PONYLINES ONE TO WATCH
GONZALO ETCHEVERRY
ONE TO WATCH In 1999, Mohammed Al Habtoor received an invitation to attend a match and was seated next to Ali Albwardy, who heads the Dubai Polo Team. Albwardy convinced him to start playing and, the next day, he began to practise. Ten years later, he started the Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series – a tournament with six teams up to 12-goals. This year, the tournament has increased to 18 goals, with 10 teams taking part. Before the Gold Cup Series, United Arab Emirates’ patrons were only playing practices in their own clubs with a few horses; now, however, they have a full organisation that attracts the best players in the world. These days, the UAE is very much on the polo map, with the Gold Cup Series considered one of the most important and prestigious polo events in the region – a huge achievement in just six years. ‘We still want to increase the number of teams to 12 or 14, and 20-goals will be even better,’ says Al Habtoor. ‘We broke the barrier that existed between clubs and patrons, and now everybody plays together.’ Gonzalo Etcheverry
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