of the attributes that make an imperial power,’ he argues. ‘The US does not govern any countries, and even when it sends troops abroad, it tends to regard the relationship as transitory: get the job done, come home. There are few American elites living their lives in foreign countries, learning the local language, building alliances with local rulers, and disseminating their games the way the British used to do.’ All those American soldiers, businessmen, film stars, Peace Corps volunteers and immigrants visiting the ‘old country’ did little for baseball.

The closest thing America has to a global game is basketball. David Stern, commissioner of the National Basketball Association, sitting in his office overlooking Fifth Avenue in New York, chuckles at his good fortune that American missionaries to China at the turn of the twentieth century took a basketball with them. Stern himself has been flying around the world proselytising for the game since his maiden voyage as commissioner to Italy in 1984.

Yet even after all those air miles, basketball outdoes British sports only in China, the Philippines, Bhutan and a very few other countries. American football – the new US national pastime – hardly even tried to go global until it staged a regular-season game at Wembley last October.

Viewed broadly, the failure of American sports casts doubt on the notion that American culture has conquered the world.

The British empire got there first, and was more ambitious. That’s why we still live in a surprisingly British world. It’s not just sport: the language of the British empire, thanks to Americans, has gone global. The six bestselling novels of the last hundred years are all British: four Harry Potters, one Agatha Christie, and one J.R. Tolkien. The bestselling band ever is The Beatles. And England – half a medium-sized island – has the world’s most popular football league. Fifty years after Suez, it all amounts to a posthumous victory for the British empire.

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mind your head

41 42

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Overall Star Rating Medium

Manufacturer

Model

Agripina

Polo HAP 2 AP002T

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Calcutts & Sons

BS EN 1384 Polo Cap

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Casablanca

Pro Tech 100

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Cesar Cantero

Traditional

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Charles Owen

Kids Own Polo

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Charles Owen

Palermo Polo

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Charles Owen

Flesh Polo

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Floriano Falcon

Standard

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Patey

Polo Cap

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30-31 helmets.indd 3

Small

Large

Crush

6/6/08 10:54:37

hurlingham [ legend]

32 33

32-35 Pieres.indd 1

6/6/08 14:24:53

Peerless Pieres Gonzalo Pieres’s long and illustrious career has seen him win countless titles, discover and nurture players of the future, and cultivate a successful breeding operation. Alex Webbe reflects on the life of an all-time great

MIKE ROBERTS

WINNERS AGAIN Gonzalo won

32-35 Pieres.indd 2

the Coronation Cup five times. The victorious1976 South America team, from left: Gonzalo, Eduardo Moore, Lord Mountbatten, Antonio Herrera and Anibel Garcia

He still carries a slight build and a greying hairline that had begun to recede in his youth. He sports the requisite Argentine stubble across his weathered face as a supplement to his signature moustache. He offers a wisp of a smile as he takes a drag on a cigarette, which he quickly hides behind his back like a young boy who might be scolded.

He doesn’t look like a poster boy, or one of the best athletes in the world, but anyone who knows anything about polo speaks his name in awe.

Gonzalo Pieres was born in Argentina on 22 December 1955. Argentine 9-goaler Eduardo Moore spotted Gonzalo as he and his brother Alfonso won the High School Tournament Championships twice. Moore took Gonzalo to England, where he became part of the Vestey organisation, capturing numerous British Opens, Queen’s Cups, and Coronation Cups over the years.

He came to the United States with Moore, and joined Peter Brant’s White Birch organisation, leading the team to Gold Cup Championships in 1983, 1984 and 1986 through 1989. World Cup wins and countless other tournament successes followed.

Gonzalo attributes his successful associations with some of polo’s most notable patrons to good luck, but watching him play, you are aware that luck plays the smallest of roles in his many achievements.

‘He won the game before he set foot on the field,’ said former teammate and opponent Carlos Gracida. ‘His organisation and preparation were spectacular, horses, players, young prospects, everything.’

When he went to work for Peter Brant and his White Birch team, organisation was certainly one of Gonzalo’s most enduring contributions. The development of Brant’s string of horses set his teams apart.

The handicaps of the White Birch players climbed, forcing Pieres to locate and identify young up-and-coming, under-rated players to fill out the line-up. Stars of the future, such as Julio Arellano, Jeff Blake, J J Boote, Juan Bollini, Tiger Kneece, Sapo Caset, Del Carroll Walton, Adolfo Cambiaso and Mariano Aguerre were just some his recruits.

‘Just as Barrantes and Moore had nurtured Pieres in the 1970s, Pieres and Barrantes

6/6/08 10:26:23

hurlingham [ legend]

32-35 Pieres.indd 3

‘He won the game before he set foot on the field. His organisation and preparation were spectacular’

Carlos Harriott with having the biggest effect upon his polo and Kerry Packer for having the biggest impact on his business career. ‘He [Packer] made me think on a much bigger, different scale than I had ever considered,’ he reflected. ‘He taught me to think on an international level.’

This philosophy led to a partnership of sorts with the Australian tycoon and polo enthusiast. Packer bought part of Peter Brant’s White Birch property in Argentina, near Pilar, where he and Gonzalo organised stables and a breeding operation. With Packer’s passing, and the maturing play of his sons, Gonzalo increased his operations.

‘We currently have 200 horses [at Ellerstina, his 36-hectare ranch that boasts two polo fields],’ he said. ‘With the boys [sons, Gonzalito, Facundo and Nico] all needing horses we have to figure on 50 for each of them, and then another 50 just to pay for the operation.’

He has 11 studs at work on the ranch, producing 300 embryos a year, keeping 200 and selling 100. He credits Kerry Packer with the success of his breeding operation: ‘He taught me that if you are trying to produce the best product you have to use the best ingredients, and that is what I have

MIKE ROBERTS; FOTO SNOOPY; DAVID LOMINSKA/POLOGRAHICS; ALEXPACHECO

34 35

brought to the United States another future star, 10-goaler Mariano Aguerre,’ writes Horace Laffaye in his Profiles in Polo, which devotes an entire chapter to Gonzalo Pieres.

Gonzalo brought 3-goal Mariano Aguerre aboard in 1986, and he would later step into Gonzalo’s boots. Young Aguerre would also marry Gonzalo’s daughter Tatiana.

The smooth fluid motion of Gonzalo Pieres on a horse was a spectacle to behold, and this talent was appreciated by his contemporaries.

‘He had the ability to assess a horse and then adapt to the horse rather than try to ride them all the same,’ said former 8-goaler Bart Evans. A horseman born and bred, Evans had a great deal of respect for Gonzalo’s ability to get the most out of his mounts by playing to that specific horse’s strength. When asked the weakest part of his game, Gonzalo offered: ‘I was never a powerful hitter, I was not good at penalty shooting.’ It had little effect on his performance on the field.

‘He had the best control at speed of anyone I had ever seen,’ declared former 8-goal international Dale Smicklas. ‘He was a real team player,’ said former 9-goal teammate Red Armour, who played with him on the Ellerston team that won the USPA Gold Cup in 1995 with a 13-12 win over his former White Birch side. ‘He got the most out of his teammates, he gave them a sense of confidence and elevated their games.’

In seven years, Gonzalo’s La Espadana team won the Argentine Open six times, and he would return to win it two more times with Ellerstina in 1997 and 1998. His introduction of commercial sponsorship was the first step towards professional polo in Argentina, and changed the way the Open teams were organised.

Gonzalo credits Eduardo Moore and Juan

6/6/08 10:26:31

1 Gonzalo playing for White Birch at Palm Beach in the Eighties 2 Playing for Ellerston in the Nineties 3 Son-in-law Mariano Aguerre 4 Cowdray Park, 1995, after his first Gold Cup victory. From left: Tatania, Gonzalito, Facundo, Zorrino Force, Gonzalo, Nico, Oscar Raul, Cecilia 5 Kerry Packer, Jim Gilmore and Gonzalo at the Argentine Open

done at Ellerstina, that is what I continue to practice in all of my affairs. He would never relax; he was constantly trying to improve.’

Gonzalo was fortunate enough to have had the services of top ponies Lechuza, Luna and Levicu over the years, and feels that if his sons are to be successful they will need the same calibre of horses under them.

Gonzalo says Gonzalito has great speed and quickness, is constantly working, and ‘has all of the shots’.

‘Facundo has great mallet control,’ he says. ‘He is very talented and has power.

His only weakness is in not taking the easy plays. When he has too much time, he gets into trouble.’ Facundo won his first major tournament in the US this year with Isla Carroll, and along with brother Gonzalito and cousins Pablo and Matias MacDonough, came within a goal of sweeping the triple crown of polo in Argentina last fall.

32-35 Pieres.indd 4

Nico, the youngest son, is currently rated at six goals. When asked if he will achieve a 10-goal rating the senior Pieres assures me that he will. ‘He has the ability and the power,’ he says. ‘He just has to learn to be patient and not rush the play.’

Son-in-law Mariano Aguerre must also be accounted for as part of the Pieres clan.

Brought into the White Birch operations as a ‘ringer’, the talented young player moved from three goals to nine in four short years.

He has led White Birch to seven of its record 11 USPA Gold Cup victories.

Like his father-in-law, however, the US Open eluded him until 2005, when White Birch beat Skeeterville 11-10 in the finals.

Aguerre’s success in the Argentine Open is nearly as impressive as the White Birch success in the US Gold Cup. He earned his first two Argentine Open championships in 1997 and 1998 as a member of the Gonzalo

Pieres-led Ellerstina teams. Two years later Aguerre would win the coveted Argentine Open with the Heguys on the Indios Chapaleufu team. He wouldn’t return to the victor’s circle until he joined Adolfo Cambiaso, Lucas Monteverde and Lolo Castagnola and La Dolfina in the winners’ circle in 2005, 2006 and again in 2007, being named MVP while scoring a victory over Gonzalito and Facundo’s Ellerstina team.

A few years ago, Gonzalo and Adolfo Cambiaso organised the Argentine Polo Tour, attracting wealthy patrons from all over the world to play competitive polo with some of the game’s top players. For the last three years we have been operating the Gold Cup at the same time as the Argentine Open.

It has been so successful that they have added a Silver Cup and a Bronze Cup to the competition, attracting over 40 teams and 35 patrons last year for the events.

Gonzalo’s professionalism and dedication have served him well, and his continued success is not questioned by former teammate and opponent Julian Hipwood. ‘As talented as he was,’ he reflected. ‘I think what amazed me the most about him was that he never made a mistake in the final chukka.’

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life through a lens Photographer Aline Coquelle fell in love with polo during a trip to Argentina. Since then she has followed the ‘nomadic polo tribe’ to the furthest corners of the Earth…

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Make or break Polito Ulloa, one of the most respected polo horsebreakers in Argentina

Travel is a way of life for me, and it is fuelled by my addiction to photography. I have travelled from Zanzibar to Ethiopia, Guatemala to India, Peru to Fiji and New York to Kinshasa. Then one day I landed in Argentina and discovered a new ‘tribe’: the polo nomads – international players travelling the world, following the sun and the challenges, and flying home once a year like migratory birds.

I land on a field, the number one field at Palermo during the Open. A patchwork of green, thousands of horses, hundreds of horse trucks, groups of barns… it’s polo’s Mecca. As an anthropologist and photographer, I am about to discover a new world with its own codes, rituals and laws, far removed from the cliché of champagne parties…

Through the French champion Lionel Macaire I was introduced to the Braun and Zavaleta families, and through them to others, from horse vets to horse-breakers, from trainers to players. I met the Heguy brothers, Adolfo Cambiaso, Gonzalo Pieres, Gonzalo Tanoira and Mariano Aguerre, with Juan Sauro helping me, as ever, with my accreditations for Palermo. I didn’t realise at the time, but I was in the heart of the best polo in the world.

I recall the stunning sound of the horses galloping, the constant change of horses like Ferraris, and the players’ concentration and tension. And the tribe all around: mothers, fathers, wives, children, trainers, friends… a world within a world. An incredible show.

An incredible scene for photography.

Back home in Paris in 2003, I published my first report on polo for Le Figaro Magazine, and the Macaire organised an exhibition of my Argentina photos at the Royal Hotel during the Deauville Polo Cup. Later, I flew to Palm Springs and the Eldorado Polo Club.

Then I discovered two great books: Polo

by Susan Barrantes and Chakkar: Polo Around the World by Herbert Spencer & Fred Meyer.

I decided to create a book continuing their adventures, and published articles in Vogue, AD, Paris Match, L’Optimum and La Tribune.

Thanks to Cartier, I flew to the fairytale snow polo in Saint Moritz, to the royal polo in Windsor, to Jaipur for elephant polo and to Dubai’s amazing Palm Desert designed by Ali Albwardy, with his luxury hotel and villas and his treasured private polo museum. With the virtuoso aficionada Celine Charloux and her charity Les P’tits Cracks, and Alfio Marchini, I shared the experience of the Sotogrande Gold Cup, the English palenques, and a great nomadic friendship from Paris to Argentina.

With Christopher Giercke’s family, I flew to remote Mongolia to experience wild polo with teams from the Gobi desert, Karakorum, Oulan Bator and China. In

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For me, polo conjures images of fearlessness, unity and bravery. It evokes fantasy, prestige, courage and passion.

Its identity is one of gentlemanly values 1 Bautista Heguy in the pampas with his horses 2 The young Dubai team at the Cartier International Dubai Polo Challenge 2008 at Albwardy’s Desert Palm Hotel (from left) Mohammed Bin Drai, Rashid Bin Drai, Halid Bin Drai and Rashid Albwardy 3 Mongolia Polo Tournament in Orkhon Valley at Christopher and Enkhe Giercke’s Genghis Khan Polo Club 4 Players’ boots at Eldorado Polo Club, Palm Springs 5 Cartier International Dubai Polo Challenge 2008: Emirates NBD team meets Qatar Airways 6 Eduardo Novillo Astrada cools off 7 Aiken Cura, one the most famous stallions of Adolfo Cambiaso’s, at the Palermo Palenque in 2006

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marvellous landscapes there were surreal games and adventures around the Orkhon Valley. Thanks to Patrick Guerrand Hermès I flew to the Royal Guards in Morocco and, of course, photographed the great atmosphere of his Apremont farm in Chantilly – a polo paradise one hour from Paris. Then there was the chic Bagatelle, the glamourous Saint Tropez, and the intimate Club of La Moinerie. This summer, I shall discover the Brittany Polo Club of La Baule, based in picturesque ‘marais salants’.

From the islands of Brioni in Croatia, I flew to the Hamptons in New York to photograph Adolfo Cambiaso with JaegerLeCoultre (with whom we also do photo sessions in Palm Beach and Argentina).

I photographed amazing polo ranches such as Crab Orchard, Isla Caroll and La Lechuza.

Then photo-shoots and adventures in Argentina with Polito Ulloa, one of the most respected polo horse-breakers, the 1,500 horses of the Heguy brothers Chapeleufú I, Raul Gandara’s stud farm south of Cordoba, the legendary polo horses auctions at La Rurale, the famous boot-makers Fagliano, and amazing polo estancias, such as the estancia el Churqui, Colibri, Areleuquen, La Conception, La Ellerstina, La Martina and La Dolfina.

To conclude, I plan to travel to Pakistan, Jordan, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, England and Argentina again (in between trips to India, where for years I shared life with a leper community, and Gandhi ashrams, and photo sessions in East Africa). Tomorrow, I fly to Mexico to experience Costa Careyes with the Brignone family.

For me, polo conjures images of fearlessness, unity and bravery. It evokes fantasy, prestige, courage and passion.

Its identity is one of modern gentlemanly values that evolve with travel and friendship.

Life is getting more and more professional, especially in high-level sport, and I hope the gentlemanly values and friendship will survive, and that polo remains a fundamental experience in developing self-mastery and team spirit, competition and decisionmaking. And, of course, the magical feelings, the parties and companionship.

Farouk Younes told me that ‘polo transcends all ethnic, cultural, political and religious differences’. I hope this will be reflected in pictures I have taken for my book, to be published at Christmas 2009.

I’m also researching vintage photos of old polo tournaments, portraits, and places to include in the book. Any help, testimony or ideas will be very welcome. Together we can create a scrapbook for the polo tribe to share.

To contact Aline, email her at ac@alinecoquelle.com

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hot property USPA Properties is contributing millions of dollars to American polo through its range of branded clothing, reports Herbert Spencer

The Mogul conquests of the late 15th century onwards first brought the ancient game of polo from its birthplace in Persia into India, but it would be almost four centuries before the sport reached the USA. It seems historically incongruous, therefore, that men and women of the rapidly rising and aspiring middle class in modern India will soon be wearing clothing adorned not with some symbol of Indian polo but rather the name and logos of the much younger US Polo Association (USPA).

Nothing could better illustrate the global success of USPA Properties Inc (USPAP), the marketing subsidiary of the American polo association that is responsible for licensing the USPA name and symbols for use in manufacturing and merchandising products.

Not only are USPAP’s commercial activities making the brand ‘US Polo Assn – Since 1890’ known throughout the world but, more importantly, they are contributing millions of dollars in royalties to USPA coffers to develop and grow the sport at home.

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‘We signed a licensing agreement with Arvind Mills Ltd, the big Indian textiles and fashion group, just last autumn,’ says David Cummings, President/CEO of USPAP, ‘and they are launching their first line of US Polo Assn-branded men’s clothing [later to be expanded to ladies and youth] this autumn.

We are pleased with their progress and designs.

Their apparel will be priced somewhere below Polo Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger when it hits the shops on the Indian sub-continent.’

Just one week after announcing the Arvind Mills contract last October, Cummings heralded another new licensing agreement, this time for Europe, with the Italian firm Incom SPA. Incom’s clothing, with USPAthemed polo motifs from USPAP, is due to go on sale in Italy, Spain and Portugal in the autumn, with plans to expand the market into other countries on the Continent and possibly the UK as well.

Now, with other licensees in New York, Panama City, Istanbul, Shanghai,

and Goteborg, Sweden, USPAP’s commercial activities extend through North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia, with retail potential in more than a hundred countries. ‘We are currently looking for licensees in Africa and Australasia, which would complete the global picture,’ says Cummings.

While apparel is common to all of the USPAP’s partners, other product categories licensed to various firms include the likes of shoes, accessories, bath products, luggage, home furnishings – a wide range of branded goods like their competitors, Polo Ralph Lauren (PRL). Products with the US Polo Assn brand can be found in store and online with chains such as Sears and JC Penney in the US, but also in some 35 stand-alone shops built by licensees in shopping streets or big malls from Orlando, Florida, to Istanbul, Turkey.

The USPAP has deliberately chosen not to go head-to-head with PRL at the top of

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1 USPAP has become a familiar feature of the malls of the world 2 President/CEO David Cummings

the designer sportswear ladder. ‘We look for companies that will manufacture and market products of good quality at more affordable prices,’ explains Cummings.

‘The big difference between us and PRL,’ says Cummings, ‘is that Ralph Lauren never had anything to do with the sport itself, whereas we are from polo, of polo and exist for the benefit of the sport.’ Only in the past year, after decades of capitalising upon the image of polo, has PRL started to venture into sponsorship of the sport with a team at Bridgehampton Polo Club, Long Island, and plans for another team in Argentina. The USPA’s income from its licensing activities would have been even greater had the association not had to spend vast sums on lawyers’ fees over the past two decades and more to deal with legal challenges from PRL. The American fashion giant built his empire on the image of polo and the luxury lifestyle of its adherents. PRL has registered a dozen or more trade names with the word ‘polo’, along with its famous logo of a mounted polo player, and has challenged those, including polo clubs, who tried to use the P word or images of the sport in more than the most modest of merchandising activities. More often than not, PRL’s won in the patent offices of various countries where the sport and the fashion house have come into conflict.

Soon after the USPA first began its marketing operations in the 1980s, PRL issued its first legal challenge to the association that had governed the sport in America since it was formed in 1890. The court ruled then that both entities had the right to commercial exploitation of the word ‘polo’ and to use images of the sport in merchandising products – in effect, a legal stand-off. The USPA attempted to move the relationship to one of compromise, but with limited success.

To avoid confusion with PRL’s ‘one-player’ symbol, the USPAP devised a logo showing one player challenging another with a hook (the image came from a watercolour by Irish artist and polo manager Eddie Kennedy).

The USPAP claimed that PRL had agreed to its new logos, but PRL denied this and in 2000, after products from USPAP licensee Jordache were already in the shops, sued he polo association and Jordache in a New York federal court.

The jury ruled that three of the four versions of the two-player logos would create no confusion in consumers’ minds – a landmark victory for the USPA. PRL appealed, but in March this year their appeal was denied.

Just how important to American polo are the profits the USPA receives from

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USPAP contributes millions of dollars in royalties to USPA coffers to develop and grow the sport at home its marketing subsidiary? Association accounts for 2007 show that a large proportion of the governing body’s total revenue for the year came from royalties paid by the USPAP – a huge $3.4 million, according to Cummings. While much of this goes in the association’s ‘rainy day’ endowment fund, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been earmarked for such activities as the association’s youth training and professional umpiring and for meeting deficits in its administrative budget. Over the years, royalties from the USPAP has enabled the national association – the richest in the world – to hold costs of members’ subscriptions and fees to a minimum.

Despite the continuing downturn in the US economy and the American retail sales sector (from which a large portion of the USPAP’s profits have come), Cummings remains upbeat about future income: ‘With global expansion our licensees should be grossing one billion dollars in retail by 2012.’

Cummings, who was manager of California’s Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club and then executive director of the USPA before moving to concentrate on his job at USPAP, estimates he now spends ‘about 35 per cent’ of his time away from the company’s headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky. He racks up thousands of air miles a year, criss-crossing the globe to seek new licensees and coordinate the efforts of existing partners.

Over the past couple of years, Cummings has changed the company’s approach to licensing, preferring to contract direct with firms in specific markets rather than with big, regionl master licensees. (‘This way we cut out the middleman and benefit from royalties.’) The USPAP has also developed a ‘style book’ as guidance for its licensees, ‘to ensure a consistency of image, if you like, the DNA of our products, in the global marketplace. Our partners seem to appreciate this and we try to encourage a common approach to advertising.’

When, this autumn, some aspiring fan at Calcutta Polo Club, the world’s oldest, dons an Arvind Mills polo shirt or sweatshirt with ‘US Polo Assn’ emblazoned across its front, Cummings will know, only too well, that 8,000 miles away in the USA, some aspect of American polo will be benefiting from its sale and the royalties paid by the Indian licensee. A satisfying scenario for an astute businessman who has devoted his life to the sport.

6/6/08 11:02:24

© 2003-2008 Casablanca Polo. All rights reserved.

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The Casablanca™ saddles use carbon fibre technology.

The Casablanca™ Carbon Technology™ saddle tree is made from a unique combination of fibreglass and carbon fibre which gives the tree its distinctive flexibility and exceptional strength while making the saddle up to 50% lighter than other polo saddles.

the action

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[drama] Catch up with all the latest action from around the world

44 FIP World Cup

55 Eldorado Polo Club

60 Cortina

Chile triumphed in the eighth world chamionships, held in Mexico City

Ambitious improvements are underway at the scenic Californian club

The Dolomites provide a stunning backdrop for an exciting tournament in the snow

48 Florida high goal

56 SUPA

62 Hurtwood Park

Bad weather and controversy put a slight dampener on the Florida season

University polo is thriving in the UK, as the La Martina National Championships proved

Kenney Jones’s forward-thinking club was host to the £50,000 Polo Masters

52 Florida medium goal

57 Miami Beach

Medium goal polo is flourishing in the Sunshine State

The Miami Beach Polo World Cup IV showcased an increasingly popular scene

54 US Intercollegiate

58 Argentine Polo Tour

This season was fiercely contested and full of shocks and surprises

Cambiaso and co hit the road in polo’s exciting new competition

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Above Chile supporters celebrate their country’s victory in the FIP World Cup

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The FIP World Cup

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This year’s competition was played in a spirit of sportsmanship, and produced a first-time winner in Chile, reports Herbert Spencer There can be few more impressive polo venues anywhere in the world than the stunning Campo Marte right in the middle of Mexico City, where the main matches were played for the World Cup of the Federation of International Polo (FIP) in April and May. The studio back lots of Hollywood could not have offered a more imaginative set for an international sports event.

Campo Marte is part of a military complex off the capital’s grand Paseo de la Reforma in its huge 1,800-acre Chapultepec Park, that great green lung of woods and water in this air-polluted (second only to Beijing) city of 16 million souls. The park is home to pleasure lakes, a zoo, museums, the national auditorium and many other public buildings.

Chapultepec is at the very heart of the vibrant life of the nation’s capital.

A parade and sports ground normally used by troops and occasionally polo, Campo Marte is dominated by a huge Mexican flag, measuring 50m by 28m, flying from a massive flagpole that is 100m high. Some of the city’s stunning modern architecture, including luxury hotels of 40 or more stories, form the backdrop to the scoreboard end, and there are covered stands seating 3,000 on either side of the ground. For the FIP event, banners advertising a dozen World Cup sponsors, including leading supporter El Palacio de Hierro, were strung out along the boards.

It was in this magnificent setting that Mexico dashed England’s hopes for a medal in FIP’s eighth Polo World Championship, where the semi-finals were played and where, on the final day, Chile spectacularly came from behind to triumph over reigning champions Brazil to earn gold medals for the first time in the competition’s 20-year history. Mexico beat Spain to take third place in the championships, winning in the last seconds of the match to the delight of the home crowd.

The FIP World Cup is the sport’s only truly global competition, played at the 10 to 14-goal level with a 5-goal cap on individual players’ handicaps so that smaller as well as larger polo-playing nations might enter. Over the past year, 24 national teams had competed in sub-zone and zone play-offs around the world to earn a place in Mexico. Those that made it were: Brazil as reigning champions, Mexico as host country, Chile, Canada, England, Spain, New Zealand, and South Africa.

The majority of players in the eight teams were young professionals, many with high goal experience in pro-am polo. The youngest were only 17 years old: Carlitos Gracida, son of former 10-goaler Carlos Gracida, for Mexico, and Recaredo Ossa for Chile. The oldest player to take to the field was Spain’s 50-year-old veteran pro Nacho Domecq.

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Mexico put together a strong organising committee to run the World Cup, headed by Rogelio Igartua, president of the Mexican Polo Federation. Other members included Giorgio Brignone, Guillermo ‘Billy’ Steta, Luis Olazabal, General Guillermo Galván Galván, Mexico’s Secretary of Defence and Antonio Jáuregui, president of Tecámac Polo Club.

FIP president Patrick Guerrand-Hermès of France was on hand to preside over the event. Farouk Younes of Egypt was the FIP tournament director and Emmanuel Seidner of Guatemala was his assistant.

Most of the matches of the final stage

The FIP World Cup is the sport’s only truly global competition

1 Throw-in, England v Mexico at Campo Marte 2 Matias Vial of Chile

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were played on three grounds at Tecámac, about one hour’s drive from Campo Marte.

Tecámac is a long-established walled community with some 35 villas around the polo grounds. It was here that the Mexican polo federation, organisers of this World Cup, had gathered 212 polo ponies, either on loan or rented from players at clubs throughout the country, as a pool from which each team drew their mounts by lot.

Argentina’s Ricardo Mihanovich Jr was FIP’s horse master, helping to grade the ponies and ensure the fairest distribution possible among the competing teams.

Because of the high altitude of both Campo Marte and Tecámac, FIP agreed to hold chukkas to 6½ minutes rather than the regulation 7½ minutes to make it easier on the ponies. Timers were on hand to restrict use of a pony to the equivalent of one chukka per match, a requirement agreed with owners of ponies in the pool.

Ironically, the very first league match of the competition at Tecámac was between England and Brazil. The South Americans had beaten England in extra time to take the World Cup at Chantilly, France, in 2004. Now history repeated itself, with Brazil downing England 7-5. As before, England blamed the defeat on bad decisions by the umpires.

In fact, all the teams complained about the umpiring throughout the event, and this is a subject that FIP must address before the next World Cup. Players in the World Cup are accustomed to playing under one or more of no fewer than four sets of rules: those of the British, American and Argentine polo associations and the FIP international rules

This eighth World Cup illustrated yet again how the federation can bring the international polo community together for the good of the sport worldwide – all with differences which have yet to be reconciled. Only three officials had been hired for Mexico: two Argentines and a Guatemalan.

On most days of play the two umpires and referee had to officiate at four matches, one after another. Eventually another professional umpire was flown in from the US. All the teams also complained about the quality and condition of ponies provided by the organisers. To be fair, however, the problem with ponies should be viewed in the context of Mexico’s status as one of the smaller polo-playing nations.

The country has only around 150 players and its clubs play mainly low goal polo. Many of the available mounts had never played to medium goal level. It was obvious from the start that players would have to adapt to ponies that might not be up to the standards to which they were accustomed in their home countries. Some did, some did not. All the teams were in the same boat. Chile, Brazil, Mexico, and Spain rode their assigned mounts on into the semi-finals and finals. England went on to lose all their games.

It has to be said here that England hardly covered themselves with glory, either on or off the field. In recognition of all the teams’ complaints about various aspects of this World Cup, FIP president Guerrand-Hermès

extended a scheduled meeting of the federation’s Council of Administration into an ‘open forum’ and invited all the eight competing countries to send representatives to air their views. Seven countries showed up, with players, coaches, or national association officials in attendance. No representative of England attended.

The consensus in the open forum – and in private conversations – was that FIP needs to take more control over its World Cup in the future, regardless of which countries are hosting, and that the federation should consider hiring experienced professionals to assist in this rather than relying entirely upon volunteers. One hopes that lessons have been learned.

In any case, this World Cup accomplished two important things. First, it brought the Mexican polo community together in a co-operative effort in which players and clubs throughout the country took part. Hosting such a global event has served to raise the profile of Mexican polo and should encourage greater growth in the future. Players and supporters who came to Mexico from around the world will long remember the boundless and enthusiastic hospitality of the hosts during the championships. Second, this eighth World Cup illustrated yet again how the

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federation can bring the international polo community together for the good of the sport worldwide. The Mexicans had wisely housed all the teams in the same hotel just across from Campo Marte and the great spirit of camaraderie among the players on and off the polo grounds was outstanding.

So too was the sportsmanship. Nothing illustrated this better than one incident during the hard-fought final between Chile and Brazil. When umpires called a foul against Chile, which Brazil considered unwarranted, the Brazilian player taking the penalty simply tapped the ball rather than trying to convert, opening up the game again. And after the final bell, the embraces the Brazilians gave their Chilean opponents were as warm and heartfelt as those the victorious Chileans got from their delighted supporters. That is, after all, the way polo between nations should be played.

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A FITTING TRIBUTE During the main matches at Campo Marte, Mexican federation president Rogelio Igartua paid tribute to the late Pablo Rincón Gallardo and Patricio Mujica Brieba for bringing the World Cup to Mexico. It was Pablo and Patricio who put together Mexico’s successful bid to host the World Championship.

Sadly, both died during the planning stages.

Pablo, president of the Mexican federation when he died, played for his country against the US in four Camacho Cup encounters and in the first FIP World Cup in 1987, and in 1985 won the US Open Championship with Carter Ranch.

Patrico, born in Santiago, Chile, lived for many years in Mexico and was a popular player, with a ranch at Tecamac.

Further tribute to the two men came from Igartua and FIP president Patrick Guerrand-Hermès during a farewell black-tie gala at Club de Banqueros. Pablo’s niece, Sophia Corcuera, was there to receive a trophy honouring his memory.

It was poignant that Chilean-born Patricio didn’t live to see the national team of his native country win the World Cup.

1 Calo Siquini (Brazil) and Recasedo Ossa (Chile) 2 Marcela Cabañas, Mexican dancer and wife of local player Hector 3 Rogelio Igartua opens the tournament at Tecamac 4 Carlos Gracida Jr (Mexico) in action 5 Renato Junqueira of Brazil plays a backhander against Nina Vestey

6/6/08 11:10:11

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Florida high goal Weather and other problems contributed to a slightly disappointing high goal season, reports Herbert Spencer

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is ‘tagged’ and cannot be played for the rest of the match. The new USPA rule should go into effect after the autumn meetings.

The high goal season kicked off at IPCPB in January with the Joe Barry Memorial with eight teams, then the Ylvisaker Cup with 11 squads in contention. IPCPB dropped these from 22-goal to 20-goal, bringing them in line with the major summer season’s tournaments, such as the Pacific Coast Open in California.

Scott Devon’s Catamount won both the 20-goal contests at IPCPB with an all-North American line-up that included 8-goaler Nicolas Roldan

and Canadians Brandon Phillips and Todd Offen. After the season, the USPA raised Devon’s handicap from 2 to 3-goals, making him one of the country’s highest rated amateurs.

First up in the Florida 26-goal was the C.V. Whitney Cup, contested by 11 teams. IPCPB owner John Goodman’s Isla Carroll won this one, soundly defeating Bautista’s Las Monjitas 15-12. All of the pros in this encounter were Argentine: for Isla Carroll, 10-goaler Facundo Pieres, Marcos Di Paola and Magoo Laprida; for Las Monjitas, the Novillo Astrada brothers Eduardo, Javier and Ignacio.

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With a score of high goal team patrons spending millions of dollars on professionals, ponies and private grounds to play the winter season in Florida, what they want is a lot of polo for their bucks. And that is what they get at International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPCPB). But this also brings pressures, and the 2008 season was no exception, as some problems attracted the attention of the US Polo Association (USPA), which is now planning to make rules changes to solve them.

None of this, of course, could detract from the glory that went to American George Rawlings’ Crab Orchard team, spearheaded

by Adolfo Cambiaso, who won the Stanford USPA Open Championship for the second year running, and to Colombian Camillo Bautista’s Las Monjitas, who won the USPA Gold Cup and were finalists in all three of the 26-goal tournaments at IPCPB. IPCPB, America’s premier polo venue, has a monopoly on the USPA’s 26-goal tournaments – the highest level at which the sport is played in the US. In addition to the top competitions, including the Open, and subsidiaries to these, the club stages two 20-goal tournaments.

Even in normal circumstances, with up to 12 teams in the big ones, organisation can be complex over the three-month season. This year was far from normal, however, with weather failing to live up to Florida’s reputation as the Sunshine State. Seasoned observers could not remember a season with so much rain, and the polo suffered as a consequence.

Game after game had to be postponed, grounds were often too wet for practice, and it was sometimes difficult to keep ponies in top form.

What most shocked the polo community, however, and made many of the games less enjoyable for spectators, was the increasing abuse of the rule that allows a player to ask for time out to change a pony he says is in distress. This made for unattractive, stop-start action with matches lasting much longer than they should, often two hours or more.

Normally players will ride off the ground for fresh mounts during a chukka on their own time without stopping the clock. Now they were frequently asking umpires to stop the action for changes. The abuse was obvious to everyone here, not least USPA chairman Tom Biddle, in Wellington for the association’s spring meetings. Biddle told the high goal and rules committees how he saw one player stop the clock for a ‘lame’ pony, then bring the same mount back in succeeding chukkas.

Now the rules committee has agreed to adopt the system used by the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA) to prevent such abuse.

