Snow Polo in Canada

In our Canadian climate, playing polo in the snow seems only inevitable. However, it takes a dedicated team and a great deal of planning and partnerships to create and develop an international-style tournament.

Special shoeing for the horses, grooming for the footing, and sheltered areas for the spectators are only a small part of the preparation that goes into organizing an event of this magnitude. But when it all comes together, snow polo is a unique and spectacular sporting event.

The genesis of the idea for a snow polo tournament in Canada began with a snow polo exhibition match at the Winterlude Festival in the nation’s capital, Ottawa. This event was organized by Justin Fogarty, the then-owner of Kilreen Farms. Fogarty brought together fellow polo players Scott Weir, Jen Fentum, Brian O’Leary and Evan White. The snow polo

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The snow polo exhibition was a hit at the festival and led the way for the development of a larger snow polo event.

exhibition was a hit at the festival and led the way for the development of a larger snow polo event.

In February 2015, the first annual “Snow Polo Tremblant” match took place at Mont Tremblant, a ski resort situated north of Montreal. The co-founders of the event were Herbert Ratsch, Marc Perrault and Justin Fogarty. Their goal was to create an event equal to other winter polo matches held in Switzerland, Italy, China and the United States. The inaugural event turned out to be a great success attracting over 200 VIP guests and welcoming 2,000 spectators to the match, free of charge.

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The inaugural event turned out to be a great success attracting over 200 VIP guests and welcoming 2,000 spectators to the match, free of charge.

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1 David Payne (Toronto), Marc Perrault (Montreal), Chris McKewe (South Africa) 2 Organizers Herb Ratsh, Marc Perrault, and Justin Fogarty during the presentations 3 Max Torokvei and Pablo Falabella 4 Polo on Lake Tremblant in front of the Hotel Quintessence Resort and Spa 5 Chris Mekewe (South Africa) 6 Marc Perrault, Scott Weir, Derek Sifton, Brian O’Leary, Rob Stenzel 7 Marc Perrault, Scott Weir, Derek Sifton, Brian O’Leary, Rob Stenzel 8 Pablo Falabella and Brian O’Leary 9 Pre-game parade through the village 10 Trophy presentation after the games, with Galen and Hillary Weston presenting THE SPORT OF POLO IN CANADA \ 157