AG E N DA
youth polo
Growing the Game
Myopia youth program and coaching league Legacies don’t happen overnight. They require decades to establish. The long-term success of any polo club depends on its commitment to developing the next generation of players. At Myopia, the youth program and coaching league ensure that the Club’s future is bright. “The youth and coaching programs offer unique opportunities to younger players to enter polo as beginners and to advance to collegiate and outdoor polo for the more experienced players,” says Myopia Polo Captain David Strouss. “The program provides horses to the players, and players also learn about grooming and proper horse care. “The youth program has grown over the years to include both junior and varsity women and men teams,” says Strouss. “The coaching league is so popular at Myopia that some players have chosen to stay in the program, while many move on to play regular polo at Myopia.”
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Jacek “Yaz” Grotnik of Husaria Farm in Ipswich, and a member of Mypia Polo for more than two decades, oversees the Club’s youth, or interscholastic program, which helps develop players 18 years old and younger. Many players have familiar names, and that’s no coincidence. “Family polo is the basis for youth polo,” says Grotnick. “From its beginning, bringing sons and daughters into the game has always been a tradition at Myopia.” Interscholastic polo, run in conjunction with the Harvard Polo Club, provides entry-level polo for children, generally from 7th to 12th grade, although Myopia has had some younger participants, says Grotnick. “Typically, kids with some riding experience join our program after trying polo at an introductory clinic or after seeing a game at Myopia,” he says. “Our program focuses on four primary tenants — horsemanship, sportsmanship, fair play
and teamwork. Each of these combines to create a well-rounded player and teammate. “A difference that sets polo apart from other equine disciplines is teamwork,” Grotnick says. “Each member of our program learns that for a team to be successful, their contribution needs to benefit each other and their horses.” With the interscholastic program, coaching and playing takes place in the arena, a more contained environment for learning. The smaller size and slower speeds are more conducive to the introduction to the sport. “After a season of arena play, which (goes) through the academic year, our participants move on to coaching league play outside on the grass in the spring and summer,” says Grotnick. “Fundamentals taught in the arena apply to outdoor polo and are further expanded on the big field. There they learn some of the strategies that apply to open-field play.” As young players master the skills needed for more competitive polo, some will graduate to tournament play. The Na-
