POLO AROUND THE GLOBE
Imphal, India 5th Manipur Statehood Day Women’s Polo Tournament By Pamela Flanagan
USA’s Carolyn Stimmel, Bridget Sibson, Athena Malin, Alyson Poor and Pamela Flanagan
My passion for polo has taken me all over the world. Winston Churchill’s famous saying, “A polo handicap is a passport to the world,” has certainly held true for me. I have played in the U.S., Mexico, Argentina, China, Guatemala, Canada and most recently, on the U.S. team at the 5th Manipur Statehood Day Women’s Polo Tournament in Imphal, Manipur—the northeastern edge of India. I must say my experience in Manipur was certainly unique. Like most international tournaments, we were able to meet incredible polo women from around the world. The respective polo federations sent teams representing Argentina, Great Britain, Egypt, Indian Polo Association from New Delhi and a local Manipur team. I had the amazing experience of playing on what is arguably the descendants of the first polo ponies, the Manipuri pony. I have been drawn to horses for as long as I can remember. My mom loves horses, but no one in my immediate family had horses or rode horses. I am not entirely sure where the fascination stemmed from, but one thing is clear: I have had, and will always
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have, an unwavering lifelong love for horses. I started riding when I was about 4 years old. I rode multiple times a week throughout my childhood, and then went on to boarding school at Culver Academies. Culver has several very impressive horsemanship programs, one of which is polo. I picked up polo and never turned back. I played through the USPA I/I programs throughout high school, college, and even law school. After graduating, I realized I needed horses of my own, so I decided to rescue horses in need of a second chance and turn those horses into polo ponies. Stella and Nala were my first two rescues (#RescuePonyStella #RescuePonyNala). Working with them, and watching their potential slowly emerge through their tattered exterior quickly turned me into a passionate advocate for rescue horses and horse welfare generally. Since that time, I have rescued, rehabilitated and repurposed six horses of my own, and have helped several other horse lovers do the same. I have continued to play polo around the world and at all levels. Just over two short years after rescuing Stella, I played her in the 2019 Women’s U.S. Open and won. I share all my horses’ stories on my Instagram page: @Pamela_Alina. