HURLINGHAM p ol o m ag a z i n e
the american season
j u n e 2 013
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contents
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Ponylines news from around the polo world, including the Chief Executive’s column
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Fit for purpose Personal trainer robert Elford on why the best players stay active off the field
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Get with the programme as the hPa’s argentina bursary continues to benefit young players, James Beim and malcolm Borwick describe their experiences
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Dr Richard Caleel it’s time to meet the new President of the Federation of international Polo – a man with four decades’ experience on the field
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Cometh the hour how a serious polo fall turned Scott Devon from high-goal player to watchmaker and supercar inventor
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Long may they rein Crocker Snow pays homage to the oldest active uS club, myopia Polo, on its 125th anniversary
Show Media Editorial Managing Director Peter Howarth 1-2 Ravey Street, London EC2A 4QP + 44 (0) 20 3222 0101 info@showmedia.net; www.showmedia.net Hurlingham Media 47-49 Chelsea Manor Street, London SW3 5RZ +44 (0) 771 483 6102 hurlingham@hpa-polo.co.uk www.hurlinghampolo.com Colour Reproduction fmg www.groupfmg.com Printing Gemini Press www.gemini-press.co.uk
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The art of the Westchester Cup as the oldest international polo series returns to the uK for the first time in 16 years, we look at some of the beautiful artworks it inspired
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The golden age Youth is all well and good, says Sam morton, but it’s no coincidence that many of the season’s trophy winners are over 40
hurlinghaM Magazine Publisher Roderick Vere Nicoll Executive Editor Peter Howarth Editor Arabella Dickie Deputy Editor Herbert Spencer Contributing Photographer Tony Ramirez Editor-At-Large Alex Webbe Senior Designer Julia Allen Chief Copy Editor Chris Madigan Copy Editors Tanya Jackson, Gill Wing
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A fond farewell haley Cohen celebrates the life of nora heguy, the ‘mother of Polo’, and her substantial contribution to the sport
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Action The polo world in news and images, including the Florida Season, FiP Snow Polo World Cup, indian Empire Shield, hPa Test match, gaucho international, argentine international Series, Copa república and uSPa intercollegiate Tournament
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The long game When Toulston Polo Club in Yorkshire commissioned a book to celebrate its centenary, there was no shortage of entertaining tales to fill its pages
Cover: Nora Heguy, photographed by Alice Gipps
Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. While every efort 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. The HURLINGHAM Polo Association magazine (ISSN 1750-0486) is published by Hurlingham Media. The magazine is designed and produced on behalf of Hurlingham Media by Show Media Ltd. It 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 welcomes feedback from readers: hurlinghammedia@hpa-polo.co.uk
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foreword roderick vere nicoll – publisher
Facundo Pieres is now, arguably, the best player in the world. In December 2012, he won the Argentine Open and in April 2013, the US Open. He was MVP in both. Facundo appears many times in this issue. At the Audi Awards, he was chosen for the Thai Polo Club World Dream team – read about it in Ponylines. And the Action section is full of his exploits during the Florida season, as well as in the Test Match at Cowdray and the Nations Cup in Palermo. At any other time, Pieres would be the obvious choice for cover subject. However we felt it was important to honour Nora Heguy, the ‘Mother of Polo’, who passed away in February. Her husband, Horacio, won the Argentine Open 19 times. Four of her sons reached 10 goals and won several Opens. Haley Cohen pays tribute to this
amazing woman, who probably watched more polo matches than any other! In May, I received an email from Sam Morton, with a story about the high-goal season in Florida and the success of the veteran players. With a full head of grey hair myself, the article resonated with me. He makes a convincing thesis that every team should include older professionals. In Talk, meanwhile, we discover why the HPA offers bursaries for top English players to spend time in Argentina. Lastly, polo is full of entrepreneurs – Scott Devon suffered a bad fall in 2007, left the game and started a new business, which you can read about on page 20. Keep up to date with the latest polo news at hurlinghampolo.com or try our new app for smartphone and tablet.
contributors
Pablo Gabriel Ramirez is an Argentine photographer, born in 1965. While he was a young man studying veterinary science, he began to experiment with photography. His photographic career on the polo circuit has led him to work alongside brands such as La Dolfina, BMW and La Martina. Pablo is married with two children.
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Felipe Viana started playing polo aged seven and gained a 1-goal handicap at 13, after becoming the youngest person to win the Uruguayan National. At 14, he won the Copa Potrillos and, after moving to the US to attend school, represented his university at arena polo. Felipe has also played for White Birch in New York and Crab Orchard in Florida.
Haley Cohen was born and raised in New York, but now lives in Buenos Aires, where she works as a correspondent for The Economist in Argentina and Uruguay. She began riding at the age of three and show-jumped competitively for many years. Subsequently, Haley is always looking for excuses to write about horses.
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Nigel à Brassard is an investment banker and the author of A Glorious Victory, A Glorious Defeat – an account of the 1921 Westchester Cup matches. He has played polo at Cirencester Park and has an extensive collection of polo books, paintings and other memorabilia. An ambassador of the FIP, Nigel is also on the HPA Finance Committee.
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one to watch This is the second time we have selected England’s Lyndon Lea as the amateur polo player to watch. His return comes after his team, Zacara, won the 26-goal US Open Championship for two years running, in 2012 and again this year, in April, when they successfully defended their title at Florida’s International Polo Club Palm Beach. This is the first time in 75 years that a team has won the US Open twice in succession. After the latest win, the US Polo Association raised Lea’s American handicap from 1 to 2 goals – though he remains 1 in the UK – and he received the Casablanca Most Valuable Player (Amateur) Award for April. Lea was first featured on this page in the Winter 2011 issue, after Zacara won the Veuve Clicquot Gold Cup in the British Open Championship that year. In the UK this season, Zacara is playing for the 17- to 22-goal Cartier Queen’s Cup and Lea will be going for gold again in the 2013 British Open, with Argentine 10-goaler Facundo Pieres, who spearheaded the team in their latest high-goal victory in the US. Herbert Spencer
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ponylines POLO NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WORLD
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
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{ audi polo awards 2013 On 20 May, the polo elite descended on Coworth Park in Ascot to celebrate the Audi Polo Awards. The star of the evening was Adrian Kirby and his Cortium side, who picked up three awards following their victory in the Veuve Clicquot Gold Cup. Following a win in the US Gold Cup in March, 10-goaler Adolfo Cambiaso got off to a storming start in the UK and deservedly received the award for the Coworth Park Most Outstanding High Handicap Player (8-10). This year’s Audi Most Outstanding Professional award was none other than England captain, Luke Tomlinson, who collected the award for the second time. The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Paul Withers, who was, for many years, a key member of the England squad. The Thai Polo Club World Dream Team (above), was chosen on the night and consisted of Facundo Pieres, Polito Pieres, Gonzalito Pieres and Carlos Gracida.
{ Jnan amar polo Challenge On Saturday 27 April, the Jnan Amar Polo Resort in Marrakech – Morocco’s latest polo and equestrian development – hosted its inaugural Polo Challenge. The event saw two teams of international and local players battle for victory on the newly built, state-of-the-art polo field. The horses were generously provided by former FIP President Patrick Hermès. Throughout the day, Amr Zedan (0), playing for the Jnan Amar Polo team, executed the matches with great skill and was rightly honoured as MVP. His team left the field victorious having defeated the Eve Branson Foundation team by 5-3 goals. Lady Branson, Sir Richard Branson and Patrick Hermès were among those presenting trophies to the winners. Ahead of the game a charity auction was held and all proceeds from the sold lots – which included a hand-signed polo shirt from Adolfo Cambiaso – went towards the Eve Branson Foundation, which provides support for better living conditions in the poorer settlements in the Atlas Mountains. More than 25,000 Euros was raised over the course of the event.
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JACK BROCKWAY
After a sunny spell, the rain has returned and there has been a slow start to the season in the UK. However, there has been plenty of international activity. In China in late January, a three-man England team again took part in the 16-goal FIP Snow Polo World Cup and did very well to come third for the second time. In Australia, a few weeks later, an 18-goal England team captained by James Beim lost in Melbourne before Beim led a 24-goal England team to victory in a Test match on 7 April at Windsor Polo Club, Sydney. Sadly, a 21-and-under team, which had played at Millamalong, Garangula, Ellerston and the Sydney Show, lost its first game in the supporting match. Meanwhile in Argentina, a 22-goal England team failed to capitalise against South Africa, but then chalked up a historic 12–6 win against a young Argentine side. Winning at Palermo against a home team is not something many players can boast about. In South Africa, another party of six young players went to Buster MacKenzie in February for a second bout of training and two younger groups went to Argentina –one to Coronel Suárez and one to Pilar. At home, AEPC Hickstead hosted two closely contested matches. Debuters Wales won in extra time, and England beat the British Isles to win the Bryan Morrison Trophy for the fifth year. This season, England will play South America in the St Regis Test Match at Cowdray and then, for the first match of the Audi International Series, they will play South Africa at the Beaufort. At the end of July, for the flagship event of the season at Guards, we will defend the Westchester Cup against the American challenge. As it is one of the oldest and most prestigious cups with just a few names engraved on it, our team will be desperate to keep it this side of the Atlantic. The morning match for the Diamond Jubilee Trophy will again feature the Young England team, who will also play at the Suffolk Test Match. These matches give our young players an excellent opportunity to play on the international stage. Finally, in September, Chester racecourse will see England take on Australasia. Let us hope we are blessed with better weather and that everyone is able to enjoy the season, whether working in, playing or watching polo.
Piaget Manufacture movement 880P Mechanical self-winding chronograph Flyback, dual time 100 meter water resistant Titanium, sapphire case-back Rubber strap
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y new PartnershIP for Cowdray Park and Jaeger-leCoultre This year marks a milestone in the partnership between Cowdray Park Polo Club and luxury watchmaker Jaeger-LeCoultre. Official timekeeper to Cowdray Park for six years, Jaeger-LeCoultre is now also title sponsor of all six Cowdray Park HPA tournaments, which will be known as the Jaeger-LeCoultre series. These include the Dollar Cup (2013 winners, Cadenza Juniors, pictured right) Harrison Cup (20 Jul – 3 Aug), the Holden White Cup (15 Jul – 4 Aug) and the Cowdray Park Challenge Cup (15 Jul – 4 Aug). The Jaeger-LeCoultre Holden White and Harrison Cups are among the most popular in the UK polo season, with the Holden White regularly attracting entries of up to 40 teams. Zahra Kassim-Lakha, director of the UK Market and Global Brand Strategy for JaegerLeCoultre, commented: ‘We are incredibly
excited to be part of these prestigious tournaments. As official timekeeper at the grounds, it’s even more thrilling to see them played at the heart of British polo, Cowdray Park Polo Club. Jaeger-LeCoultre will be offering a Reverso watch for the prize of Best Playing Patron, to be awarded at the end of the 2013 season.’
y InternatIonal Polo Club Palm beaCh honoured wIth award On 7 May, the Palm Beach County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) in Florida honoured the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) with the prestigious 2013 Providencia Award, based on the club’s substantial impact on the tourism industry. The honour was given to John Wash, president of the IPC, during the annual Tourism Day lunch. ‘The award is Palm Beach County’s most important symbol of recognition for the local tourism industry, which employs 45,000 county residents and contributes more than $5bn annually to the local economy,’ said CVB President and CEO, Jorge Pesquera. The IPC Palm Beach – one of the best-equipped facilities in the US – was chosen as one of three finalists by the CVB’s Providencia committee, who evaluated and scored 15 different nominations. The three finalists were then put to a public vote on Palm Beach Post’s online news site, palmbeachpost.com. This year’s finalists included Lynn University, the Honda Classic and the IPC Palm Beach. More than 2,640 people voted, making this award a significant indication as to the positive impact the club has had on the area. x frIends In Polo Port Mayaca Polo Club hosted the 79th FIP Ambassador’s Cup tournament in April. After the final game, players hurried the 40 miles back to Wellington to watch a 26-goal match at the International Polo Club. The organisers had warned of speed traps on the road to Wellington, but polo player Mario G de Mendoza III was careless and found himself stopped by the local gendarmerie. As the deputy sheriff prepared to issue a speeding ticket, another car drew up in front. The driver, wearing soiled polo whites and boots, opened his door and began to emerge. Perceiving a potential challenge, the officer instructed him to ‘stand down’, before freezing in apparent shock. Staring at the interloper, the deputy exclaimed, in a star-struck tone, ‘Oh my God! It’s John Walsh!’ It was indeed the criminal investigator, human-rights advocate and host of America’s Most Wanted. After an initial stand-off, and the arrival of back-up in the shape of another officer, each posed for photos with the celebrity. Thanks to lucky timing and Walsh’s charm, Mario’s fine never came. However, the officers did tell the player he owed John more than $300.
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hooked on polo luis eduardo nieto is a lawyer and partner at nieto & Chalela Abogados law firm in Bogotá, Columbia. he plays at Bogotá polo Club and has held a handicap of both 1- and 2-goals, ‘although I play 10-goals in my heart!’ I started playing polo 15 years ago when a friend invited me to ride some ponies before the season started in Bogotá. Having worked them, we were invited to play a game. I was hooked. A month later, I had four horses! I love the whole culture of polo – the horses, the adrenaline, the vast expanse of green field. One of my most memorable games was a couple of years ago during the Harrison Cup at the Bogotá Polo Club. My team, El Cortijo, was losing 9-5 against Chacal at the beginning of the fifth chukka, but in the end we won 12-10. It was a thrilling experience. The player I respect most is Juan Martin Nero. He brings coordination, teamwork and excellence to all the teams in which he plays. I like players who understand that each team member is key. In Colombia, there are four private polo clubs. I play at Bogotá Polo Club, which is the biggest in Colombia and has been since its founding in 1890. It has about 180 players, eight fields and boxes for 800 horses. There is also a polo school for children and, last season, we held an international cup for players aged nine to 14 years. In addition to Bogotá, I have played in Argentina and California. Obviously, Argentina is a very special place. The polo culture is overwhelming and I returned to Colombia inspired. But playing polo in any place is a fascinating experience. Next year, I am going to play in Bangkok with the Lawyers Polo Association, led by my friend Eduardo Bérèterbide. I have two kids: Manuela, aged 12, and Eduardo, aged 10. Both are very enthusiastic about polo, and I want to dedicate time and energy to help them understand it like I do. I constantly thank God for giving me the chance to play this incredible sport.
Tianjin Goldin Metropolitan Polo Club boasts China’s most extensive polo facilities. Set in a 898,000 m2 private estate 30 minutes’ bullet train ride from the capital Beijing, it comes replete with a 167-room Club Hotel; world-class din venues spanning Chinese, French and Japanese cuisines and an elegant spa and swimming pool in which to unwind aft chukka or two. Upcoming events include junior summer polo programmes and high-goal grass and snow polo tourname
For polo courses or membership enquiries, please email our membership consultants at membership@metropolitanpoloclub.c
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x Pinctada Beach Polo Marilynne Paspaley AM has announced that Pinctada Cable Beach Polo will return to Broome in 2014 after the success of this year’s tournament, which ended in spectacular style on 19 May with an international clash between Indian and Australian players. Australia’s only beach polo tournament drew guests from around the world to the famous pearling town in the north-west of the country. The Paspaley International Beach Polo Match went to the wire, with Matt Welsh, captain of the Pinctada Cable Beach Australia team, clinching a 4-3 victory for the home side in the dying seconds of the final chukka. ‘India beat us in the last two encounters on their home turf, so it was great to get the win on the sand before our own crowd,’ Welsh said. ‘I couldn’t be more delighted with the spectacle we experienced on Cable Beach this weekend,’ said Paspaley. ‘We saw the marvellous skills of the Indian and Australian players in four matches over the weekend. And we saw young, indigenous stockmen play their first game of polo in the inaugural Commonwealth Bank Kimberley Challenge.’ The tournament was the cornerstone of the Pinctada Cable Beach Polo Festival, which also featured a range of evening social events.
Peter Orthwein is probably the only player ever to have competed against three diferent generations of princes from the House of Windsor. In 1969, he played against HRH Prince Philip in the Gold Cup in England. Almost 20 years later, in 1988, he played against HRH Prince Charles when he came to Palm Beach Polo. In May this year, Peter met HRH Prince Harry on the field at the Greenwich Polo Club.
Tianjin Goldin Metropolitan Polo Club has announced that the Maserati Metropolitan Polo Classic 2013 tournament will take place during the Dragon Boat Festival holidays in China from 9 to 12 June. The four professional 24-goal teams are sponsored by Maserati, Ficofi, Fipa Group and Fortune Heights; and consist of players from Argentina, Chile, England, Italy, New Zealand and Spain. They include such names as Matías Vial, Tomas Pieres, Sebastián Harriott, and Tommy Wilson.
For the first time in years, there will not be a 40-goal team in the Triple Crown tournament. Ellerstina and La Dolfina will have 39 goals each, La Natividad 35, followed by La Aguada and Alegría with 34 and then La Aguada-Las Monjitas with 33. The Merlos brothers are not on any team roster. Chapaleufú will not play as I or II, but just as Chapaleufú, and try to qualify with Alberto, Bautista and Eduardo Heguy.
The legendary 10-goal player for Santa Ana, Frankie Dorignac, has taken over from Luis Lalor as President of the Argentine Polo Association. This is his third term, as he was president from 1987 to 1991 and from 2005 to 2009. Frankie was a 10-goaler in 1963 and 1964, then from 1969 to 1976. Santa Ana won the Argentine Open in 1971, 1973 (when they won the Triple Crown) and 1982.
A stallion, Open Medallion, won the BBP in the US Open. Last summer in the British Open, the BBP was won by another stallion, Don Urbano Rolinga, owned by Hernan Pieres. Prior to that, Aiken Cura, owned by Adolfo Cambiaso, was the last stallion to win BPP in the Argentine Open in 2006. It appears that playing stallions is gaining prominence as breeding is taken more seriously.
y SUPa national JUnior arena 2013 Who would have thought polo would be played in the snow and sleet at Longdole Polo Club on 17 March? Thankfully, however, the sun soon came out and shone all day for the host of school teams that played. In Division 1, Cothill took first place by a narrow margin, winning only by goal average against the younger Summer Fields School team. Both teams were at their best in each game and the polo was fast. Both Cothill and Summer Fields teams won against Papplewick, who put on a great show, and they both defeated Cothill Reds. Cothill and Summer Fields put on a great performance, as this game was the tournament. Cothill missed two penalties, but scored the first field goal. Summer Fields came back with a neck shot to goal from Christian Oberschneider, which equalised the game. Both teams exhibited great defence during the remaining game, with near-misses from both sides. The final results went to Cothill, however, by goal average for the whole tournament. Paul Oberschneider x UnekU atawodi From the age of 16, Uneku Atawodi knew she wanted to play polo. Although she was raised in Nigeria, in a society with a love for the sport, her parents strongly discouraged her from choosing it as a career path, even going so far as to stop paying for her horses’ upkeep to deter her. Still determined, she convinced managers at England’s Epsom Club to give her a job cleaning out the stables. Ten years on, she is the only black woman in the world playing professionally. Using her degree in equestrian science from the University of Brighton and her MA in international business, Atawodi set up the non-governmental organisation Rise to Shine. She founded the organisation in an attempt to break down the perception that polo is a sport exclusively played by the middle classes, as well as to introduce Nigerian orphans to the sport and inspire them to achieve their dreams in the same way that she did.
The Heritage Polo Cup 2013 will take place from Tuesday 23 to Saturday 27 July 2013 at Dallas Burston Polo Club, Warwickshire. Heritage Polo is the rediscovery of polo history, fashion and art; a revival of polo in the 1900s. Gentlemen will play in white jodhpurs, shirt and tie; ladies will play in revival polo attire designed by Barbara Patricia Zingg, founder and event director of Heritage Polo.
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loVe oF my liFe... poNy’s Name: opeN medallioN sex: stallioN origiN: argeNtiNa
saddle up with… Name: Felipe ViaNa NatioNality: uruguayaN/americaN polo haNdicap: 4 goals University of Virginia student Felipe Viana was born in New York and raised in Montevideo, Uruguay. He has played polo across the world and won the prestigious Copa Potrillos junior tournament in Argentina with Coronel Suárez. He turned down an invitation to join the US national team at the FIP World Championships in 2011 to focus on his university studies, but hopes to earn more polo titles after his graduation. when and how did you start playing polo? I grew up riding at my family’s farm and started playing polo at the age of six. I joined a polo clinic led by Professor Alfredo Alvarez, who coached me in the basics of the sport.
harald joergens, michael huggan photography
what makes the sport special for you? Every player in a team needs to count and to have good individual athletic skills and horsemanship. However, he is also measured by his ability to build an effective organisation around him from all the key elements: horses, grooms, managers… This is the hardest part and is what differentiates a good player from a great one. It becomes a lifestyle – one that I find amazing and very special.
Playing in the US Open has always been on my ‘bucket list’, along with getting to the finals and, some day, winning. And the list also includes breeding and raising the finest polo ponies in the world. I had been looking for a ‘playing’ stallion for quite a while and learnt about Open Medallion while on a trip to Argentina. He is by Open Sunset out of Medalla and has incredible blood in his lineage from Lechuza, Optimum, Luna and Rainbow Corner. I purchased him in October 2011 from Temy Willington and allowed Nacho Novillo Astrada to play him in the Argentine Open. We bred him to some of our Argentinian mares down there and then shipped him to the US, where Nacho played him in the 2012 Open. His performance was exceptional. This year, Pelon Stirling (pictured) played him in the Gold Cup and US Open, and showed the world that he is truly a great horse. He is a big, kind, loveable stallion who gives it all he has when he is on the field. He is handier than most and has explosive speed, which was perfect for a talented player such as Pelon. Winning the Willis L Hartman trophy is truly an honour –
it’s one of those goals you imagine, but never think it’s possible to achieve. The last stallion that won the Hartman award was Magazine in 1972, owned by Del Carroll. Open Medallion is at Owen Rinehart’s Isinya Farm, where his bloodline will continue to help diversify other great lines. Our intention is to have Cambiaso play him in next year’s US tournaments. Bob Jornayvaz x Polo at marrinerS The long-awaited spring finally arrived at Marriners Farm in Hampshire on 26 May for the third consecutive Polo at Marriners Best of British event. The organisers, who raised funds for several charities, including Action on Addiction, put on a feast of first-class polo and entertainment for more than 2,500 spectators. The Best of British Under-25s match saw Hattingley Valley ride to victory, 7-5, over Savills, with a fantastic performance from Billy Jackson Stops, who was awarded MVP. In the equally thrilling Best of British Under-21 game, Dundas Arms lost a closely fought match to Bourne Valley Inn, who triumphantly lifted the Cirrus Trophy after their 3-2 win. Max Hutchinson was deservedly named MVP. For full match coverage, visit poloatmarriners.com Amelia Northbrook
who in polo do you respect most? Those players who earn their success via hard work, who start with few opportunities and still reach high standards. A perfect example, and a player whom I really admire, is Mariano Aguerre. what will you do after you graduate from the university of Virginia? Play polo. Going to UVA was an investment in my future, but my plan has always included polo. what has been your most memorable polo game? I will always remember winning the Copa Potrillos with Coronel Suárez – I was in heaven! More recently, winning the Joe Barry Cup in Palm Beach in January. This win was really special for me because, while I was playing for Crab Orchard, I was also finishing my fourth year at UVA. It was a good feeling.
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talk
Ed Hitchman, Mark Tomlinson, James Beim and Malcolm Borwick at the ‘Provincia de Buenos Aires’ at Palermo
GET WITH THE PROGRAMME IN ARGENTINA Nobody does quality polo quite like the Argentinians. That’s why the HPA ofers bursaries for top English players to spend time there learning its secrets
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The HPA has been awarding bursaries to promising players for many years in order to help them develop overseas. But in 2008, the organisation launched a bursary programme specifically to encourage English players to base themselves for part of a winter in Argentina and build up a string of horses to play in competitive polo. The thinking was that if players were to improve, they needed to play at as high a level of polo as possible, and Argentina is the only country able to meet that requirement. In broad terms, the HPA has put just over £160,000 into the programme for the past five winters, most of which has come from the Audi England team sponsorship. In all, 14 players have benefited, and those who have received the most have also put in the most effort themselves. The format is fairly simple. The HPA panel of John Tinsley, Alan Kent, Andrew Hine and Luke Tomlinson invite selected players who wish to apply for a bursary and put forward their proposals. In the first year, this would usually
consist of a player basing himself with an Argentine to play his second or third string on the understanding that he will get the opportunity to play some tournaments. The panel then interviews the player and offer an amount that is likely to be about a third of the overall cost, paid in two or three parts: the first to get the player there and the second and third paid when targets are met. In some cases, targets have not been met and consequently players have not received the full amount. Success was not expected overnight and it was therefore accepted in principle that anyone who took part would commit for three years, and this of course applied to the HPA as well. For British polo players, Argentina is seen as the promised land, with wonderful grounds and ponies readily available. However, the reality is not quite like that. For a start, it rains, and when it rains, there is no polo. Additionally, Argentina is not nearly as cheap as it used to be; the Argentines understandably do not wish to give
away something for which they can charge; and finally, polo is a game that requires eight players, and those players need to be of a standard that is going to help you improve. All in all, it is not easy to get good polo in Argentina and many of those who have taken part have found it difficult to meet the targets set, which, in most cases, was to play in at least two tournaments above 20 goals. One of the hopes of the HPA was that the programme would help English players integrate with the Argentines. But, of course, native players prefer to play with family and friends, and thus non-Argentine players are often best paddling their own canoes in Argentina, creating teams among themselves. Some players have found their time in Argentina beneficial, but others have been disappointed – particularly as it requires a big time and financial commitment. However, in spite of the challenges, the HPA believes its support has helped English players improve and intends to continue with the programme. David Woodd
tony ramirez/imagesofpolo.com
JAMES BEIM My experiences of the bursary system set up by the HPA have been very positive. I had been playing in Australia for almost eight years and it had served me greatly. Most importantly, I was making money to improve my string back home. However, I was growing increasingly stale with the same programme year in year out. When the bursary came up, it was just the reason I needed to take the plunge into Argentina. Initially, I had no clue and no contacts. I actually went in 2007 for a brief period and was offered the bursary that year but declined it, as I didn’t know how or where to spend it. Having made a few contacts, I took the decision to go the following year. I went on 6 goals and was based with the MacDonoughs, who provided me with horses and practices at their club, Yacare. The ultimate aim was to play a 23-goal, the Provincia, at the end of the season. We lost the final at Palermo, but from then I was hooked. I’ve returned every year since, building my string, and taking advantage of the bursary twice: $10,000 each year for 2008 and 2009. I was very lucky as I fell in with Jerome Wirth initially and, later, the Handburys, for which I’m very grateful. This helped me build a string quicker than most, to the extent that I played the qualifiers for the Open in 2010 and 2011 and
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lost the final of the Camara that same year. Without their help, I would have struggled due to financial restraints. It’s worth mentioning that, at the time I received the bursaries, the dollar stretched a lot further than it does today. The costs of keeping horses and even day-to-day living have sky-rocketed and are now not far off UK costs. Secondly, success in Argentina is down to the individual. It’s important to build relationships and have a network of friends to play tournaments with, regardless of nationality. That’s something the English could learn from the Argentines – they always stick together and use people from their respective groups. For me, the British players need to improve these bonds. Overall, I applaud the decision taken by the HPA to start the bursary programme. Obviously some have benefited more than others, but I encourage every young player to get organised to play as high a level of polo as possible in Argentina. The information learnt playing at this level is invaluable and cannot be gained any other way: we cannot create this environment playing at home. It is the reason Argentines rise in ability so fast so young. Personally, I improved really dramatically in a short space of time playing there.
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MaLcoLM BoRWicK The bursary I was awarded back in 1995 set in motion a chain of events that probably caused me to play polo professionally. The money funded my flight to Argentina, where I split a three-month stay between Pancho Marin Moreno’s farm in Pergamino, and the Menendez’s in Monte Grande. During the first month at Pancho’s, I worked at his polo school, and learnt that having the skills to look after clients is as important as playing the game. Pancho was the most significant influence on my early career, he gave me the opportunity to play the 8- and 12-goal in England the following season, and taught me the values needed to be a professional. He was also the first polo player I’d encountered who set up stick-andball routines and did drills, which I still use today. The second part of the trip was more of a life lesson. I went to live on a farm in Monte Grande, and was placed in the grooms’ quarters. On polo
JacK RichaRdson days I had to tack up for one of the family and then for myself. Other days, I was left to ride up to 12 horses a day on my own. Living alongside the grooms was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life: apart from having to learn Spanish, it gave me a true sense of how hard they work. I was cook, cleaner and general whipping boy, all of which, after my cosy English education, was probably just what was needed. In my mind, Argentina still offers the best crash course in professional polo. But now, with the added costs of travel, and the scarcity of places that will put you up and let you play for free, I am not sure the bursary system could produce the same opportunity it afforded me back in 1995. But with enough UK-based players now established in Argentina, maybe the fund could be used to establish an overseas base for the next generation of English players in Argentina.
Straight after school, in 2010, I went for two and a half months to La Varzea Club in Pilar. I was based with the Zimmermanns, from whom I rented horses. I joined in practices at the club and played three 16-goal tournaments and one 12-goal competition, which I won. It was hard, because I was 18 and didn’t have many contacts. It was expensive, but it wasn’t a waste of time. I decided to approach Argentina differently in 2011, and went with high-goal pro Marcos di Paolo for one month, where I rented Marcus’ second string and played one 20-goal tournament, which we lost in the final. Although it was only for a short amount of time, I felt this way helped my polo more by learning from a pro in practices and playing a high-level tournament in a competitive team. I’m still not sure of the best way for a Brit to do well in Argentina, but I hope to discover it in the next few years, while I am still young.
I have been travelling to Argentina for the past six years. Just being there and watching the top players and ponies is an education in itself. It’s fascinating. However, on the flip side, organising to play there is similar to assembling a puzzle that consists of 1,000 pieces. Last year, I joined up with Martin Zubia, who is from a well-known polo fraternity and maintains one of the top Argentine polo breeds. He has now stopped playing professionally, but, at the time, had reached a handicap of 9 goals and played in 12 Argentine Opens. Along with his family, he eats, sleeps and breathes polo. I learnt a lot from him about horses and playing the game. The season was very expensive; however, in return Martin allowed me to play high-goal polo on his horses. I took a membership at La Quinta Polo Club where I kept Martin’s string, played
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practices and tried to find teams. Organising this was not easy, but eventually it came together and, after the season, I feel just simply being on the field in Argentina playing at a good level has helped my overall ability and understanding of the game immensely. The polo in Argentina offers you an experience that no other country in the world can. I don’t believe you can reach your full potential as a player unless you play there and, without the support of the HPA, it would not have been possible. If I were to give one bit of advice to players looking to spend time in Argentina, I would say not to just expect things to happen, no matter how much it is costing you. It is up to you to invest the time in meeting the right people and building a relationship with them. It may take a while, but it is possible.
tony ramirez/images of polo.com. malcolm borwick, courtesy of corbalan photo
RichaRd Le PoeR
thai polo & equestr i a n club pat taya – t h a i l a n d
• pa d d o c k s & s ta b l e s f o r 2 0 0 h o r s e s • i n t e r nat iona l c ro s s c ou n t ry c ou r s e • r ege lu dw ig i n t e r nat iona l polo sc hool • t o u r n a m e n t s u p t o 14 g oa l s
( n ov e m be r - a pr i l)
( n ov e m be r - a pr i l)
• t h a i s pa & s a lt wat e r p o o l
www.thai-polo-club.com
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cometh the hour When a fall almost put paid to his polo-playing career, Scott Devon didn’t give up – he discovered a new talent: invention. Since then, he’s designed a record-breaking supercar and a prize-winning watch I’d never have conceived entering the watch business if it weren’t for a series of unexpected events. In 2007, I suffered a severe fall when my horse flipped over onto me, causing me to suffer major concussion and a hiatus hernia. Although I had been injured many times over a 30-year career of low-, medium- and high-goal games, this made me reconsider playing polo. I have since returned to the sport after an extended break, but during those four years, I filled the void in my life with something equally as exciting and dangerous: motor racing. I intended to minimise the physical risk and build a race car, rather than drive one myself. Much like starting up a high-goal polo team, I assembled a small but talented international group of experts. Most of the team had experience
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with Ford Racing, along with British Le Mans champion Justin Bell as my driver. Daniel Paulin from Sweden designed what was to be called the Devon GTX. We built two prototypes using the Dodge Viper V10 motor as our power source, but customised the rest: a carbon-fibre superstructure, aerodynamic wind package, racing brakes, exhausts systems and so on, all with over 650 – excuse the pun – horsepower! The result was a world lap record at the famed Laguna Seca racetrack in California, besting major brands such as Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche, after which we debuted the Devon GTX at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance to critical acclaim as America’s Next Supercar. We intended to build small editions of the vehicle, but didn’t foresee the financial collapse of all
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things automotive. During the later stages of development, the builder of our prototype introduced me to a designer at Honda named Jason Wilbur, who was responsible for many futuristic design concepts in addition to vehicles. I couldn’t help but become mesmerised by a sketch of a timepiece that told time on belts and asked about the likelihood of it getting made. We agreed it would be a challenge, but couldn’t have predicted that every Swiss watchmaker would tell us it would be impossible to construct. Determined, we found our solution in a small electronics firm in California that did work for NASA and Boeing. The US aerospace industry is respected for making the impossible happen and, without its talents, we could never have engineered our timepiece. Hybrid power was the
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Alex pAcheco
Opposite The Devon GTX This page, clockwise from left Scott Devon; the limited-edition Steampunk; the streamlined Tread 2
new thing in autos and I thought this might be the answer for our watch. It was a risk and took a lot of time and expense, but was our big breakthrough. The Devon Tread 1 is essentially a small computer – a microprocessor drives four compact micro-step motors via a lithium-ion cell. It is a hybrid of electro-mechanical power to move the belts, which are lubricant-free and move on a pulley system. The belt material is unbreakable glass-reinforced nylon, which has been used as gauge material on aircraft. It is charged by a wireless system and each six-hour charge lasts two to three weeks. All the component parts were sourced within the US aerospace industry and a global patent protects the system. Critics praise the timepiece as arguably the most cutting-edge ever made. It is sold in most
Critics praise the timepiece as arguably the most cutting-edge ever made
countries across the world, in upmarket retailers such as Frost in London, Tourneau in the US and even the famous Colette store in Paris. After its debut, the Tread 1 saw us become the first American brand ever to be nominated for the prestigious Grand Prix d’Horlogerie in Geneva – the industry’s highest honour. We have since launched other versions, including a special
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limited edition called Steampunk and a more streamlined model called Tread 2, with prices ranging from $10,000 to $25,000. A line of men’s accessories is being developed, too, as well as more watch creations. Major collectors, celebrities and athletes are among those who own a Devon Tread 1, and its ambassadors include polo players Nic Roldan, Mike Azzaro, Brandon Phillips and Kris Kampsen in the US, and James Beim and Jack Richardson in the UK. I’m back playing myself, I’m delighted to report – mostly in Wellington, Florida and Michigan. Although I’m down from 4 goals to 2, I hope to be involved in polo into my later years and, of course, to be behind more avant-garde timepieces. devonworks.com
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long may they rein On the 125th anniversary of Myopia Polo Club, Crocker Snow celebrates the legacy, traditions and home-grown talent of the oldest active polo club in the US
One of the most notable aspects of the Myopia Polo Club – the oldest active polo club in the US – is its famed Gibney Field, which is surrounded by lush groves of white pine trees and has a shallow at one end of the playing field. These were a feature of the field when it was seeded for its inaugural polo game in July 1888, and have remained a staple ever since. This year is Myopia Polo Club’s 125th anniversary. All is going strong, with a four-month season (June to September) that includes club and medium-goal polo, two USPA events and the Chairman’s Cup. Myopia is also one of several clubs in the country hosting the newly coined National Youth Tournament. Founded by five near-sighted gentlemen, the Myopia Hunt Club is today a full-scale country
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The key ingredient around which Myopia Polo revolves is competitive family sport
club, complete with tennis, golf, swimming and fine dining. But its long-time fox hunt – now a drag hunt – complete with English hounds and pink coats, which courses the fields and woods during autumn, and its Sunday afternoon polo in the summer, are its most distinguishing activities. Over its long life, with summer play broken only by World War II, Myopia Polo Club has
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boasted an impressive roster of top home-grown players, from its very first 10-goaler, Dolphe Agassiz, at the turn of the 20th century, right through to Adam Snow at the turn of the 21st – with plenty of accomplished 4- to 7-goal club players in between. Venerable sportsmen such as Cyril Harrison from Aiken, Pete Bostwick from Long Island and Bob Skene from Australia spent summer seasons at the club. Its 15-year span hosting the popular 20-goal East Coast Open attracted top sponsors in the Nineties, and Argentine talent including Eddie Moore, Gonzalo and Marcos Heguy and Mariano Aguerre. On balance, however, the key ingredient around which Myopia Polo revolves is amateur, competitive family sport. From its earliest days,
image courtesy of emile bellott/ myopia polo club archive
The Myopia Polo Club in 1895
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the club has mounted all kinds of combinations of fathers and sons, brothers and brothers, and even one mother and son. In the early years, family names such as Ayer, Rice, Mandel and Clark were among the stalwarts, replaced more recently by combinations of Little, Graham, Hartnett, Ellis, Snow, Daniel, Coke and Colloredo-Mansfeld. From its early seasons, the club has fostered a close connection with young players from Harvard, starting with Tommy Hitchcock and Devereux Milburn, and continuing right up to today, when the Harvard Polo Club stables its horses near Myopia and uses its arena for its autumn and spring intercollegiate home games. The club hosted a Junior Westchester Cup challenge between the US and UK players aged 18 and under in 2004, won by the visitors 9-7. Many Myopia players, including the late Adam Winthrop and Don Little, were tireless ambassadors for the sport and played far and
wide in countries such as Iran, Brunei, Malaysia, Egypt, Ecuador and Colombia. And Myopia Polo reciprocated, hosting teams from these countries, as well as from Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore, the UK and Argentina. The club has also been the venue for a score of picturesque events, providing Gibney Field as the polo setting for the 1968 film of The Thomas Crown Affair, starring Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway. In Horace Laffaye’s seminal 2009 book The Evolution of Polo, no fewer than 10 pages reference Myopia Polo, including the start of the inaugural game, when the Myopia and Dedham captains collided at the centre of the field and were taken by ambulance to the clubhouse to – as Laffaye surmised – recover at the bar. Without question, the most oft-cited reference to Myopia is by the polo writer Newell Bent, memorably portraying Gibney Field in 1929: ‘The dip at the clubhouse end has never
been graded and, to the spectators watching a game, there is always the added interest in the wonder as to whether the players, whose bobbing heads can be seen in the distance, are making a goal or not. They will bob after a knock-in, but if they slowly ride toward us, growing in size as first hull down under the horizon, we know that the score has changed and that they are coming back to the centre of the field for play to begin again.’ In fact, the historic dip was slightly graded five years ago, ironically only behind the back line, to improve it as a very occasional driving range for club golfers on non-polo days. As is befitting to its iconic status in the pantheon of American polo, the Myopia Polo Club is currently featured in a permanent display in the American Museum of Polo in Florida. It is an apt tribute to the club’s remarkably colourful history of players, ponies and tournament events.
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fit for purpose
Fitness is more important today than ever before in polo. With the speed and physicality of the game increasing, ensuring the body is up to the challenge and resilient enough to get back on and play a few days later without any aches or niggles is the challenge I’m faced with when preparing my clients for the season. Athleticism, leanness and super strength coupled with extreme speed and agility are the keys to their success on the field. These are achieved by implementing the latest training techniques and scientific findings to ensure they stay focused and on top of their game. Core training is a term bandied around by trainers, but on its own, it simply isn’t enough. Over the years, I’ve developed extreme coretraining exercises that not only push players’ stabilising muscles to the limits, but allow for additional movements – taken straight from the field – to be performed. This ensures that my clients are always the best prepared of all the competitors out there.
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Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Clare Milford-Haven (above with Robert) is one of the many top players to have benefited from my specialist take on polo fitness training. She is regularly subjected to my unique and extreme interval training, which mimics the short yet powerful bursts every player goes through hundreds of time during a match. The main focus of my technique is a rapid and controlled recovery, so my clients remain focused on the task in hand and can perform at their peak until the last chukka is over. Clare trains in the same way as any top sportsperson in their field, so there are no easy sessions. Her results come from exceptionally hard and varied work, be it pressing weights while balancing on stability boards, brutal bike sprints or balancing on a Swiss ball with a mallet in hand simulating her swing. All this means I can be sure her fitness will not let her down nor have a negative effect on her performance. Fatigue plays a monumental part in sporting performance and not only affects your physical
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output, but significantly decreases your mental abilities, leading to a lack of focus, poor decisionmaking and, ultimately, of course, a drop in your ability to win. With the correct training techniques in place, however, you can minimise these effects. A player’s training must be varied, progressive and specific to their sport. Each training session must have direction and an end target, and each training cycle must improve and build on strengths and strive to eliminate weaknesses. Likewise, every client, like every game of polo, is unique, which is why an off-the-shelf fitness package just isn’t good enough. I am there every step of the way for Clare and my other clients, not only in helping them achieve their ambitions on the field, but in working with them to resolve any physical challenges they might have off it. At home, at work, on holiday – I am there for them, whatever their requirements, be that training for the polo season, running a marathon or simply achieving and enjoying a better level of fitness for life. robertelfordfitness.com
LuLu hutLey
Fitness trainer Robert Elford says it’s the polo players who put in the hard work of the field who reap the rewards when it counts
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Dr richarD caleel The Federation of Polo’s new President brings to the post four decades’ worth of involvement in the sport, a wealth of wisdom and a whole-hearted commitment to building on the sterling work undertaken by the FIP thus far ILLUSTRATION PHIL DISLEy
The Federation of International Polo (FIP) is currently celebrating its 30th anniversary as the worldwide governing body of polo. FIP collaborates with 87 countries, including 77 national associations, to promote the sport on an international basis and is recognised as a leader in the polo world. Members look to it for guidance and communication on a variety of subjects and benefit from interaction with other agencies that are a driving force in the polo community, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC), World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), SportAccord and the Federation Equestrian International (FEI). In December 2012, I had the honour to be elected as President of this prestigious global federation – the apogee of my 40-year-plus involvement in polo. During this time, I’ve had the privilege of playing in more than 20 countries in a variety of venues and have seen my love of equestrian activities extend to my entire family. An exceptional benefit this has provided has been the opportunity to play with my two sons as teammates and to partake in equestrian pastimes with my daughters, as well as my wife, Annette, who is undoubtedly the best rider in the family. I was introduced to polo in 1970, at the Oakbrook Polo Club. I was a general surgeon in Chicago at the time, practising for 20 years before going on to practise cosmetic surgery for the following 25. My medical career included appointments as Professor of Surgery at Northwestern and Midwestern Universities. As a cosmetic surgeon, I was privileged to serve as the President of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery – the largest association of cosmetic surgeons worldwide. Adventures in missionary surgery in Papua New Guinea, India and Africa were especially rewarding and
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culminated in two papal knighthoods: Knight of the Holy Sepulchre, from Pope John Paul II, and Knight of Malta and St John from Pope Benedict XVI. Presidential appointments from President Lyndon Johnson and President Richard Nixon afforded me an unparalleled opportunity to participate on the Health, Education and Welfare Committee. These experiences have greatly benefited me to this day, as I continue my work of the past two decades as a founding partner of two global companies: Glo Professional Skin Care & Cosmetic Products and Harrow Sports Equipment.
Polo is expanding globally at a rapid pace in all aspects, with continued developments that benefit the future of the sport
I believe my previous experience will serve me well in my position as President. FIP, and polo in general, are currently experiencing rapid and exciting growth, the like of which has not been seen since the end of World War I. It is particularly exciting that women have assumed such a prominent position in the sport, with a progressive increase in membership and women’s tournaments worldwide. Children’s programmes, training centres and umpire clinics have also increased exponentially. Polo is expanding globally at a rapid pace in all aspects, with continued developments that benefit the future of the sport.
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There has also been a significant increase in coverage of the sport over the past few years. Recently, the FIP World Snow Polo Tournament in Tianjin, China, was televised to an audience of three million around the globe; live internet streaming by Hurlingham Media registered 1.5 million hits over the course of the tournament. An increasing number of magazines, websites and teaching videos are now available to those with an interest in polo. One of my main objectives during my term as President of FIP is to optimise the number of FIP-affiliated events on an international basis. I will also seek to increase awareness through greater sponsorship opportunities and work with media outlets to maximise exposure, thereby allowing a greater audience to enjoy the sport. By implementing more training programmes for younger athletes and of officials such as umpires who are responsible for upholding the tenets of the game, we can build on these developments and move forward in realising FIP’s goals. Guiding FIP in the fulfilment of its mission statement requires a collaborative effort on the part of all of its members. I am fortunate to have the enthusiastic support of the FIP membership, and am especially indebted to the members of my Executive Committee, Council of Administration and supporting committees who have volunteered their time and resources for the benefit of FIP and the sport of polo. Our Marketing Committee is notably dedicated in their pursuit of sponsorship development and increasing public exposure to the sport on a global basis. The Rules Committee works with the United States Polo Association (USPA), Argentine Polo Association (AAP) and Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA), towards the goal of standardising rules for FIP sponsored or sanctioned events. The Tournament Committee is
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FIP continues to work tirelessly in an effort to set international polo on a steady course for the future
actively developing the schedules and venues for four zone play-offs in preparation for the World Polo Championship Finals in 2014, as well as overseeing several other international events. Our dedicated staff at our offices in Santa Barbara, California, Buenos Aires, Argentina and Singapore work diligently to keep all these projects coordinated, including the children’s programme and FIP anti-doping programme, which are funded in part by the International Olympic Committee. I have served for the past 15 years as FIP’s Secretary General to IOC and WADA, both of which recognise the FIP anti-doping rules and protocol, and am pleased to report we have never had a positive drug test in any zone play-off or world-cup competition. There are a multitude of active projects at this time. The Super Nations Cup will be played at the Metropolitan Polo Club in Tianjin during the first week of October this year by the USA, England, Argentina and Hong Kong. The World Snow Polo Championship will be played by 12
countries in Tianjin in 2014. FIP is also working with the FEI to present a polo exhibition day at the World Equestrian Games in Deauville, France, in September 2014, involving players from a number of countries. It is also currently pursuing the possibility of an exhibition day or tournament at the Pan-American Games in Toronto, Canada, in July 2015. International zone play-offs are planned to be completed by early 2014 in preparation for the FIP World Polo Championships in the summer of 2014. Ambassador Cups are currently planned for Palm Beach, Florida; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Munich, Germany. Children’s programmes are also being scheduled in several countries. These are just a few of the projects we are undertaking at this time, and it is important to note that the USPA, AAP and HPA are especially supportive of our continued efforts in developing polo internationally. The global nature of FIP requires extensive participation and extraordinary commitment on
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the part of all its officers and committee members. In 2013, I will attend numerous international events, meetings and tournaments that will involve travel to China, Italy, England, Argentina, Russia and the Persian Gulf, as well as within the United States. Each of these occasions brings FIP members together with other members of the polo community and the global sports community as a whole. This is of great value for strategic planning and affords year-round interaction between FIP member nations and ambassadors. FIP’s officers, committees and the Council of Administration continue to work tirelessly in an effort to set international polo on a steady course for the future. It is exciting to actively participate in this period of rapid growth and FIP is extremely fortunate to have the complete support of its membership and the polo community in its efforts to achieve its goals. I would like to reiterate what an honour it is to have been selected by my peers to represent the organisation and to work on behalf of our sport.
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THE arT of THE wEsTcHEsTEr cup This July, the oldest international polo series will be played in the UK for the first time in 16 years. Nigel Ă Brassard examines how artists have depicted it over the course of its 127-year history
The Westchester Cup, first played in 1886, is the oldest International Polo Series. It is often said there is a ‘special relationship’ between Britain and the US, and the Westchester Cup embodies that relationship in polo. The ‘blue riband’ event of the international game, it is to polo what the Ashes is to cricket, the Ryder Cup to golf and the America’s Cup to yachting. The cup itself is a magnificent 400oz silver trophy made by Tiffany & Co, featuring wonderful Victorian polo scenes. The Westchester Cup has been responsible for inspiring some of the finest works of polo art. The 1909 ‘Meadowbrook Team’, arguably the finest polo bronze, depicts the unbeaten American team of Milburn, Whitney and the Waterbury brothers on their favourite ponies. The work is in the French animalier style, with close attention paid to the details of the polo equipment, bridlery and anatomy of the horses. Even Winston Churchill commented on ‘the perfection of detail that makes Mr Haseltine’s bronze animals such a joy to behold.’ The painting on the preceding pages, by the American artist Franklin Voss (1880-1953), shows the 1911 Westchester Cup match played at Meadowbrook. Voss, often referred to as ‘the American Munnings’, painted a handful of polo scenes, but was more famous for his pictures of great racehorses, such as Man o’ War and Seabiscuit and War Admiral. He also produced foxhunting scenes and, in 1926, was commissioned to paint the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort, their hunt staff and foxhounds at Badminton House. The majority of Voss’s polo paintings are of ponies belonging to players such as Milburn, Stoddard and Watson Webb. The ‘Big Four’ were winners in 1909, 1911 and 1913. The 1909 win at Hurlingham – the first for America since the Cup’s inauguration – gave them the right to hold the subsequent contest in their country. The 1911 series generated huge interest and excitement, hence the large stand full of enthusiastic supporters beneath the flags of both participating nations. In 1913 the British team travelled to America to try and wrest back the cup. The painting on this page (pic. 1) by George Armour (18641949) was part of a commission from Country Life. He concluded that the Americans were better mounted on faster and larger horses, and that one of Milburn’s ponies ‘would not have looked out of place in a Grand National field’. In 1914, the British regained the cup and, soon after the War, the Americans issued a challenge. The 1921 games were played at Hurlingham and the pen-and-ink sketch by Lionel Edwards (1878-1966) (pic. 5), is
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Preceding pages ‘Westchester Cup’, by Franklin Voss, 1912 This page, from top ‘International Match’ by G D Armour, 1913; a 1939 newspaper pen-and-ink sketch by Phil Berube Opposite A signed montage of HRH The Prince of Wales and the 1924 Westchester Cup teams
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artworks reproduced by kind permission of nigel à brassard
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The Westchester Cup has inspired some of the finest works of polo art
inscribed ‘General View of the Ground. Lord Wodehouse stopping a rush’. Edwards shared a studio with fellow artist Gilbert Holiday, who was a great influence on him and of whom he said, ‘No one can, or ever could, paint a horse in action better than Gilbert.’ Edwards believed polo was a ‘game full of traps for the artist’ and to depict it to the satisfaction of sportsmen required more than technical skill.
In his view, it also needed ‘a knowledge of human and animal anatomy, equitation, saddlery and contemporary costume’. He felt it was beyond an artist’s power to depict a sport directly ‘unless he has taken part in that sport for many years himself’. In 1924, the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) was invited by President Coolidge to the White House and combined this visit with a stay at his Canadian ranch. His Royal Highness took part in sporting activities, including polo, golf, motoring and yachting expeditions, and also watched the Westchester Cup. The above photograph is a montage of the images of the two teams and the Prince, and is signed by him. When His Royal Highness made the Atlantic crossing, his fellow passengers included Lord and Lady Mountbatten and Lady Diana Cooper. One newspaper commented on the hysterical
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excitement caused by the visit of the ‘popular and well-dressed Prince’, predicting that US designers and manufacturers would delay the launch of their autumn collections until after his arrival because whatever he wore would influence not only clothing, but accessories, including hats, sticks, pipes, ties and shoes – indeed, he is credited with having introduced plus-fours to America on this trip. Vanity Fair described the Prince as ‘the indestructible dancing, drinking, tumbling, kissing, walking, talking and sleeping – but not marrying – idol of the British Empire’. During his time in the United States, His Royal Highness also stayed at Woodside, in Syosset – the home of James Burden. While there, he was invited to many glittering social occasions and was guest of honour at a party given by Mrs James Mackay at Harbor Hill.
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Below, from top A watercolour of the 1936 Westchester Cup at the Hurlingham Club, by W Carruthers; Lionel Edwards’ 1921 sketch of a ‘General View of the Ground. Lord Wodehouse stopping a rush’
Although mainly out of sight of the public, the Prince’s presence enraptured New York society. On his return home, he said this had been one of the most wonderful times of his life. The watercolour, left (pic. 4) which is by W Carruthers, depicts the 1936 Westchester Cup. The Americans had agreed to vary the deed of gift and allow the matches to be played at Hurlingham after a 15-year hiatus. It shows Michael Phipps playing a near-side backhand in the 3rd chukka, with America 6-3 ahead. The Americans, having beaten the British at Hurlingham in 1936, were to meet them again at Meadowbrook in 1939. The original artwork in pen and ink by Phil Berube (pic. 2) was for newspaper use. It depicts the 40-goal US team as favourites to win, while acknowledging the British team would be the best mounted ever. The Westchester Cup will be the flagship fixture of Audi International Polo Series. Audi England takes on Equus & Co’s USA team at Guards Polo Club on 28 July – the first UK staging of the Cup in 16 years. For information and tickets, visit guardspoloclub.com or call 01784 437797
artworks reproduced by kind permission of nigel à brassard
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the golden age Youth used to be a prerequisite for success in high-goal polo, but these days, 40-year-old veterans are the name of the game, says Sam Morton
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pic credit line in here
Carlos Gracida riding high
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It’s over – the long, dark period of falling horses, incarcerated patrons and routine ejections of our top player. When Facundo Pieres took the podium with his Zacara team to claim the US Open championship, he emerged as something the sport can believe in, demonstrating a class reminiscent of his father Gonzalo. His back-toback US Open wins served as bookends to the Argentine Open championship and put him at the top of the world’s professional polo players. By his side for the second year in a row was former 10-goal player Mike Azzaro. The 2013 US Open championship winner Zacara ended its season proving this year, the international colour of polo is grey. What do this year’s and last year’s US Open, Argentine Open, Queens Cup and the first three high-goal tournaments in Florida have in common? There was a 40-year-old professional on each of the winning teams. Veterans are dominating high-goal polo on the most competitive stages. In the Florida high-goal winter season, there were no fewer than 15 polo professionals – Argentinian, Chilean, Mexican and American – aged over 40. In a world where young, hot-shot 10-goal players are all the news, another group of veterans is taking home the silver. The MVP of last year’s US Open was Mike Azzaro. This spring, Julio Arellano was the MVP in the Herbie Pennell Memorial and Matias Magrini was MVP of the Joe Barry Memorial. After the 2012 Argentine Open, Mariano Aguerre was
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the first 40-year-old player in history to be raised to 10 goals. He went on to captain his team to the finals in three of the first five high-goal tournaments in Florida. Watching La Herradura play its first game this year somehow felt like a replay of the era at Retama Polo Club in San Antonio when Memo and Carlos Gracida began their run of winning multiple US opens. Fast-forward almost 30 years and Memo is being chased up the boards at Everglades Polo Club in the Joe Barry Memorial tournament in Wellington, Florida. As he begins his swing, his brother Carlos blows by him towards the middle of the field and, without looking up, Memo drills a pass 60 yards right to the mallet of his brother, who
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hits a 30-yard shot through the goal at a dead run. In the same tournament, Adam Snow, out of high polo for a year, blows by two players after stealing the ball in front of the opponent’s goal and hits an 80-yard shot running flat out. What do all these men have in common? They are winners and they are veterans. The point is that age is not a deterrent in the sport of polo, and here are four reasons why: Firstly, a veteran’s organisational skills come from years of experience – he knows how to turn four players into a team. Secondly, an older pro is way ahead in horsemanship – he has acquired the skill to keep his horses sound. Thirdly, by the time a player hits 40, he understands his own ego. Of course, what makes
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young players in their prime great is their ego, but, unfortunately, egos can destroy a team, which is why other sports have coaches who control the game. But high-goal polo is played as a sport just like NBA or professional soccer. If you removed all the coaches, Kobe Bryant would take all the shots on the basketball court and Lionel Messi would never pass – it would be street ball or backyard soccer. Outside Argentina, that is what you are getting in high-goal polo. Older players might not be able to control the play of younger teammates, but at least you won’t see a veteran taking the ball across their own goal and losing it in the goal-mouth. In any other sport, at least two coaches would be ripping him a new one, yet,
These players know every trick and rarely will they let themselves be beaten – you have to beat them
lila photos
Opposite Matias Magrini playing for Crab Orchard This page Mariano Aguerre at the CV Whitney Cup
in polo, all you get is the player that made the mistake turning and yelling at the lesser player for something they did three plays back. And it happens in all high-goal games. The final reason 40-year-old professionals are a bonus to any team, is they are mounted to their handicap. What you get with Aguerre, Azzaro, Snow and the Gracida brothers is 10-goal smarts at a bargain price. Last year, in the US, there were two 10-goal players whose combined record in the 26-goal was something
like 3-12. Few of any of the horses they played in the Argentine Open made it to the US. Now which would you rather have: a veteran on good horses playing his handicap, or a higher-rated player playing his second string of horses? In polo, rarely will you find a 40-year-old pro who is poorly mounted – they don’t often overbook themselves and are usually on their best string. Right now, I’ll take Aguerre over almost any other player because he is always mounted, he has grown to understand the nature of the relationship of the sponsor and the pro, and he knows the game inside and out. Now, if I won the lottery twice in a row, I’d play him alongside Pieres or whoever had the hot hand and good horses among the young guns, but I’m not sure
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that winning the lottery twice would cover it. Most importantly, of course, veterans mean experience, which is the greatest teacher of all. These players know every trick and rarely will they let themselves be beaten – you have to try hard to beat them. Until the Gold Cup this year in Florida, two 40-year-olds dominated the first five high-goals; Julio Arellano and Aguerre both won two. Aguerre reached the finals of a third, but was unable to compete because of a conflict in scheduling. Technically, you could say that no 10-goal players have won any of the first five high-goal tournaments in Florida. And I say technically, because while Aguerre is rated nine in the US, he is rated 10 in Argentina. If I were on the handicap
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This page, clockwise from above Adam Snow in action; Julio Arellano; Mike Azzaro Opposite Carlos and Memo Gracida on the podium
committee in the US, I might pay attention if a player’s handicap was raised down south, but that’s just me. Why? Because this player just went to the finals of four of the five last tournaments he entered. And including the Argentine Open, he did it with three completely different teams. Maybe we could raise him, and while you’re at it – and I’m talking to the United States handicap committee here – it’s also time for Arellano to be raised to 10. That’s two veteran players who dominated the two-thirds of Florida’s high-goal season. What you get with an older pro is knowledge, experience and, usually, a well-mounted player.
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You also get on-the-field coaching – and the team, the patron and the young hot pros all benefit from his experience. It is, if Steven Spielberg will forgive me, the ‘revenge of the geriatrics’. Sorry, guys – I didn’t want to blow too much smoke at you. You have to admit that, across the board, veterans are taking the reins and running. Ray Lewis, who has 17 year’s polo experience, just won the Super Bowl aged 37. Tim Duncan is the same age and currently leads the NBA San Antonio Spurs after 16 seasons. In soccer, 39-year-old Ryan Giggs just made his 1,000th appearance for Manchester United. And don’t
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forget that George Foreman was crowned the heavyweight boxing champion of the world at 45 years old. On the polo field, Juan Carlos Harriot won the Argentine Open in 1978 at the age of 41. Great polo ponies, meanwhile, have been known to compete in the high-goal into their late-teens. With all this in mind, I predict there is a whole generation of legendary players with a whole lot of polo ahead of them. Sam Morton is the author of the award-winning 2007 novel, Where the Rivers Run North, and Land of The Horse: The Art and Photography of Absaraka. samuellongmorton.com
lila photos
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a fond farewell Known afectionately as the ‘mother of polo’, Nora Heguy was the devoted parent of no fewer than four 10-goaler sons. Haley Cohen marks her passing
snoopy productions
Opposite Marcos, Gonzalo, Norita, Bautista, Horacio and Horacio Jr Heguy, Palermo 1976 This page, left Norita celebrates at the 1996 Palermo Open with, right, Marcos’ wife, Gloria Pavlovsky Below The Heguy brothers winning the 1995 Argentine Open: from left to right, Bautista, Gonzalo, Horacio and Marcos
Every sport has its mascot – a charismatic, ever-present figure who somehow enhances the environment simply by showing up. For Argentine polo, this role was long played by Nora Amadeo y Videla de Heguy. Born in Coronel Suárez in 1941, she grew up immersed in the world of bridles, tacks and balls. Her uncle, Daniel, was the first president of the Coronel Suárez Polo Club and her father a decorated player as well as the designer of the team uniform. Ineed, it was at a Coronel Suárez game that she met her husband, 10-goaler Horacio Heguy (19-times winner of the Argentine Open). Argentinians often joke that Nora must have seen more polo matches than anyone in history. Whether or not she could claim that title, she was certainly the first person to have had four sons who were 10-goaler
Nora has been called not only the mother of polistas but but the mother of polo
players: Marcos, Bautista, and the twins Horacio Segundo and Gonzalo. Nora, who has been called not only the mother of polistas but the mother of polo, passed away quietly and unexpectedly on 26 February in her home in La Pampa, where the Heguys have owned a farm since 1892. Her close family attribute her death to a problem with her aorta that her doctors had diagnosed the year before.
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Resolving it would have meant aggressive surgery; instead she opted to fight it herself. Nora’s life forced her to be resilient. Her fourth son, Alejandro, drowned when he fell into a pool at just two and a half. She was devastated, but pushed ahead, knowing she had to be strong for her three elder boys and fifth son, with whom she was then pregnant. Her husband’s demanding schedule meant she often had to leave her children for long stretches as she accompanied him to tournaments around the world. ‘It must have pained her greatly to be away from them, especially after what happened to Alejandro,’ says Luz Lalor, the tournament manager at the Argentine Association of Polo, whose parents were close to Horacio and Nora. Nora found little solace in her marriage. She and Horacio fought often, although they
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stayed married until their boys were grown. In Argentina – a conservative society with strong Catholic values – ‘there is a lot of pressure on families to appear perfect and happy,’ explains Horacio Segundo. After Alejandro’s death, Nora channelled her pain into a fierce dedication to her living sons. She dabbled in her own endeavours, for a time managing her own travel agency called PoloTour, but her real focus was supporting her family. She once said her ‘strongest vocation’ was being a mother. While he once ribbed her for not ‘knowing where the kitchen was’, Horacio Segundo contends that his mother never missed a single game of any of her sons. Of course, that was much easier when they played together for Indios Chapaleufú, winning the Argentine Open in 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1995 as the first team ever to be comprised only of 10-goaler brothers. Nora much preferred that time to the years when they played separately. ‘I’d have to sit right in the middle of the stands,’ she said, laughing, during a radio interview. Nora always arrived early to help out with preparations and would be one of the first on the field if one of her sons took a tumble. Beyond the falls and crashes that inevitably occur in polo, her sons had several serious accidents. In 1988, Gonzalo broke a vertebra and had to spend two months in a cast; in 1995, Horacio Segundo’s eye was severely damaged when he was pegged with a ball. In an interview with a local newspaper, Nora admitted that, as she ‘became more conscious’ of the sport’s dangers, she ‘cared less and less’ whether her sons won or lost. She claimed to ‘suffer’ during her son’s matches and ‘would have preferred they had taken up swimming’ or another safer sport, instead of polo. Yet it was not polo that ultimately claimed another one of her children. Early one April morning in 2000, Gonzalo was driving along the provincial road that led to the family’s farm when a thick fog rolled in. Struggling to see and likely exhausted from the drive, he steered his car onto the hard shoulder, shot off the road, skidded 70 metres and rolled it. Thrown from the vehicle, he died on impact, leaving behind his wife and two-year-old daughter. Horacio Segundo claims that, despite her agony, his mother was hesitant to ask for help. She preferred to deal with her sadness alone and distract herself by devoting her time to supporting those close to her. One friend said that Nora was always the first to call on
hearing any bad news, and described her as ‘immensely loyal and dedicated’. The hand fate had dealt Nora forced her to realise life was short and, perhaps because of that awareness, she was not a woman who minced words. ‘If she thought you were an idiot, she would tell you so. If she didn’t like how you were dressed, she would say it,’ said the friend, adding, ‘Everyone yearned for Norita’s approval.’ ‘Norita’, as she was affectionately known, certainly had the approval of the polo world, and was constantly being interviewed in the press. ‘She was very charismatic,’ says Horacio Segundo. Following Gonzalo’s death, she was invited to present a cup in his name to the most valuable player of the Palermo Open. Her appeal was not her expertise. Both funny and humble, she once insisted during
Nora once said her ‘strongest vocation’ was being a mother to her sons
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a radio interview that despite the ‘uncountable’ number of polo matches she had watched in her life, there was still much of the game she didn’t understand. Nor did Nora earn her status as a polo icon by dressing glamorously – she was always well put together but never looked fussy, opting for practical sun hats, shawls, button-down shirts and chinos instead of dresses. She became as well loved as she was simply by being herself: candid, warm, devoted and strong. During a radio interview, Nora once joked, ‘It is already decided – I will die in a palenque.’ Ultimately, of course, things were different, but what is certain is that the presence of the honorary ‘mother of polo’ will be sorely felt in all the palenques of Palermo when the season begins in the autumn.
pablo ramirez, archive images reproduced courtesy of luisa miguens, from Passion & Glory (letemendia, 2008)
Opposite, from top Nora with Facundo Pieres at the 2012 Argentine Open; with her grandchildren, the daughters of Marcos Heguy, August 2012 This page The twins Gonzalo and Horacio with their mother in 1965
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Being asked to act as FIP Tournament Director at a “One Of The Top 10 New Watches” World Cup tournament was anAt Baselworld 2013 honour I couldn’t refuse Jouelle Magazine Time 2 Talk Watches Luxury Watches Watchismo
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the latest polo action from around the world
Facundo Pieres, MVP, in the final of the US Open
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Florida Season Zacara crowned US open champions once again in the triple-tournament american high-goal season
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Snow Polo World Cup twelve nations competed in tianjin, with Hong Kong emerging victorious
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The Indian Empire Shield Dell Park scooped up the indian Empire Shield at coworth Park
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HPA Test Match Facundo Pieres proved his worth as he ensured victory for South america
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Gaucho International tempers frayed in the final, but argentina won over England in the closing seconds
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International Series the second argentine international Series and the nations cup
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Copa RepĂşblica La Bamba de areca triumph at one of the biggest fixtures on the argentine polo calendar
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Intercollegiate polo the USPa’s cross-college programme plays an important role in creating good sportspeople on and off the polo field, says former participant Felipe Viana
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aCtion CV Whitney Cup, Florida, 19 February to 3 MarCh 2013
florida season Eleven teams battled it out during the three major US tournaments. Alex Webbe has the full report
For the 10th consecutive season, the International Polo Club (IPC) served as the capital of polo this year in North America. Boasting eight fields of its own, and sat within a stone’s throw of nearly 70 extra fields, the IPC was perfectly set up to host America’s three major polo tournaments: the CV Whitney Cup, the USPA Piaget Gold Cup and the Maserati US Open Championship. With every 10-goaler in the world at the 2013 winter polo season in Wellington, and a host of talented entrants to the US games, the field was wide open – albeit with a couple of early favourites. Bob Jornayvaz and his Valiente I team (Bob Jornayvaz, Polito Pieres, Miguel Novillo Astrada and Nacho Novillo Astrada) captured last year’s CV Whitney Cup with a 10-8 win over Valiente II (10-goalers Adolfo Cambiaso and Pelon Stirling, Bob’s son Robert Jornayvaz and Alejo Taranco). Robert Jornayvaz led his Valiente II team into the finals of the USPA Piaget Gold Cup where they knocked off Valiente I, 11-9. Cambiaso’s mallet hand was hit with a ball late in the fifth chukka, so 10-goaler Juan Martin Nero stepped in to substitute. The injury was later diagnosed as a fracture, ending his season and, with it, any real chance Valiente II had in the US Open. This year, with Robert Jornayvaz back at university, Stirling and Cambiaso returned to join his father for another Valiente run for the US Open Championship. They were joined by 19-year-old 6-goaler Santi Torres, but had to face Lyndon Lea’s defending Zacara team. the cv whitney cup Only nine teams took the field for the CV Whitney Cup, with two more set to join the action later, for Florida’s second high-goal tournament, the USPA Piaget Gold Cup. Ironically enough, the draw pitted Zacara (Facundo Pieres, Lyndon Lea, Magoo Laprida and Mike Azzaro) against Valiente (Bob Jornayvaz, Santi Torres, Pelon Stirling and Adolfo Cambiaso) in a match that could easily have been the final. Zacara took the early lead, and held it 4-3 at half-time, but Valiente tied it at 5-5 in the fourth and took a 7-6 lead into the final chukka. Two sixth-chukka goals by Facundo Pieres and good defence by Zacara gave them the game, 8-7. Three days later, three more teams went out from the single-elimination round as Alegria (Julian Mannix, Hilario Ulloa, Mariano Aguerre and Facundo Obregon) hammered Piaget (Melissa Ganzi, Sapo Caset, Juan Bollini and Miguel Novillo
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Hilario Ulloa (left) and Juan Martin Nero in the finals of the CV Whitney
Astrada), 14-6. In a balanced Alegria attack, each team member scored, while Piaget’s top scorers combined for only three goals in the game. A new-look Orchard Hill team (Steve Van Andel, Rodrigo Andrade, Pablo MacDonough and Matias MacDonough) gave Lechuza Caracas (Victor Vargas, Polito Pieres, Juan Martin Nero and Francisco Elizalde) a run for their money, leading after the fourth and fifth chukkas before losing in overtime, 10-9, on an Elizalde goal. The final match of the day saw Coca-Cola (Gillian Johnston, Sugar Erskine, Julio Arellano and Sebastian Merlos) send Audi (Marc Ganzi, Nico Pieres, Gonzalito Pieres and Jeff Hall) packing after an 11-7 win. Coca-Cola took control in the second half, outscoring six goals to three for the win. As with Alegria, all team members scored. A determined Alegria ran up a 9-5 half-time lead over Zacara in semi-final play on their way to a 17-16 overtime win, on a goal from Julian Mannix. Facundo Pieres led all scoring, with nine
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goals, and Aguerre led the Alegria attack with five. Mannix, Ulloa and Obregon each scored four. Coca-Cola met Lechuza Caracas in the second semi-final and led through much of the game. On top of a 12-9 score going into the final chukka, Coca-Cola gave up four unanswered goals as Lechuza won 13-12 and a gained berth in the finals. Polito Pieres and Nero combined for 11 goals for Lechuza Caracas, while Coca-Cola fell just short in the last seven minutes of the game. An aggressive Alegria attack forced the Lechuza Caracas defence into numerous fouls in the course of the final as they built on a 6-4 half-time lead to score a 14-10 win for the cup. Obregon set the pace with a game-high eight goals, all on penalties, and was named MVP. Ulloa added three goals for the win, with Aguerre scoring twice and Mannix getting credit for a single goal. Ulloa’s mare, Mia, received BPP honours. Pieres led the Lechuza attack with four goals, Vargas scored three, Nero two and Elizalde one.
aCtion uspa piaget gold Cup, Florida, 7–24 MarCh 2013 uSpA piAGet GOLD cup With a number of teams grumbling about the single-elimination factor of the 26-goal season opening tournament (the CV Whitney Cup), 11 teams took part in the tournament draw with Zorzal (Mariano Obregon, Jason Crowder, Mariano Gonzalez and Freddie Mannix) and Mt Brilliant/Faraway (Bo/Hutton Goodman, Santiago Chavanne, Nic Roldan and Matias Magrini) joining in the mix. Most of the teams (except for Zorzal and Mt Brilliant/Faraway) had taken the field in the CV Whitney Cup. Regardless of the outcome, those horses had been tested, and all the new line-ups had had the opportunity to get used to one another, which gave them an advantage. The under-mounted Mt Brilliant/Faraway team were a late arrival to the dance and would lose all four of their Piaget Gold Cup games. In the early goings, it was obvious that the hastily organised Mt Brilliant/Faraway team were not up to the rest of the field. There was definite talent in the line-up, but without the lead time to organise and prepare horses for the rigour of an extended season, few of its players had the horse flesh to compete. The tournament draw divided the 11 teams into two brackets of four teams and one bracket of three teams. Bracket I consisted of Lechuza Caracas, Piaget, ERG and Orchard Hill; Bracket II had Valiente, Zorzal, Zacara and Alegria; and
Zorzal and ERG) took to the field in a penalty shoot-out that decided the winner of Brackets II and III, with Valiente beating Zacara for a top seeding. Then ERG, Alegria and Zorzal fought it out, with Alegria surviving to qualify for the semi-finals. Lechuza Caracas had already qualified by winning Bracket I with a 3-0 record. After two weeks and 18 games, Valiente (3-0), Zacara (3-0), Lechuza Caracas (3-0) and Alegria (2-1) emerged from a field of 11 teams
to play in the semi-finals. A draw decided the USPA Piaget Gold Cup tournament semi-final pairings, with Zacara facing Lechuza Caracas and Valiente meeting Alegria. The Lechuza Caracas line-up was altered significantly for the 2013 season. Gone was Sapo Caset (10), nullifying the lethal Nero-Caset connection. But Polito Pieres saddled up instead, along with his teammate from the 2012 British Open Championship, Francisco Elizalde. Lechuza Caracas had managed to win three times consecutively, but were averaging 11.3 goals and giving up nine goals per game. Pieres’s average was just five per match, while 10-goaler Juan Martin Nero was scoreless in the team’s first two games, before chipping in four goals in their 13-11 win over Orchard Hill. An effective Victor Vargas was good for two goals a game and gave the Lechuza Caracas line-up a legitimate four-man team. Zacara, on the other hand, was being led by high-flying Facundo Pieres, who was averaging more than eight goals per game. Zacara was scoring 14.3 goals per match and giving up a paltry 7.6. The benefit of being able to return the 2012 line-up intact was certainly paying off for Lyndon Lea. Zacara was forced to take the field without team captain Lyndon Lea, who had an injured hip. 0-goaler Matias Gonzalez took his place and received one goal by handicap from the 26-goal Lechuza Caracas team.
lila photos.com, david lominska/polographics.com
Zacara was led by high-flying Facundo Pieres, who averaged more than eight goals per game
Mt Brilliant/Faraway, Audi and Coca-Cola were placed into Bracket III. Bracket I teams played within their grouping and ranked on won-loss records. Bracket II and Bracket III played across the two groups, with teams ranked on winning percentages. If there was a tie, it was decided that it would be broken by means of a shoot-out. Valiente had been sitting since their loss in the opening game of the CV Whitney Cup, but wasted little time getting back into the groove. A slow first half saw Valiente get on top of Mt Brilliant/Faraway 6-5 before a second-half offensive had them running away in a 15-6 romp. Valiente would go on to successive wins over Coca-Cola (13-8) and Audi (10-7) for a 3-0 record and a berth in the Gold Cup semi-finals. Zacara also looked to be getting into shape as they also knocked off Coca-Cola (17-7) before downing Mt Brilliant/Faraway (10-6) and Audi (10-6), securing another semi-final spot. Following a series of shoot-outs to determine seeding, five teams (Valiente, Zacara, Alegria,
top This year’s winner of the Gold Cup, Bob Jornayvaz, with his son – last year’s winner, Robert Above Santiago Torres chased by Facundo Pieres in the final of the Gold Cup
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aCtion
Valiente with a strong lead over Zacara, halfway through the final chukka of the Gold Cup final
First-chukka goals from Pieres and Elizalde were countered by a single goal from Mike Azzaro for a 2-2 tie. It was 3-3 at the end of the second period, with Polito Pieres scoring from the field for Lechuza. Meanwhile, Facundo Pieres converted a penalty shot for a goal for Zacara. Juan Martin Nero put Lechuza on top at 4-3 with a goal in the opening minute of the third chukka, as Zacara finally found their rhythm. Three consecutive goals from Zacara (from Facundo Pieres, Mike Azzaro and Magoo Laprida) closed out the first half with Zacara leaving the field ahead by 6-4. Polito Pieres and Nero scored the first two goals of the second half to notch it up to 6-6, but Facundo Pieres drove the ball through the goalposts from over 120 yards out for the 7-6 lead to end the chukka. The two teams exchanged goals in the fifth, with Nero and Elizalde (in a penalty conversion) getting on the scoreboard for Lechuza Caracas. Laprida and Azzaro responded with single goals for Zacara to hold the lead, 9-8. That lead was defended by Zacara in the final chukka with goals from Laprida and Facundo Pieres, while Polito Pieres and the Lechuza Caracas offence struggled to tie it up. The final horn sounded with Zacara earning a spot in the tournament final with an 11-10 win.
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In the second semi-final of the Gold Cup, Alegria were still basking in the glory of their CV Whitney Cup title, when they scored the first two goals of the game before ending the initial chukka in a 2-2 tie. Three goals from Cambiaso had Valiente up 5-3 after two chukkas and a four-goal third period left Alegria trailing 9-4 at the half. Alegria cut into the Valiente lead in the fourth chukka, with three goals from Facundo Obregon (two on penalty shots), but Valiente were in control for the balance of the game. Cambiaso scored nine times for the 15-10 win. The rematch was finally set. The final of the 2013 USPA Piaget Gold Cup would feature Zacara and Valiente. Zacara’s Facundo Pieres would be facing Valiente 10-goalers Adolfo Cambiaso and Pelon Stirling, but he wouldn’t be facing them alone. Magoo Laprida and Mike Azzaro would be riding alongside the talented 10-goaler, with team captain Lyndon Lea returning to the line-up. Valiente’s big guns had the full support of 6-goaler Santi Torres and team captain Bob Jornayvaz, as they prepared to defend their 2012 title against Zacara. A slow start saw Valiente gain ground with a 1-0 score after the first chukka. A secondchukka burst that included three goals from Facundo Pieres turned the tables, and had
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Zacara leading 4-2 after two periods. Pieres added another penalty conversion in the third, but a pair of penalty goals from Torres cut the Zacara lead to a single goal, 5-4, to end the first half. A different Valiente team took the field in the fourth chukka. Five unanswered goals surged Valiente past Zacara for a 9-5 lead and Zacara never recovered. ‘Adolfo [Cambiaso] sat us down at half-time and told us what he wanted us to do in the second half,’ said Valiente patron, Bob Jornayvaz. ‘He told us to mark our men and pass the ball, and we did,’ he smiled. The two teams exchanged goals in the fifth chukka, with Torres scoring three times (twice on penalty shots) for Valiente, and Zacara getting a pair of goals from Pieres (one on a penalty) and a single goal from Azzaro. But Zacara were still gaining no ground. Cambiaso scored his fifth goal of the game two minutes into the final chukka as Zacara struggled to turn things around. A 30-yard penalty conversion by Pieres was the last goal scored before Valiente celebrated a 13-9 win. Valiente’s Santi Torres led all the scoring with seven goals (four on penalty shots) and was named Most Valuable Player. Meanwhile, Pelon Stirling’s chestnut horse, Silk, was honoured as Best Playing Pony.
aCtion maserati us open, Florida, 28 march to 21 april 2013 MASERATI US OPEN There was a field of 11 teams due to compete for US Open honours, but after two tournaments, the favourites had emerged. Zorzal had made an impressive debut in the Piaget Gold Cup. Their first 26-goal game of the season was an 8-7 overtime loss to an Audi team, whose core returned from the 2012 season. Zorzal led at the halfway point, but lost it again in the extra chukka. They bounced back with a 14-6 battering of Mt Brilliant/Faraway, but needed overtime to defeat Coca-Cola after leading 7-2 after the first three chukkas. Mariano Obregon and Jason Crowder were a potent tip to the spear, and with a few extra horses, who knows? George Oliver once said the horse was at least 75 per cent of the game and, with the high-goal season riding into the final couple of weeks of play, it was easy to see who had deep stables and who didn’t.
‘It’s difficult to compete against teams like Zacara, Valiente and Lechuza Caracas,’ said Piaget 10-goaler Miguel Novillo Astrada. ‘Year after year, they spend money upgrading their string. If you don’t match their investments, you just can’t compete with them.’ As play got underway, the strengths and weaknesses of the respective teams’ stables were becoming evident, but talented players pressed to extend their chances of advancing into the final rounds. But despite all this, the favourites remained the favourites.
In the final couple of weeks of play, it was easy to see who had deep stables and who didn’t
Certainly Valiente’s four-goal win over Zacara in the final of the USPA Piaget Gold Cup had to be considered, as did the fact that, last year, Zacara won neither the CV Whitney Cup nor the Piaget Gold Cup before capturing the US Open. The favourites remained Valiente, Zacara, Lechuza Caracas and Alegria, but a couple of other teams had increased their stock over the course of Gold Cup play. The field was divided into three brackets again, with Bracket I (Audi, Coca-Cola, Zorzal, ERG and Valiente) playing within their grouping. Bracket II (Piaget, Mt Brilliant/Faraway, and Orchard Hill) and Bracket III (Alegria, Lechuza Caracas and Zacara) played across brackets, with the top four teams advancing to the quarter finals of the tournament. Valiente continued winning, and downed Coca-Cola (15-7), Audi (12-9), ERG (10-8) and Zorzal in a 13-12 overtime thriller, before lining up for quarter-final play. They boasted a line-up
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Below Cambiaso (right) and Mike Azzaro race for the ball
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This page Azzaro and Cambiaso Opposite The two patrons, Bob Jornayvaz (left) and Lyndon Lea
that included two of polo’s most talented players in Cambiaso and Stirling, and were complemented by the talented young Torres. Led by a team captain who understood the importance of horses, Valiente were looking for their first US Open championship, and 2013 looked to be the year. Zacara bounced back from their Gold Cup defeat with victories at the expense of Orchard Hill (12-10), Mt Brilliant/Faraway (15-7) and Piaget (9-7). They still didn’t have the swagger of the 2012 team, but they improved daily. Lechuza struggled through the early rounds with wins over Piaget (14-11) and Orchard Hill (12-10), but found themselves upset by winless Mt Brilliant/Faraway (8-7). The old magic of the Lechuza Caracas line-up was missing as they searched for their new identity. The addition of Polito Pieres and Francisco Elizalde brought talent to the roster to be certain, but the identity of the team seemed to be lost. What was once Juan Martin Nero’s team had now morphed into a team dominated by the high-scoring Polito Pieres, and the allegiances of Elizalde seemed to follow the talented 8-goaler. Other teams struggled, stringing together an impressive win with a disappointing loss until the quarter-finals comprised a number of teams with less-than-impressive statistics. Audi managed to make the cut despite a 1-3 record, but the chemistry was lacking. From time to time they would play as a team, but there was often an obvious disconnect between Hall and the Pieres brothers. The interaction had improved from Gold Cup play, but couldn’t always be relied upon, and Audi suffered for it. Orchard Hill limped into the quarter-finals with one win and two losses and a line-up that had the talented Brazilian 8-goaler, Rodrigo Andrade, playing out of position. Andrade had made his bones in American polo at the back position, but Orchard Hill 10-goaler brought his brother Matias MacDonough into the
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Led by a captain who knew the importance of horses, Valiente sought their first US Open win
fold, displacing Andrade to the No 2 position. At this level, players can’t be effective playing out of their normal positions. ERG finally got its second wind with Paco de Narvaez, Eduardo Novillo Astrada and Tincho Merlos beginning to click as they ran up a 2-2 record. Alegria’s winning record of 2-1 was marred by a 16-6 thumping at the hands of Orchard Hill. They, too, appeared to be running short of horses as the long season began to take its toll. Surprisingly, Coca-Cola seemed to get a second life and also managed to put together a 2-2 record to qualify for the quarter-finals, despite losses to Valiente (15-7) and ERG (11-7). In quarter-final play, Zacara trailed Audi 5-3 at the end of the first half before rallying and
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outscoring them 9-3 in the last three chukkas, for a 12-8 win. Again, it was Facundo Pieres putting up nine goals in the game for Zacara. Eduardo Novillo Astrada stepped up for ERG, who trailed Alegria 7-5 at half-time to score a 10-9 win. Astrada was credited with six goals in the win, but it was the ERG defence that deserved a lion’s share of the credit. They held Alegria to just two goals in the second half, both of them coming on penalty shots. Coca-Cola rebounded from a period of malaise in time to send Lechuza Caracas home in an 11-10 upset. Coca-Cola trailed throughout the game, and were behind by two goals, 10-8, with one chukka left to play. Three unanswered goals from Gillian Johnston, Sugar Erskine and Sebastian Merlos were enough to lift them past a helpless Lechuza line-up, 11-10. A rejuvenated Orchard Hill line-up, which included Brazilian 8-goaler Rodrigo Andrade and Matias MacDonough, gave Valiente some problems in the opening two chukkas of their match, but after trailing 4-2 following the second frame, Valiente scored five unanswered goals to take a 7-4 half-time lead. Orchard Hill cut the
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lead down to two goals, 9-7, after the fourth chukka and were within one goal, 12-11, after the fifth. A 3-1 final chukka dashed Orchard Hill’s hopes, yielding a 15-12 Valiente win. In the semi-final, Valiente met Coca-Cola while Zacara had to face ERG. Valiente had little trouble as they charged out to a 10-2 half-time lead before coasting to the 14-8 win. This time, the centre stage belonged to Stirling, who scored eight of the team’s 14 goals. Coca-Cola had revived their offence earlier in the competition, but against a powerful opponent, they served as little more than a punch bag. The win put Valiente into the final of the US Open for the very first time. The second semi-final was a different story. ERG had been improving game by game and proved to be no push-over. While Zacara ran up a 4-1 lead after the first chukka, trailing by three goals at the end of the first half, 5-2, ERG continued to peck away at the Zacara lead. It looked like there would be no let up by Zacara in second-half action, with Pieres taking the opening throw-in and racing downfield for a goal just 14 seconds into play, 6-2. That was when ERG appeared to wake up. A pair of goals from
Tincho Merlos were complemented by a goal from Astrada, and ERG was within a goal of Zacara, 6-5. Pieres converted a penalty shot with 15 seconds left in the chukka to lead 7-5. ERG wasn’t through, as Merlos scored the opening two goals of the fifth to tie it up at 7-7. A collision on the field involved Zacara’s Magoo Laprida and Mike Azzaro, as both players fell to the ground. A brief intermission ensued allowing time to remove an injured horse from the field and get both Laprida and Azzaro back in the saddle, and the game continued. Pieres got Zacara refocused with a goal from the field, two minutes into the period. A penalty conversion with 15 seconds on the clock restored the Zacara lead to two goals, 9-7, as the chukka ended.
ERG had been improving game by game and proved to be no push-over
Q&A WITH FACUNDO PIERES You’ve just won the Nations Cup for the third time. What does it mean for you? It’s a pleasure to be chosen to represent your country and, in my case, to win it with my brother Gonzalito. How did you feel after winning the US Open? Winning the US Open, Argentine Open and the UK tournaments is every player’s dream, the achievements all of us want to reach. Despite not being the favourites, Ellerstina won the Argentine Open in 2012, and Zacara, the US Open in 2012 and 2013. What do you think about this situation? Winning’s the best thing. If you’re the favourite, you have to play with more responsibility. It’s more relaxed if you’re not the favourite. I mean, if you lose it’s OK, and if you win it’s even more pleasant.
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Valiente beat Zacara in the Gold Cup, 13-9. Did you change the way you played against them in the Open final? We had a plan, and it worked. We marked them without the ball, therefore didn’t allow them to pick it up. If they have the ball, they are a very dangerous team. Before, we used to mark the guy who had the ball, sometimes with two players; this time we didn’t leave any player alone.* * This tactic came from Fifties 10-goaler Juan Carlos Alberdi, who advocated the three principles of anticipation, initiative and speed. By anticipation, Alberdi meant hitting the ball as quickly as possible and passing it to the best-positioned teammate. To play without the ball means to take a place on the ground, taking the position off a rival, prior to the arrival of the ball. In terms of initiative a player must take or mark a rival to avoid the contrary. A player who loses the initiative and allows a rival to take him loses the play, despite having had the initiative. Héctor Martelli
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Both Azzaro and Laprida suffered bumps and bruises following their collision in the fifth, and were hoping to ride out the game for the win, but ERG wasn’t having any of it. Paco de Narvaez converted a 60-yard penalty shot for a goal in the first 35 seconds of the sixth chukka to cut the lead to a single goal, 9-8. Astrada knotted it up at 9-9 with his fourth goal of the game, and Merlos put ERG on top for the first time all day with 2:06 left on the clock. With time running out, Zacara pressed the attack. A resulting penalty by ERG sent Pieres to the line with 1:09 left in regulation play. Pieres converted it for the tie, forcing sudden-death overtime. Less than 90 seconds into the overtime chukka, ERG knocked the ball over their own end line, resulting in a Safety. Pieres lined up for the 60-yard shot and converted it for the 11-10 win. With Zacara bruised and worn after a trying semi-final, Valiente looked to be the odds-on favourite going into the final. Valiente had won 10 games straight, handily defeated Zacara in the finals of the Piaget Gold Cup, and had an endless supply of horses. Azzaro and Laprida
were being treated daily for the bumps suffered in semi-final play and didn’t look 100 per cent ready for the finals. But looks can be deceiving. Valiente fought for their 4-3 lead after the first chukka, but Zacara tied it up at 5-5 in the second. At the end of the first half, Valiente held a paperthin one-goal lead at the end of the first half, 8-7. The usual lynchpin teamwork of Cambiaso and Stirling wasn’t developing and, after the fourth chukka, Zacara moved ahead 10-9 on a 100-yard shot through the Valiente goalposts by Pieres with 55 seconds on the clock. The pace picked up as the game got more and more physical. All six goals scored in the fifth chukka came on penalty shots, with Valiente converting four of them – two from Torres and two from Cambiaso – while Pieres scored on a 60-yarder and a 40-yarder. With one period left in regulation play, Valiente was leading, 13-12. A Valiente penalty in the opening minute of play allowed Pieres to convert the shot for the tying goal, 13-13. Pieres scored a second penalty shot at 5:07, driving the ball through the goalposts from 40 yards out for a 14-13 Zacara lead.
The winners (from left) Mike Azzaro, Christian Laprida Jr, Lyndon Lea and Facundo Pieres
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Valiente fought to break through the Zacara defence, but it held firm. Laprida scored his third goal of the game with 1:47 left in regulation time, and Zacara led by two, 15-13. With 1:02 on the clock, a whistle signalled a Zacara penalty. The Valiente players were arguing about the ball placement, which the umpire positioned at midfield. In frustration, Cambiaso knocked the ball away from where the referee had placed it. Despite receiving a technical fault for this he continued to argue. On receiving a second technical, Cambiasco decided to excuse himself from the game. The ball was placed 30 yards from the Valiente goal, where Pieres converted it for the final goal of the game, 16-13, becoming the first same line-up to repeat as US Open Champions in 75 years. Facundo Pieres scored 12 goals on the day (nine on penalty shots) for the win and was named MVP. Bob Jornayvaz’s Medallion, played by Pelon Stirling, received BPP honours, while Facundo Pieres’ Corcha made Horse of the Year. The Best String award was given to Adolfo Cambiaso.
aCtion FIP snow Polo chamPIonshIP, TIanjIn, chIna, may 2013
Snow polo world cup Peter Abisheganaden reports on his second run as Director of the Tianjin tournament
The second time we attempt anything new is never quite the same as the first, is it? I was reminded of this when I ran the FIP Snow Polo World Cup at the Metropolitan Polo Club in Tianjin, China, from 25 January to 3 February this year, reprising my role as Tournament Director. Working once again with the club’s Director of Polo Operations, Derek Reid, was a real pleasure – but what was missing for me was the sheer thrill of being at the helm of my first-ever world championship. Because the FIP Snow Polo World Cup really has become the snow-polo world championships. And, as a consequence, there was plenty to keep
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us busy, so we didn’t have much time to sit back and just observe the proceedings. This year, there was plenty of natural snow falling, which turned Tianjin white. Although ours was a snow polo tournament, having it come
Countries play for prestige, and for the $150,000 sponsorship deal that comes with it
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down upon your carefully prepared surface isn’t actually what you hope for! What’s more, the snow field was laid a little later than had been expected, which resulted in a shallower layer of ice beneath the playing surface. The combination of this, plus fluctuating temperatures that made for a few days above freezing and snowfalls in between, meant the field played differently from day to day, making it trickier than usual for both players and judges. Twelve nations competed again this year. The new addition was Canada, who took Italy’s place. With the news that FIP will offer a spot or two each year to countries that have not yet
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played in the Snow Polo World Cup, the competition to finish better than last was fierce. The qualifying format had to be changed from the previous year as the number of days for the tournament had been shortened. The new format, with seeding based on the 2012 finish, worked very well. It resulted in the four top seeds, Hong Kong, South Africa, England and Argentina all qualifying again for the semi-finals. A wonderful job was done by FIP’s Horse Master, Benjamin Araya, and the Metropolitan Polo Club’s Director of Stable Operations, John Fisher, and his group of hard-working trainers. This year, countries had 12 horses for their three-chukka qualifying matches: an increase of two from last year. More ponies were added for the four-chukka quarter-finals, and the best were reallocated for the semi-finals and final. The giant Christmas tree in the Nordic Wonderland theme park caught fire the day before the games began. It was an omen that the fireworks were about to start. While the prize money was the same as in 2012, it was clear this year that countries play not only for the prestige of winning, but also for the excellent additional sponsorship, worth US$150,000, that comes with it. Most countries stepped up their whole game, both on and off the field. The more ‘professional’ approach did bring with it a subtle gamesmanship. There were a few hitches, however. Argentina’s Dario Musso, entered as a 6-goal player, was
found to hold a 7-goal handicap in France – a fact that was brought to FIP’s attention midway through the tournament. Musso was allowed to play on-off 7 goals, but it meant the Argentine team no longer fitted the handicap limit of 16 goals. They declined to use their nominated reserve, Santiago Gaztambide, and instead played and won their semi-final against South Africa with Matias Vial Perez of Chile substituting for Musso. They elected to play an all-Argentine team in the final, taking one of Metropolitan’s trainers, Rodrigo Bausada at 2 goals and dropping Martin Joachin at 3 goals to allow Musso back. Hong Kong dropped a game in qualifying, losing 2-3 to Chile. They were unconvincing in the quarter-final, edging New Zealand only by penalties, a game the latter team very nearly won. The Hong Kong team of Guillermo Terrera, Martin Inchauspe and John Fisher came into their own in the semi-finals, winning a 6-4 thriller against England. In the final, Terrera produced enough of the MVP magic for Hong Kong to beat Argentina 5-4, in a game that both sides worked very hard not to lose. Since it began last year, the tournament has grown in stature, and has now cemented its position as the Snow Polo World Championship. Congratulations to FIP for this, especially to the Executive Council Member of the FIP, Peter Yunghanns, who has been vital in negotiating terms with Metropolitan, and to FIP Zone D Director, Asad Jumabhoy, for all his guidance.
Tianjin meTropoliTan polo club
Opposite Guillermo Terrera stretches for the ball in the final This page, from top George Meyrick on the ball in the semi-finals; the colourful spectacle of the opening ceremony
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aCtion indian empire shield, coworth park, uk, 18 may 2013
the indian empire shield Dell Park took the Indian Empire Shield from title-holders Emlor on Coworth Park Polo Club’s number one ground, in an exciting final organised by Guards Polo Club
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From left Malcolm Borwick, Max Charlton, George Meyrick, and Nikolai Bahlsen
Dell Park’s open style of play made the difference – players ran forward with the ball
third chukka with two field goals, still leaving McCarthy’s side a goal down. In the fourth period, Dell Park increased their advantage with a penalty conversion by Borwick. Then Gastambide scored from the field and a 30-yard conversion by Morley tied up the match. Another field goal by Gastambide put Emlor in
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the lead for the first time, 7-6. In the fifth and final chukka, Dell Park’s, Borwick converted two 30-yard penalties, then scored one of the final’s best goals with an angled shot between the posts. Emlor’s Morley responded with a field goal, but too late, as Dell Park’s Borwick iced the cake with a 60-yard conversion to give Bahlsen’s side their well-deserved victory. ‘It was our open style of play that made the difference,’ said Dell Park’s Malcolm Borwick after the match, ‘with eager young players running forward with the ball. And Nikolai Bahlsen is much improved after attending my clinics in Florida over the winter.’
tony ramirez/imagesofpolo.com
Swiss patron Nikolai Bahlsen and his Dell Park team, with three pros from the England national squad, combined brilliantly in May, when they snatched the Indian Empire Shield from title-holders Emlor at Coworth Park Polo Club, beating Clinton McCarthy’s side by 10 goals to 8 in the final. Dell Park had reached the semi-finals of the 18-goal tournament last year, only to be knocked out by McCarthy’s Emlor, who went on to defeat the Hanburys’ El Remanso to take the shield, one of polo’s most historic and impressive trophies. There were only four teams competing for the Indian Empire Shield this year, down from a field of nine in 2012. Dell Park had already beaten Emlor in this year’s preliminaries and were eager to repeat the performance in the final. The final was played on Coworth Park’s number one ground, organised by Guards Polo Club, which now runs the polo at its neighbouring club just outside Windsor Great Park. It was a particularly chilly day, but luckily the rain held off except for a brief sprinkle. Dell Park’s 1-goal patron Bahlsen was backed by 5-goaler George Meyrick at 2; Max Charlton, 6, at 3; and Malcolm Borwick, 6, at back. Emlor’s line-up was patron McCarthy, handicap 0, at 1 and 6-goalers Santiago Gastambide, 2; Manolo Fernandez-Llorente, 3; and Tom Morley, back. The veteran Argentine Gastambide proved the mainstay for Emlor, often dominating play with fast breaks to goal, but in the end proved no match for Bahlsen’s English boys. Dell Park’s Meyrick opened the scoring with a breakaway field goal a minute into the first chukka, but Gastambide equalised with a goal from the field. Meyrick scored straight from the throw-in to put Dell Park in the lead before Emlor’s Morley converted a penalty to tie the match 2-2. Patron Bahlsen restored the lead to Dell Park a minute into the second period, scoring from a goal-mouth melee. The team then held Emlor scoreless as a field goal by Charlton and a 60-yard penalty conversion by Borwick left Dell Park ahead 5-2. Emlor, in turn, held Dell Park scoreless in the
aCtion ST REGIS InTERnaTIonal CUP, CoWDRaY PaRK, MaY 2013
hpa test match
Facundo Pieres ensured South America’s victory over England in an action-filled match at Cowdray Park, says Herbert Spencer
tony ramirez/imagesofpolo.com
Facundo Pieres (in black) eyed by James Beim (in white and red)
The HPA’s first Test match of the 2013 season, for the sixth St Regis International Cup at Cowdray Park in May, was very much a game of two halves, with Audi England showing great form for two chukkas before finally falling to South America, winners by 11 goals to 9. All the players for South America were Argentinian, although the Argentine Polo Association had declined to designate the side a national team. South America’s starting line-up was 10-goaler Facundo Pieres; Alejandro Muzzio (7), Nacho Figueras (6), and Silvestre Grahn (3). Facing them were the home team of Luke Tomlinson (7), James Beim (7), Max Charlton (6) and James Harper (6). Harper, playing his debut at-home Test for England, drew first blood less than a minute into the opening chukka, when he took a pass from Tomlinson and lofted the ball between the posts. South America’s Muzzio responded with a goal from the field to equalise, then Pieres hit a field goal to put the visitors ahead. England’s Charlton scored on a pass from Beim to tie it up, followed by a Beim field goal, which put England back in the lead. Muzzio scored from the field to equalise
Most of the second chukka was fast-flowing, end-to-end polo and a joy to watch
for South America, but Charlton found the posts again to end the period with England ahead 4-3. Most of the second chukka was again fast-flowing, end-to-end polo and a joy to watch. A field goal from Beim increased England’s lead before Pieres converted a spot penalty near the goal. With a minute to go, Tomlinson made it 6-4 to England with a 30-yard penalty conversion. Then, just before chukka’s end, disaster struck when the front legs of Figueras’ pony became entangled with Beim’s pony’s back legs, throwing the South America captain off. Nacho was taken to hospital with a cracked hip joint and substituted by 6-goaler Bautista Sorzana. The delay while paramedics treated Figueras seemed to take the impetus out of England’s
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game and Pieres put his foot down hard on the gas. South America held England scoreless in the third chukka, with Pieres scoring from a spot penalty just yards from the goal and then from the field to tie the match 6-6. Pieres scored again a minute into the fourth chukka, but Tomlinson converted a 60-yard penalty to equalise for England. Pieres then converted a 30-yarder, then increased his team’s advantage to 9-7 with a field goal at the bell. South America increased their advantage a minute into the fifth and final chukka when Sorzana found the posts with an under-the-neck shot. England responded immediately when Harper raced to goal, straight from the throw-in. South America’s Pieres got away again to cut the ball into goal as the clock ran down. Harper scored for England at the final bell, leaving South America with their 11-9 victory. This was the first time a 10-goal player has played in the St Regis Test. Facundo Pieres (an ambassador for Royal Salute whisky), fresh from his victories in the US and Argentine Opens, made all the difference. ‘Facu’ scored 8 of his team’s 11 goals and was named Casablanca MVP.
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aCtion HPA GAucHo internAtionAl, 02 ArenA, GreenwicH, uK, mAy 2013
gaucho international Argentina triumphed for the first time in the Greenwich final, in a fractious match that England would rather forget. Herbert Spencer reports
Cheval des Andes Argentina narrowly beat IG Index England by 11 goals to 10 in the third annual HPA Gaucho International at the O2 Arena in May, but the real thrill of the show was the appearance of former 10-goaler Carlos Gracida, who led Maserati Mexico to victory over Royal Salute Scotland, 11-10, in the preceding Test match on the night. We are more accustomed to seeing the great Gracida playing outdoors on grass. In his heyday, he won the Gold Cup here a record 10 times and is the only player in history ever to have won the British, Argentine and US Opens in the same year, and not once, but three times. His appearances in arena polo are rare, but in action in the former Millennium Dome in Greenwich, he proved beyond doubt he can adapt to any version of the sport that involves stick and ball. Gracida, playing off his arena handicap of 9, was the highest rated of all the players at
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the Gaucho. He was joined on the Mexico team by his son, Carlitos (4), and Luis Escobar (8). They faced a strong, arena-experienced Scotland team of 7-goalers Jamie Le Hardy and Howard Smith and Jamie Peel (4). In the end, however, Scotland were no match for Gracida-led Mexico, who dominated throughout much of the match. Carlos Gracida’s horsemanship and his superb ball control were a joy to watch, and his son Carlitos proved to be a chip off the old block. The main event, England v Argentina, was the higher rated of the two Gaucho Test matches: 21-goal arena polo, equivalent to high 28 goals on grass. But for many polo aficionados it was less pleasurable to watch. England’s line-up was Jamie Morrison (8), Max Charlton (7) and Maurice Ormerod (6). Argentina’s Nacho Figueras had been scheduled to lead the visitors, but he had broken a hip joint
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The first half featured aggressive play and frequent whistles from the umpire
in the St Regis Test just three days before, putting him out of action. He was replaced by Andrea Vianini (7), who was joined by Oscar Mancini (6) and Adolfo Casabal (8). The first half, which featured aggressive play by the Argentines, was marred by repeated whistles from the umpire and subsequent challenges to his decisions; so much so that Mark Cann, Polo Director of the Gaucho, had to lecture the teams at half-time. ‘I told them this was no exhibition match, but an international
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Opposite Jamie Morrison, chased by Andrea Vianini This page Argentina lift the trophy
pic credit line in here
Test,’ Cann declared, ‘and I would not hesitate to back the umpire if one of them got sent off.’ England failed to capitalise on free goal shots and couldn’t convert any penalties. Their last chance was seconds before final bell, when a free shot from Morrison at a defended goal was blocked, leaving Argentina the winners by a point. This was the first time Argentina had won the HPA Gaucho International, an event that is now established as the greatest of all arena Tests. Hedonism Wines defeated Merchant Hub in a patrons’ match before the main events.
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aCtion INTERNATIONAL SERIES ANd NATIONS cup, ARGENTINA, ApRIL 2013
international series Although the expense can make them prohibitive, the importance to polo of transglobal competitions cannot be underestimated, says Héctor Martelli The II International Polo Series, which took place in April on the spectacular Field One at Palermo, was a huge success. It featured three 22-goal teams representing South Africa, England and Argentina. The winners were the young South Africans, who despite their loss in the last game against Argentina, took the trophy due to goal difference. The tournament offered a good opportunity to analyse the three teams. First, South Africa: 17-year-old 3-goaler Dirk van Reenen is a quick and very gifted player who is already showing great promise for the future. At No 2 was another
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young lad, Jean du Plessis, rated at 6 goals, who is a well-known player in Argentina, where he is Eduardo Heguy’s pilot. Plessis did a great job in this difficult position. The team’s leading man is his brother Ignatius du Plessis, who, like his teammates, is still very young, but has gained lots of experience playing high-goal in Argentina as a substitute for Indios Chapaleufú II. Last but by no means least is another big talent of both South African and international polo: 5-goaler Chris MacKenzie – a very gifted and smart back. Next, the team that took second place. England’s line-up comprised two young players:
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21-year-old Matthew Perry and 23-year-old Oliver Cudmore, rated at 3 and 5 respectively, led by the very experienced brothers Mark and Luke Tomlinson, who are seasoned players in these international competitions. The team lost to the champions by a 14-10 score, overwhelmed by the high spirits of the young South Africans. The English lads scored just four field goals and the rest on penalty shots. Their second match was another story, as they took an impressive 12-6 win over Argentina. Last, but not least, Argentina. Despite winning their last match, they never quite coordinated
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their team play. It was a very young side, made up of good players, but they were let down by bad form. The leading man was the young 7-goaler Diego Cavanagh, always a fighter as a No 1, but failing in his strategy as No 3. The rest – Manuel Plaza de Ayala, Pablo Falabella Jr and Martin Joaquin – did the best they could in their respective team positions. Despite their importance to the sport worldwide, there are very few international competitions, considering the number of players and countries where polo is played. The America’s Cup is already forgotten – a contest between Argentina and the United States with no handicap limits, it last took place in 1980. Due to the large handicap difference, with Argentina rated at 40 and the United States at 31, it was an almost impossible competition, as well as very difficult economically because of the move of the horses from one country to another. With this in mind, it’s worth remembering that the United States won the America’s Cup twice, in 1928 and 1932, and Argentina in the six consecutive editions: 1936, 1950, 1966, 1969, 1970 and 1980. The World Cup, which is open to teams of up to 14 goals, was established following the foundation of the Federation of International Polo in 1983. In the nine editions to date, Argentina have won four times, Brazil three and the United States and Chile one apiece. The Coronation Cup is an annual event that takes place at Guards Polo Club, during which England plays a match against a different
It would enrich our sport to have these competitions in different regions of the world
country every year. It is rated at 25-29 goals. Then there is the European Championship – an international tournament that features more and more countries of the continent playing every edition. This is rated at 8-14 goals. It is many years since the Argentine Polo Association has organised test matches or international tournaments during April featuring teams such as England, Chile, Brazil and Rest of the World, making the II International Series particularly welcome. Beyond the competitions mentioned earlier, it would do much to enrich our sport to have these kinds of competitions in different regions of the world. Imagine: North America, Central America and the Caribbean; Northern South America (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru), and Southern South America (Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Uruguay) – and the same in Asia, Oceania and Africa. The handicap could change to suit each area and the events would always be organised by the FIP – the main governing body of polo worldwide. How I wish it could happen!
matias callejo
Opposite Ignatius du Plessis on the ball This picture Mark Tomlinson, James Beim and Matt Perry
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THE NATIONS CUP 2013 The fourth Nations’ Cup took place at the Campo Argentino de Polo, Palermo, between Argentina and Rest of the World. Argentina’s foursome featured Diego Cavanagh (7), 10-goaler brothers Gonzalo Jr and Facundo Pieres, and Fernando Rivera (1). Rest of the World had Spain’s Pascual Sainz de Vicuña (6), Argentinian-Spaniard Juan Martin Zavaleta (7), Chile’s Jaime García Huidobro (8) and English back Luke Tomlinson (7). This contest was held for the first time in 2009, showcasing Brazil, Argentina, England and Rest of the World. The second came up in 2011, and Argentina (the Pieres brothers, 2-goaler Tomás Garbarini Islas, and 5-goaler Valerio Zubiaurre) played against England’s James Beim (7), brothers Mark (7) and Luke (8) Tomlinson, and Malcolm Borwick (6). Last year, Argentina’s line-up, with the Pieres brothers joined by Pablo Llorente (5) and Carlos Deladino (1), won playing against Brazil. This means the Piereses remain undefeated in playing for Argentina: they beat England 13-8 and Brazil 11-9. And they did it again in 2013. In this latest match, the local team overwhelmed their rivals during the first four chukkas, playing simple and effective polo, led by the dynamic duo of brothers in an instinctive combination, which allowed them to know where each of them was placed. By the end of the fourth chukka, Argentina was leading by eight goals (11-3), and just relaxed in the two last chukkas (2-5). As for Rest of the World, British player Luke Tomlinson was the foursome’s best, very effective at converting penalties and as solid as a back as ever – he was only caught out by the speed of the Pieres brothers. His teammates were almost absent. Finally, although polo is a complex and expensive sport, it is my view that the Nations’ Cup should invite certain countries as guests, as is the custom in the Coronation Cup. The FIP should seek to improve on this.
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aCtion Copa RepúbliCa, pilaR, aRgentina, maRCh 2013
copa repÚblica
It was mammoth personal efort, ambition and a bit of dreaming that fuelled La Bamba de Areco’s win over the Sauveterre Lovelocks in the second-most-important polo tournament in Argentina, says Rodrigo Rueda Sr, translated by Carolina Beresford
This tournament is considered by many to be the second most important polo competition in Argentina – the first being the Open in Palermo. The Copa República is played throughout the country by teams with handicaps ranging from 0-40 goals. It is an open event that allows for the best of the sport in all denominations, and mixes teams that represent a club or a place with those that represent a province. After the initial round, 12 teams go through to battle it out in Pilar and Palermo. The first time I entered this tournament was around 1978, but I played many times since
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representing Córdoba and reaching the final three times. In two of them, I lost in extra time. Although I’m practically retired, last Christmas my son Rodrigo invited me to play once more with a great team – two of his friends, excellent players, were presenting themselves to play with this old man. I also received the support of my other sons, who were willing to lend me horses. I was given the opportunity to represent La Bamba de Areco, belonging to my friend Jean-Francois Decaux, and had all the means to do so. I could not say no. I took my time preparing everything, focusing on physical aspects (that is having less asado
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and wine) and forming a good string of horses. In the competition, I struggled to get used to the pace at the start, but I kept my efforts up. We won our matches and arrived at the anxiously awaited final to play against a great team – the favourites of the tournament (Sauveterre Lovelocks, made up of Charlie Hanbury, Santiago Solari, Pepe Heguy and Gaston Laulhe). The final on the number-one ground at Palermo was difficult and unpredictable, but the support of the great crowd, most of them family and friends, made me play better. We won 16-13. I am eternally grateful to them for having been there
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Opposite Rodrigo Sr receives the trophy from Luis Lalor This page, from top Rodrigo Jr on the ball; Rodrigo Sr, playing without kneeguards, was raised to 4-goals
I had, and this is what I want to share with you. The best medicine was dreaming every day about what we wanted to reach. Add to that a daily dose of effort, organisation and positive attitude and we can be sure that, at some point in our lives, it will come to us. I want to prescribe this medicine to all the young players: if you dream and add work, sacrifice and positivity, one day, sooner or later, your dreams will come true.
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and I want to thank my three teammates, who played incredibly well and supported me all the way throughout: Diego Cavanagh, a soon-to-be legend of Palermo; Rodrigo Ruedas Jr, a V8 motor who tears through the field; and Temmy Willington, like a Swiss watch as regards precision. Finally, we won the sought-after Republic Cup. Many people asked me if I had been taking anything to help me reach that rhythm. I told them
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aCtion IntercollegIate polo cup, texas, us, aprIl 2013
intercollegiate polo The USPA cross-college progamme ofers four years of invaluable training in sportsmanship, teamwork and healthy competition, as Felipe Viana tells us
Having been part of the USPA intercollegiate polo programme for four memorable years, I can testify as to the significance of going through the experience: it taught me how to become a better player on and off the field. As opposed to professional polo, the intercollegiate programme places every single player under the same conditions. Students play against each other for the sake of bringing their schools to the top, with no other interests other than fair competition – which means each team uses the same horses and puts in the same amount of effort in organising the games. Winning intercollegiate Nationals is definitely not at the same level as winning a high-goal tournament, by any means. However, playing national competitions embodies quite a different picture. The one I’m describing means playing with a big group of friends, including a coach plus a men’s and a women’s team, who go to the same university and thus share a similar passion. Every single player has the same objective and is thrilled – and obviously very motivated – to add
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his or her contribution when trying to win such an amazing competition. Intercollegiate polo offers an opportunity for both men and women to try to achieve their own glory, with no distinguished merits: winning Nationals means the same thing to both. Even though they play separate tournaments, the programme intends to bring them together in terms of the way it is organised. So all the tournaments fall on the same dates, which means the boys need to help the girls and vice versa. It ends up being a big group effort. Moreover, in order to keep the conditions the same for all players involved in intercollegiate
It proves extremely challenging and competitive. Everyone can win, and everyone can lose
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polo, the programme emphasises an even distribution of horses. Therefore, within the same game, every team gets to play the same horses so no one has an advantage over the other. An arena game is 3 vs 3 and four chukkas long, and includes two different sets of strings that play twice. And every set involves six horses who appear once per playing team (for example, if a team plays three particular horses in the first chukka, they are later played in the third by the opposing team, and vice versa). All these conditions make the tournament run in a very effective way. It adds elements that professional polo is unable to, and turns the sport into a group effort. In respect of the level of polo, it proves extremely challenging and competitive. Everyone can win, and everyone can lose. In the past four years, this programme has witnessed outstading performances from boys teams such as Texas A&M, University of Virginia and Westmont, and girls teams such as University of Kentucky, Cornell and University of Virginia. At different
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francis hinkle
Opposite August Scherer and Patrick Uretz cross mallets This page, from top The winning Westmont team lift the trophy; the UVA women’s team celebrate their success
times, they have all featured incredible players, with amazing talent and skills. More importantly, these teams have won Nationals while keeping up the highly revered fair play. After being held by schools located on the East Coast for the past few years, the National Championship was moved down to Houston, Texas in 2013 and into the newly installed arena owned by the ERG team. As it has been every year, it was perfectly organised, and the teams did an excellent job in putting on great performances that entertained the visiting crowd. The women’s tournament witnessed UVA’s second win in a row. The first team they beat was Colorado State. This game appeared evenly matched beforehand, but saw the UVA girls take control in the second half of the game and easily seal the deal. UVA, which included Isabella Wolf, Victoria Friedrichs and Kylie Sheehan, showed great teamwork and individual performances. The team went on to challenge Cornell, who had Kailey Eldredge and Anna Winslow playing. In a game that has since been considered one of the most thrilling finals in US college polo, UVA and Cornell battled during the whole match and never gave each other a break. Kylie Sheehan, named All-Star player of the tournament, tied the game out of a penalty 3 in the last chukka with 30 seconds remaining on the clock. Kailey Eldredge won All-Star at the end of the tournament. After four amazing chukkas, both teams went on to test their nerves at the penalty shoot-out stage. All the women missed their chance until it got to Kylie Sheehan – again, the last hitter – who put the ball in the goal, giving the victory to the UVA women’s team. Supporters, such as coach Lou Lopez and his son LJ, their assistant coach, could not hide their joy. On the men’s side, the 2013 winner was Westmont, which included Patrick and Tony Uretz, and David Samaniego. On their road to victory, the team from California outplayed SMU in the first game of the tournament. Great displays from the Uretz brothers for Westmont, and from August Scherer for SMU, served as the main attraction. With a game already on top of them, Westmont went on to overtake the defending champions UVA in a tight semi-final. The great teamwork and strategy maintained by Westmont during the game proved to be more effective than any individual actions from the UVA players. With a deserved spot in the final, Westmont ended up defeating Colorado State –
a team lead by captain Ford MacCarty. Although close in score throughout most of the game, again, great performances from the Uretz brothers sealed the victory with just minutes left before the final horn. All-Stars were Patrick and Tony Uretz, Ford MacCarty and Felipe Viana. Westmont was a fair winner, by all means. Yet, to our disgrace, the University of Virginia men’s team could not lift the trophy again. Nonetheless, I had the luck to be part of what I consider the best team at college level for four amazing years. Like no other college in the United States, UVA offers its players two arena rings (one big outdoor and a small indoor) and a grass field, in addition to two barns where players keep their horses. Thanks to donors, the club possesses more than 60 horses that are split into different groups – call it the men’s varsity, women’s varsity and club level. Both Lou and LJ Lopez have succeeded in maintaining the UVA’s polo programme’s position as one of the most revered in the country. UVA is a student-run club – one that has students taking
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on administrative roles such as treasury and secretary, as well as general maintenance like horse care, mucking-out, yard-cleaning and ordering supplies. While competing at university level, you get to play with amazing teammates, many of whom become lifelong friends. These are the people you work with all year round, who help you out in the hardest times, who you want right next to you when you win Nationals. Fortunately for me, I was able to go through this amazing experience because of the financial assistance provided by the Raymond Vere Nicoll (RBVN) scholarship. This fund is provided to all club members of the Virginia Polo Club who prove a need for financial aid and want to become a participating member of the club. Through the RBVN, I was able to attend college. I will truly be grateful to them forever. I would recommend anyone who plays polo and is planning to attend college to give it a shot. Without a doubt, intercollegiate polo offers four years that are utterly unforgettable.
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ARCHIVE
the long game West Yorkshire’s Toulston Polo Club had a century of quirky tales to draw on when it commissioned a book to celebrate its big birthday
This year is the centenary of Toulston Polo Club in West Yorkshire and, to commemorate, it has published a book detailing important events in its rich history. The Club’s founder, William Riley-Smith, was born in November 1890 on his parents’ estate at Toulston Lodge, near Tadcaster. The Riley-Smiths owned John Smith’s Tadcaster brewery and William joined the company in 1911. The family’s interest in polo had started before his birth – indeed, in 1893, it is recorded that a Mr E M Phillips died while playing at Toulston. Encouraged by one of his uncles, William learnt the skills of polo in the Lodge’s extensive grounds and, after Eton, went up to Trinity College, Cambridge, where he captained the university’s team in 1912. The nearest polo clubs to Toulston were at Leeds and York, not far from Tadcaster, but William decided to set up his own club and built a boarded pitch on the estate. The first match, which took place on 28 April 1913, with 18 players and 50 spectators, was not without drama: one player had a couple of teeth knocked out in the opening chukka and
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the action culminated with an appalling storm. In World War 1, William served with the 13th Hussars in Egypt and India. During his time at Meerut, he took over as polo club secretary and his team won the Meerut Cup. He later bought a number of ponies that he brought home to Britain. In 1923, William improved the Toulston ground with the help of 40 local unemployed men, boiler ash and a carthorse from the brewery. Personal invitation was the only way to join the club, and members received a bill for their drinks at the end of each season. With its proximity to the garrisons at York and Catterick, it staged many matches with Army teams, and the annals record games with the 14th/20th Hussars, Royal Scots Greys and Durham Light Infantry. One of the club’s more prominent visitors, artist Alfred Munnings, came to Toulston in 1926 and painted William at the polo ground in a study entitled ‘W Riley-Smith Esq Changing Ponies’. The original has disappeared, but the club found an old auction catalogue and a copy appears in the centenary book. In 1937, William
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Above ‘1st Bn v 2nd Bn Durham Light Infantry, Toulston, 24 August 1955’ by Lionel Edwards, reproduced by kind consent of its successor, the Rifles Regiment, Durham
represented the County Polo Association on the Hurlingham Club Polo Committee and also sat on the Handicapping Sub-Committee. Douglas, William’s son, was also a keen polo player and served as chairman of the Hurlingham Polo Association between 1974 and 1980. He sold the family’s Tadcaster estate in 1979 and, for some years, the club rented the ground from the purchaser. Jim Haigh joined the club in 1974. He bought the ground in 1991 and secured the future of polo there. His first task was to construct a second pitch, which came into use the following year. Jim has served as chairman of the HPA Finance and Grants Committee since 1994 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. Words by Robin Gallagher and Sarah Lloyd. The Toulston Centenary Tournament finals day is on Sunday 23 June. toulstonpoloclub.com
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