If a player asks for time out to change a pony that is lame or otherwise in distress, that pony

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Las Monjitas (Spanish for ‘The Nuns’) triumphed in the USPA Gold Cup, defeating the all-American team Skeeterville 12-7.

Skeeterville was the team of the late Skeeter Johnston, who was killed in a polo accident last year. The team had been kept together for one last time this season in Skeeter’s memory, with his nephew Will Johnston in the patron’s position and with Adam Snow, Owen Rinehart and Julio Arellano.

Everyone was sad to see Skeeterville go, but the team did leave with one triumph: it scooped the $100,000 team prize of the

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North American Polo League (NAPL), the franchise organisation founded by Goodman and Skeeter Johnston.

It was during the Gold Cup that two top Argentine pros, Sebastian and Pite Merlos, were sacked by their Venezuelan patron, Victor Vargas, for being over-argumentative with umpires, players and the patron himself – not a wise move with the team owner who signs the cheques. After he sent the Merlos brothers packing, Vargas’s Lechuza Caracas played on as a 22-goal team. As the 26-goal season progressed, there were some unexpected

score lines, with widespread rumours of match fixing between some teams. Not a pretty picture, although nothing could be proved.

The Florida season ended with the biggest prize of all, the Stanford USPA Open Championship, which dates back to 1904.

Twelve teams were in contention, with the final between two teams thus far undefeated in the championship: Crab Orchard and Las Monjitas.

Upwards of 9,000 spectators jammed into the IPCPB stadium to watch them do battle.

George Rawlings’ Crab Orchard had 10-goaler Adolfo Cambiaso, considered the

What most shocked the polo community was the abuse of the time out rule for changing ponies

1 John Goodman followed by Marcos Di Paola of Isla Carroll 2 Nachi Heguy on 10-goal form in the final

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6/6/08 14:27:31

hurlingham [ action ]

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world’s best player; 9-goaler Nachi Heguy; and 6-goal American Jeff Blake. Camillo Bautista Las Monjitas had the winning combination of the Novillo Astrada brothers. It looked like it could be anybody’s game, but in the end Cambiaso’s magic and Crab Orchard’s greater pony power prevailed and Rawlings’ quartet triumphed, taking the championship with a 15-12 win over Las Monjitas.

Jeff Blake’s performance for Crab Orchard earned him the Most Valuable Player award.

Cambiaso’s mare Sylvia won Best Playing Pony of the final and Nacho Novillo Astrada’s Pico Blanco was named overall best pony of the Open. After the Open, Cambiaso confirmed that he would not be returning to play the Florida season next year, preferring to stay in Argentina with his family and play in the patron-based Polo Tour there. Rawlings announced that he would not be fielding a high goal team in 2009 and, with Skeeterville gone, entries in the 26-goal at IPCPB could be down yet again.

As elsewhere in polo, Argentine professionals dominated the Florida high goal scene, with fewer American players finding places on teams. At its meetings in Wellington, the USPA agreed to return to a form of protectionism to encourage home-grown talent. There will be a new rule requiring at least one American (excluding the patron of whatever nationality) on every team at the 22-goal level or lower.

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During the high goal season there were a number of occasions when Peter Brant, patron of White Birch, withdrew from his team for one reason or another and put a fourth professional in his place. There was a suggestion from other team owners that an amateur patron must be substituted by another amateur rather than a professional, but this got nowhere in the USPA meetings.

There was some good polo played on Florida’s Gold Coast, but given the weather and various other problems, the consensus among players and seasoned observers was that this was far from being a great season.

More’s the pity, as Texan John Goodman’s International Polo Club Palm Beach is arguably the most impressive polo facility in the world. Better luck next year.

1 From left: Adolfo and Maria Cambiaso, George and Beverley Rawlings, and Natascha and Nachi Heguy, after the final of the US Open 2 The Skeeterville fans in good voice

ALEX POCHECO; GREGORY RATNER

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Some good polo was played, but given various problems on Florida’s Gold Coast, this was far from a great season

6/6/08 09:58:41

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hurlingham [ action ]

Florida medium goal The number of medium goal leagues in South Florida means amateurs and professionals are rubbing shoulders on a more regular basis, reports Alex Webbe

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the George Oliver Cup that focused on the developing young and promising players of the game, and the 18-goal Master Series played in coordination with the Grand Champions Polo Club in Wellington.

Marc and Melissa Ganzi created the Grand Champions Polo Club in an effort to supply ongoing polo for the many professionals and amateurs who make Wellington their year-round home. Based on two former Palm Beach Polo and Country Club championship fields, the club’s future is assured.

Offering spring and fall polo, the 14-goal tournaments make use of a pro pool that boasts the talents of Hector Galindo, Nick Roldan, Kris Kampsen, Tommy Biddle, Juan Bollini, Roberto Gonzalez, John Gobin and Brandon Phillips. Patrons such as Bob Daniels (Pony Express), Scott Swerdlin, Leo Mandelbaum, Gene Goldstein, Omar Trevino and TJ Barrack (California) are just some of the players out for some casual/

scored a convincing 13-11 win over the previously unbeaten Catamount team under the guidance of the legendary Gracida.

‘You don’t get to beat the master twice,’ smiled Devon afterwards. Piocho Ranch received a $25,000 cheque from Bruce Agardy for their efforts in a well-planned game that eventually took the legs out from under the strong Catamount team.

On a sadder note, Jack Oxley of the Royal Palm Polo Club announced that it would be ceasing polo operations on 15 May. Wellington may be the home of America’s high goal polo, but there are a number of area clubs who have all the activity they can handle in the medium goal range. With such a variety 1 of clubs, medium goal polo in the Wellington area is truly a moveable feast.

Next year, Hobe Sound will be up and running, serving as a base for Adolfo Cambiaso, and offering new and exciting opportunities for medium goal competitions.

Wellington may be the home of US high goal polo, but with such a variety of clubs, medium goal polo in the area is truly a moveable feast competitive polo at Grand Champions. With the emphasis on ‘fun’, amateurs get an opportunity to play with top professionals, hone their skills and enjoy social activities that range from the club’s weekly Asados to a ‘Dine Around’ concept with club dinners in a number of Palm Beach’s finer restaurants.

Co-sponsor of the US Trust-sponsored 18-goal Masters Series with Port Mayaca, Grand Champions has a serious face to it as well, complementing the activities and tournaments of the surrounding clubs.

The 18-goal had five entries, headlined

by Scott Devon’s powerful Catamount team.

Catamount had won both the 20-goal Joe Barry Memorial and the 20-goal Ylvisaker Cup earlier in the season at the International Polo Club. Marc Ganzi’s Audi team featured young Gonzalito Pieres (9); Bo Goodman’s Mt. Brilliant team relied on the talents of Sugar Erskine (7) and Guille Aguero (7); Julian Daniels and Luis Escobar joined Robert Orthwein and Colin McCosh on the Detroit-Blues side while Piocho Ranch’s TJ Barrack turned to Memo Gracida.

Piocho Ranch (2-2) was humiliated by Catamount (4-0) in an earlier 17-6 loss, but the finals would be different. Piocho Ranch

GREGORY RATNER; DAVID LOMINSKA

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With all the focus on the high goal scene in south Florida, you might think that it would be easy to overlook the explosion of medium goal leagues and clubs that proliferate the area. From the granddaddy of them all, the Gulfstream Polo Club, to the new kid on the block, Steve Orthwein’s Port Mayaca Polo Club, the competition ranges from relaxed to super-competitive as a combination of players and professionals of all ages dot the manicured polo fields.

The competition at the Gulfstream Polo Club sees Cathy Brown on a team that includes Howard Hipwood and Alex Scott-Barnes. Duke Buchan from New York finds himself in the company of Julio Ezcurra and Juan Oliva and Bill Paterniti is playing alongside Del Walton. There is a sense of community at the club that attracts people like Parker Thorne and Anna Hancock while others are comfortable going from venue to venue, sampling something off each and every plate.

Wayne Garrison, who had purchased Memo Gracida’s La Herradura property, brought polo veteran Red Armour aboard to organise a more relaxed level of 14-goal competition in Flying Cow Polo. Flying Cow attracted everyone from New Bridge’s Russ McCall to 7-goalers Luis Escobar, Tommy Biddle and Sugar Erskine and was sprinkled with members of the Goodman (John, Bo and Hutton) and Johnston (Will and Gillian) families.

Phil Heatley took the lead reins at Outback again, and rode shotgun over one of the most competitive medium goal operations in the area. Young players and aspiring patrons joined veteran players of the ilk of Roberto Gonzalez (6) and Guille Aguero (7). Then there were loyal sponsors like Dawn Jones, Francisco d’Agostino, Joe DiMenna, Luis Alfonso De Borbon and brothers Gonzalo and Carlos Avendano, with Jim Whisenand riding at the front end of an EFG Bank team.

The rules are strict, the action competitive and the operation runs like clockwork.

Fighting its way through red tape and zoning requirements, the Hobe Sound Polo Club will be emerging with its first polo fields in operation this coming season. Steve Orthwein had already purchased over 570 acres in Port Mayaca, about an hour north of Wellington, where he built five internationalclass polo fields. Memo Gracida was contracted as the club’s director of polo operations and hired Canadian International 5-goaler Brandon Phillips to serve as the club’s polo manager.

Port Mayaca opened with a family holiday tournament, a series of 12-goal competitions,

6/6/08 11:12:50

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1 Brandon Phillips of Catamount leads the pack in the final of the 18-goal Masters Series 2 Action from the Outback 14-goal with Kris Kampsen (green) 3 Memo Gracida

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6/6/08 11:12:58

hurlingham [ action ]

US Intercollegiate This year’s season was a fierce, close, and full of shocks and surprises, reports Parker Flannery

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1 The victorious Texas A&M team (from left) Steve Krueger, Jose Aguilar, Parker Flannery, Jake Little 2 KC Beal (TCU, purple) and Lizzie Wisner (UConn, navy) give chase

AMY WISEHART

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The 2008 intercollegiate polo season was full of suspense and upset. For Texas A&M the most important games were the earliest.

Although both Steve Krueger and I were on last year’s team there were several rumours that without Mason Wroe our team was not a contender for another championship. After a shaky start in the fall, beating Texas Tech by a goal in the last 30 seconds, we found our groove in the spring semester.

After an intense spring season and an extremely competitive regional tournament, it was anyone’s guess which teams would be selected as the nation’s two wildcard teams.

As soon as we found out that there would be no wildcards we had the confidence needed to repeat our 2007 victory. Although Cornell and University of Virginia had talented players we did not feel that either of these teams would be as capable as New Mexico State or Texas Tech.

In the first men’s gameg Cornell beat University of Virginia (UVa) in a game that looked to be all but won for UVa. Although UVa dominated the game, Cornell played like a bulldog that would not let go. Cornell had an excellent penalty shooter who kept them in the game and almost won it single-handedly. After watching this game we knew that the only way to beat Cornell was to build up a lead early that would allow us to play patiently, and hopefully keep us from having to make high-risk plays.

The tournament started for us in the semifinals against Westmont, a young but amicable group of players. In the semis, we stuck to our original game plan of hitting hard in the first chukka and then relying on our speed and balance to dominate the game. The plan worked exactly as intended and allowed us to play our alternate. This is the same way we played against Cornell, jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the opening minutes of the first chukka.

After this first chukka we knew that the game would be won or lost depending on our ability to keep cool mentally. The game against Cornell was one of the most physical that any of us can remember. Every member of the Cornell team came off at least once and two of our horses were injured in the same chukka.

Cornell got to finals because of their ability to stay in the game by breaking other teams mentally, and driving other teams to fouling.

Luckily for us we had seen their plan in action against UVA, and it was fresh in our minds.

Everyone on our team had already been to nationals and could deal with the pressure.

Although the score seemed lopsided at the end, there was a very different vibe in the arena during the game. It was like being surrounded by sharks waiting to go into a feeding frenzy, and we knew that one mistake could easily be the end of us. I will sure be nervous to play Cornell for the next few years.

5/6/08

09:54:33

California dreaming

stACey gALiNdo/WWW.PoLozoNe.Com

Eldorado Polo Club may be set in picturesque surroundings, but it’s certainly not a case of style over substance

1 governor’s Cup action with tomas obregon (in red, for oC Polo) and Joseph stuart (hawks) 2 the Casablanca team, from left: Nicoli, Carlos, Carlitos and Brianna galindo

California’s eldorado Polo Club boasts one of the most beautiful locations in the world, nestling against the mountains of the Coachella Valley, near Palm springs. it’s an idyllic setting, but it’s not just a pretty place. eldorado was conceived as a players’ club – the late Carlton Beal, one of the club’s most influential founders, was adamant about that. today the club offers polo at all levels from two to twelve goals, stabling for over 1,000 horses, plus a coaching league, rege Ludwig Polo school and a Junior Polo Program. the 12 polo fields are put to full use, with up to 35 teams a weekend wanting serious play. general manager Albert Lansdorp is currently overseeing a major transformation. since taking over in November 2007 he has listened to the suggestions of players, patrons and horticulturalists regarding improving the fields. he and his superintendent Andrew Perkins have introduced new equipment and working procedures that will take the fields to the highest level. the Clubhouse and Cantina are also undergoing renovation.

New patrons this year were robert Jornayvaz, robert gray and tom sprung of denver, Colorado, ed Pope and rick and robin Paicius from the nearby Los Angeles area, plus returning patrons Fred and Julian mannix of Calgary, Canada, William garlock of san Francisco, local dan horn with the Walker family of Long Beach and UsPA Circuit governor and Windsor Capital Patrick Nesbitt. missing (injured) from the usual list were patrons including geoff Palmer of the Antelope squad and Ben soleimani of mansour. Professionals Joe henderson, hugo Barabucci, santiago Bottaro, daniel roenisch, galindo Family and local California stars Jason Crowder and Joseph stuart were among the returning high goal players.

League play dominated both January and February, from four to 12-goal, with up to 28 teams playing in the various leagues. rich roenisch bronzes were the ultimate prize. eldorado had one of its busiest seasons ever, and the finale came with the Barbara sinatra Children’s Center ‘skins’ game, with eight teams vying for the $4,000-per-chukka purse. the UsPA Circuit governor’s Cup tournament featured 13 teams competing for the beautiful antique trophy. Longstanding general manager Alex Jacoy was retiring after 31 years, and became honorary chairman for the day for both finals. Patrick Nesbitt’s Windsor team took home $16,000, and the hawks, with patron Julian mannix, won $8,000 in prize money. robin Paicius was patroness for the oC Polo squad, who played with the obregon twins, tomas and matias, and Jessica Bailey-manno. tomas obregon scored the winning goal in the sixth chukka.

hurlingham [ action ] Charles Betz and David Woodd (kneeling) with the winners

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SUPA stars

Becky Simpson reports from the La Martina National Universities Winter Championships

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it was an icy cold morning when i arrived at the Hand equestrian Centre in Bristol to join the stalwart members of the sUPA team for four days of university polo. That means 74 teams from 25 universities, 249 players (of whom 65 per cent were female) and 888 individual chukkas. it would be a busy few days. sUPA began in 1994 when the schools Association was expanded to include universities (it now boasts more than 25). This is a phenomenal achievement by a core sUPA Universities team led by Mike Hobday. i doubt whether there are many who would step up to the challenge: he and his team can process up to 50 chukkas of student polo in one day.

The emphasis is on teamwork and fun, and if this is the basis for youth polo in the UK, then the future is bright indeed.

‘This is what it’s all about,’ nods Mike, as he enters the day’s results, while a steady stream of students approach the commentary box that forms ‘sUPA Team HQ’ for the four days. in the corner of the arena, the next team is mounted and ready to go, and upstairs in the gallery overlooking the arena, lunch is being prepared for ViP guests and sponsors: Baileys, La Martina, Roxtons and Polo networks. David Woodd turns up to support sUPA and keep an eye on the talent – he supports the event every year, watching a selection of chukkas from the Beginners to the open, and he invariably stays for the prize giving and photos.

Jason Dixon, one of the UK’s leading umpires, lends his advice to the students – he takes time to explain the rules, the whistle being blown, the penalties. i passed him in the warm-up area as he finally dismounted after being on horseback for 30-plus chukkas. ‘i might give myself a quick stretch,’ he said with a cheery smile. The truth is, he’s only got two chukkas before he’s back on again.

Then it’s on to the much-anticipated open section, and you don’t need to look at the timetable to know when the best young players in the country are about to show us their stuff – the crowds in the grandstand tell the story.

Fast and furious, it’s reassuring to see the skill and horsemanship of these youngsters. surely there must be a 10-goaler among them?

The University of West england take the honours in The open. Their fantastic battle with Durham ends the tournament, with students, friends and parents filling the stands to cheer them on. But this is just a small part of the event: there are teams taking part this year who barely trotted their way through their

Fast and furious, it’s reassuring to see the skill and horsemanship of these youngsters. surely there must be a 10-goaler among them? chukkas in 2007 but have now moved up a gear. sUPA sees them all grow, and provides grants to enable this growth to be enjoyable.

At the end of the four days, i am sitting back in the commentary box with Mike Hobday on one side, Pam Cowley on the other, and Charles Betz unable to find seating space, as a stream of students pop their head round the door to thank the sUPA team. The event generated more than £50,000 for pony hirers.

At all levels it was highly competitive, and teams put up a good fight. But win or ‘lose’, we all walked away with something, and it definitely was all about the taking part.

The launch of the new schools Alumni Polo Association (sAPA) is another milestone in the development of polo. The growth of schools and Universities Polo, which now boasts more than 2,500 members in the UK has led to the need to support a number of these players after they have left the remit and structure of sUPA. Charles Betz, Chairman of sUPA and Mike Hobday, Head of Universities, have joined forces with Lucy northmore, Director of Polonetworks Ltd, to help players wishing to enjoy polo as a hobby. Lycetts have also come forward to sponsor the development of sAPA as part of their commitment to polo, where members of sAPA will receive personal accident insurance and public liability insurance as part of their membership. sAPA is affiliated to the HPA and will organise polo among its members and provide fixtures, enabling people to play polo without committing a lot of time or money. As Polonetworks serves as the main sponsor of sAPA, players will also be premium members of Polonetworks, ensuring they can enjoy the associated benefits of this organisation and be part of the larger global polo community.

For the continued development of polo as a curriculum sport in the UK, sAPA will also serve as a fundraising vehicle with the provision of an annual grant to sUPA to assist in its ongoing support of polo in schools and universities. The inaugural sAPA summer Festival will be held on 23 and 24 August 2008 at the Heathfield Park ground of West Wycombe Park Polo Club where members new, young and old are able to come together for a weekend of competitive polo.

Visit www.polonetworks.com or www.sapapolo.com for more information.

Jon Jennings

Schools Alumni Polo Association

Beach boys

ALEX PACHECO

Beach polo is growing in popularity and is fast becoming a legitimate international event in its own right, reports Alex Webbe To portray the Miami Beach Polo World Cup IV as anything more than exhibition polo on the white sands of Miami’s South Beach would be misleading. But the growth of beach polo is quickly rivalling the success of snow polo around the world. ‘The quality of players in the tournament this year and the level of play certainly establish this as a legitimate and competitive international event,’ says legendary polo announcer David Andrews.

Six teams in the 13-goal range competed, and thousands of spectators flocked to the shore to watch Carlos Gracida (9 goals), Mike Azzaro (9), Jeff Hall (8), Juan Bollini (7), Kris Kampsen (6), Jason Crowder (6) and Pelon Escapite (6). ‘I’m impressed with the calibre of players who are competing this year,’ said Andrews in his clipped British accent. A long-time announcer at Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in Wellington, Florida, the retired real estate executive returns to Miami to inform and educate the crowds.

The Setai hotel served as the headquarters for a five-day event that began with a pre-launch event at Badrutt’s Place in Brickell and the Press Cocktail and Team Presentation at the Setai on the preceding

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Wednesday and Thursday evenings. ‘We were both surprised and delighted by the quality of players and teams that participated this year,’ said Bruce Orosz, the producer of the event.

‘We have tried to upgrade the level of play over the years. It appears that we have established a level of credibility that attracts better players and higher-rated teams.’

Created by Reto Gaudenzi in 2005, the Miami Beach Polo World Cup gets more coverage than the United States Polo Association’s Open Championship, and draws more spectators than a whole season of matches in Wellington. It benefits from a range of factors: an attractive, fashionable setting, a ready-made audience admitted free of charge, and good organisation and public relations. ‘It’s meant to be fun, exciting, glamorous,’ said Orosz, who has been with the tournament from its birth. ‘We’re looking to attract a specific audience to the beach, and found that there is something in it for everyone.’

The evenings were as well planned and coordinated as the matches with trips to the Sagamore Video Garden and the Mynt Lounge, where drinks and dancing went on into the wee hours.

Orosz even teamed up with the Miami Project charity to present a fashion show and an evening of entertainment in the form of The Blues Brothers Concert. Melissa Ganzi’s Audi team captured the 2008 championship with a thrilling sudden-death overtime 6-5 win over China Grill, but there were awards and trophies for everyone.

‘This is our first year of involvement,’ offered Frank Everett, Director of Tiffany & Co. ‘I feel certain that we are going to make this an annual event for us.’ Tiffany wasn’t the only high-end sponsor looking to cash in on the demographic that polo attracts. Equally excited about his part in the event was Steven Lewis of Lamborghini Miami. ‘It’s a marvellous event. It attracts a number of people who are already clients of mine. This is our target market.’ Orosz adds: ‘We’re going to really challenge ourselves to make next year special.

It’ll be our fifth anniversary, and we’re expecting something very special.’

So if you’re going to be anywhere near South Beach next April, you certainly won’t want to miss it.

Above Action from the final: China Grill (green) against Audi (red)

6/6/08 11:15:14

hurlingham [ action ]

3 1 From left: Sergio Casella for La Vanguardia is up against Loro Piana’s Juan Martin Nero 2 From left: Annabel Goose for Arelauquen shakes the hand of Loro Piana’s Celine Charloux 3 Flying high: the Argentine Polo Tour flag

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Argentine Polo Tour Adolfo Cambiaso’s creation continues to go from strength to strength, reports Jorge Andrades The Argentine Polo Tour, created by Adolfo Cambiaso and Gonzalo Pieres in 2006, grows in importance each year. For proof, one need look no further than the Argentine Polo Association’s decision to allow it to use the ‘Cathedral of Polo’ in Palermo for the finals of the first tournament. One should also note that Cambiaso has decided to join the Polo Tour next year rather than play in the USA. The Tour started in February and finished in April, with the qualifying matches and semifinals of the first tournament at the Tortugas Country Club. There were a couple of postponements caused by rain, but the fields were in excellent condition for polo. There

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were 18 teams of up to 16 goals (six playing in each tournament) and each had a patron.

But it was the high-handicap players who shone, and took their squads to the decisive matches. Stars included 10-goal Augustin Merlos and Bartolome Castagnola, Juan Martin Nero (9) and Jaime Garcia Huidobro and Ernesto Trotz (both 8).

Loro Piana received a one-goal advantage as a result of their lower handicap and eventually prevailed as champions. With Juan Martin Nero, Luciano Vasquez, Jamie Peel and their Italian patron Alfio Marchini, they beat Villa Real (with Augustin Merlos) 14-13 in a superb final. El Remanso, led by Chilean Garcia

Huidobro, outclassed Helvetica 16-11 for the subsidiary ESPN Cup. Villa Real took revenge by obtaining the second tournament, played at the Ellerstina Polo Club (Gonzalo Pieres’ home). With Hilario Ulloa replacing Augustin Merlos, Brazilian Roberto Villareal’s quartet overcame Henry Rourke’s Santa Maria de Lobos (lining up Augustin Merlos) by 10-9 in an extra chukka of the final. El Remanso again took third place after beating Walter Scherb’s Power House 12-11.

The third stage of the Tour moved to the Centauros Polo Club, close to Ellerstina in the north of Buenos Aires. Loro Piana were led by the brilliant Martin Nero, who was the best player of the match and scored six goals as they repeated their title win by beating William Melchior’s La Vanguardia (with Bartolome Castagnola) 10-7 in the decisive encounter. In the preliminary match, Cabreuva showed good teamwork on the Tour, and won the subsidiary Nikon Cup after downing El Remanso 10-9.

La Dolfina, Adolfo Cambiaso’s property in Canuelas, south of Buenos Aires, was the scene of the fourth tournament, although the world’s best player did not compete. Cabreuva, led by Hilario Ulloa and well supported by Carlos Farinati and Juan Monteverde with patron Ricardo Portugal, defeated Loro Piana 10-9 in the final to win the first of its two titles in the competition. The losers had changed their lineup completely from the squad that had won three tournaments. Augustin Nero replaced his brother Juan Martin, while Gaston Lahue, Pablo Llorente and Celine Charloux played instead of Luciano Vasquez, Alfio Marchini and Jamie Peel. Meanwhile, El Remanso continued their triumphs by beating Cuernavaca 10-8 to gain the subsidiary cup for the third time.

Cabreuva repeated their title in the fifth and last stage of the Polo Tour, held at Bautista Heguy’s Chapa Uno Polo Club in Pilar. The winners, with the same line-up as in the previous tournaments, demolished El Remanso 11-9 after a great start, leading 6-0 in the first chukka. Tortugas EBZ, lining up three Novillo Astrada family members (Valerio, Julio and Santiago) easily defeated Cuernavaca 10-5 to land the Fernet Branca subsidiary cup.

6/6/08 11:16:30

Polo Manager Opportunity The Eldorado Polo Club, located in La Quinta, California, is now accepting applications for a Polo Manager. Position requires at least 5 years experience in polo club administration, game scheduling, tournament management, stable management and member services.

The applicant must be computer literate, have strong organizational and administrative skills along with experience publishing club magazine, ad soliciting advertisers and preparation of budget and cost analysis.

Contact the General Manager at 760-397-3977, fax resume to 760-342-0269 or e-mail: eldorado.poloclub@yahoo.com.

Park Farm, Stancombe, Dursley, Glos GL11 6AT, Tel: + 44 (0) 1453 544135 E-mail: info@mcmurtryltd.co.uk www.mcmurtryltd.co.uk

MAS Mowers, unmanned mowing solutions for Polo Grounds

hurlingham [ action ]

Cortina Roderick Vere Nicoll experiences exhilarating snow polo against the stunning backdrop of the Dolomites

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I learned early on about the Dolomita mountains from my father, who was stationed in Cortina d’Ampezzo after fighting in North Africa. The British Army took over virtually the entire town for convalescing soldiers. As a surgeon in the Royal Medical Corps, my father spoke often of his time there, so I was interested to see it for myself.

His dramatic descriptions of the terrain hardly did justice to the staggering rock faces of the Dolomites, which tower over the surrounding area and are strikingly different from the Alps. The top two-thirds are sheer rock faces and therefore unskiable, with a vertical drop that is not as great as you might find elsewhere. However, the relaxed Italian atmosphere, unbeatable food and terrific ski conditions make Cortina a great destination.

The addition of polo, which was established here in 1989, has drawn a considerable amount of international interest – particularly in the last seven years, when it has been played on Lake Misurina, about 15 minutes from town at the higher altitude of 1,756m.

The snowfield is 100m by 200m – a bit shorter and not as wide as a normal polo ground. One difference from other snow polo tournaments is that the surface consists of just three inches of snow packed above the ice, resulting in smaller divots and less secure footing for the horses. There is an advantage

in this, because it means that lateral moves are very difficult for players, which leads to an open hit-and-run game with minimal stopping and dribbling. This makes for fast, exciting polo.

Also contributing to the speed of the game is the ball, which is smaller and less susceptible to wind variations. When hit, it travels in a truer line than the larger ball used in other snow polo tournaments. There is just one referee and matches are played over a week, which allows players and ponies to rest between games.

This helps raise the standard of the polo.

Cortina Winter Polo boasted six 18-goal teams this season. St Moritz snow polo veteran Philipp Maeder was in fine form at the head of an all-Argentine team, Ruinart Champagne.

Arthur Fitzwilliam captained an all-English team, Hôtel de la Poste. In the final, Tom Barrack and the legendary ‘Memo’ Gracida, along with Matias Torres Zavaleta and Leroux Hendriks, led their team Jaeger-LeCoultre to victory against opponents Audi. It was a snow polo debut for all four players. They were well matched against two seasoned patrons, Rommy Gianni and Luca D’Orazio, with Eduardo Menendez and Dario Musso. Together they produced an nail-biting final, which was decided in the last seconds. The hard-fought contest resulted in a score of 7-6½ on the bell. Memo declared the tournament ‘more exciting and competitive than I expected’.

1 Action in the final: Luca D’Orazio, boxed in by Tom Barrack and Matias Torres Zavaleta 2 Dario Musso ‘surrenders’ 3 The winners: (from left) Matias Torres Zavaleta, Leroux Hendricks, Memo Gracida and Tom Barrack

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TONY RAMIREZ

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The surface consists of three inches of snow packed above the ice, resulting in less secure footing for the horses

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6/6/08 11:20:07

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6/6/08 11:20:15

hurlingham [ action ]

Hurtwood Park Kenney Jones has invested a huge amount of time and money developing top-class facilities, reports Lucy Northmore

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There can be no doubt as to what drives polo: unbridled passion. But today, players and industry officials are also seeking financial investment to elevate the industry to the level of other sports. The industry is producing athletes at the top of their game, has dynamic growth at a grass-roots level with new junior players aspiring to reach professional status, and a very successful low goal industry that will continue to feed new patrons into the sport. At a high goal level, however, the players are often overlooked when compared with other sports as they continue to strive for perfection and success – often for very little return and at a risk that outweighs the gain.

The investment in and development of polo is made up of a combination of components, and mostly relies upon individuals around the world who go out of their way to make a difference. One such person is Kenney Jones, owner of Hurtwood Park Polo Country Club, who put up £50,000 for the winning team of the Polo Masters – a fund that will increase in the second year of the tournament. The Polo Masters

is previously known for its roots as one of the few 40-goal exhibition matches held in the UK. This year, it officially re-launched as a high goal tournament at 18 goals.

Hurtwood Park has spent considerable time and money preparing for this – starting by upgrading their six polo fields in order to receive high goal certification. This means more than just money. It involves a strategic programme of compacting the grounds, re-seeding, draining and putting one thousand tonnes of sand onto each polo field. This cycle of maintenance will continue after the season and before the start of the next year in order to provide the optimum surface on which to play. ‘We are delighted to have received our High Goal certificate

‘Players say the grounds allow them to play their ponies to maximum skill level without compromise’

from The Hurlingham Polo Association and have had first class feedback from both players and patrons,’ said Kenney Jones.

‘A number of players have said that the grounds allowed them to play their ponies to their maximum skill level without having to make any compromise. In addition to operating successfully as a low and medium goal club we will now be introducing more high goal tournaments at Hurtwood and welcome everyone to play.’

Over the years, some of polo’s greatest players have participated in events at Hurtwood and this year was no different, featuring players who have played for their countries at international level and seven who have represented England.

Six teams entered the Polo Masters, and Mad Dogs and Enigma came through as the finalists. The final proved to be an exciting match for hardened polo-watchers and new spectators alike. The teams were very evenly matched and scored one-for-one throughout, which took the game to extra time. A suddendeath goal from Enigma (which smashed a goal post in the process) won it 10-9.

JOHN PERIMAN

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1 Rob Archibald in action 2 From left: Henry Brett, Jerome Wirth, Rob Archibald, Alan Fall, James Beim and Sam Hopkinson 3 The victorious Enigma team.

Kenney Jones (third from right) presents the cheque

Upwards of 6,000 spectators came to support the event. More than 700 VIPs filled the lavish marquee, with Dom Pérignon on tap all day and a queue of helicopters overlooking Ground One. The tournament looks set to be a date in the diary for years to come.

Meanwhile, developments continue apace for Hurtwood Park Polo Country Club. The latest round includes a new and improved road which connects the three front fields to the three polo fields behind. It has also received planning permission for a country club that will be treble the size of the club house.

‘We consider ourselves a fair and forwardthinking club that is dynamic in its approach,’ says Kenney. ‘Prize money is well overdue and will help polo get on the same level as other more recognised sports. Polo is a skilful sport and players should be rewarded for this. It also helps increase TV coverage and ultimately helps the sport in its exposure and development. This was something I have wanted to do for a while and with the support of Fly Mobile we were finally able to make this happen and really get behind the sport and make a difference.’

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hurlingham [ archive ]

Chruchill (third from left) plays polo during his posting in India with the 4th Hussars

An enduring love Winston Churchill is famous for his writing, painting, smoking and drinking. But the great statesman was also an accomplished horseman, says Herbert Spencer Winston Churchill’s fondness for cognac, champagne and good cigars is legendary.

Less well known is the formidable man’s lifelong love affair with horses. Riding and participating in equestrian sports were his favourite pastimes. He was a jockey in steeplechase and point-to-point races, rode to hounds, played polo for more than 40 years, became a successful racehorse owner, and hacked for pleasure and exercise until late in life. ‘There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man,’ he said.

Horses were in Winston Churchill’s blood. His father, third son of the fourth Duke of Marlborough, fox hunted and owned racehorses, once winning the Epsom Oaks. His American-born mother was the daughter of Leonard Jerome who founded New York’s Jockey Club and built its Jerome Racecourse – where the first polo match on grass in the US was played.

As a young officer cadet at Sandhurst in the 1890s, Churchill excelled at horsemanship, scoring 199 out of 200 points to come second

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in the military academy’s equestrian competition. While training for the cavalry at Aldershot, he learned polo and played on borrowed ponies, then begged his family for money to buy his own mounts. With a string of five, he began competing in tournaments at Aldershot and at London’s Hurlingham and Ranelagh clubs before his regiment, the 4th Hussars, was posted to India.

Polo was very much a part of life for cavalrymen of the British Raj, and Churchill’s early writings (and his later diaries) are peppered with references to the sport. After suffering a shoulder injury that plagued him for the rest of his life, he played with a special

‘There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man,’ said Churchill

harness that kept his stick arm close to his body, and still helped the 4th Hussars to win the Inter-Regimental tournament. Churchill also rode in steeplechases in India, wearing the family silks of chocolate and pink.

Once he left the army, and despite the demands of a political career and his writing, Churchill continued to play polo, often two or three times a week, at the London clubs and as far afield as Rugby. Ironically, however, he was once blackballed from becoming a playing member of Hurlingham because of his opposition to the government in power. His last chukkas were on the island of Malta in 1927.

After World War II, Churchill turned his attention to the track, becoming one of England’s most successful racehorse owners.

His very first horse, Colonist II, proved a winner and Thoroughbreds from his studs won no fewer than 70 times in England, France and the USA. ‘Winnie wins!’ became a familiar cry among race-goers. He kept photographs of some of his favourite winners in his bedroom at Chartwell.

Winston Churchill was an indomitable warrior, one of history’s great statesmen and, as a man of letters, a Nobel Prize Laureate. Throughout it all, there were his beloved horses. ‘Don’t give your son money,’ he once advised. ‘As far as you can afford it give him horses… No hour of life is lost that is spent in the saddle.’

HPA COLLECTION

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Photo: David Lominska

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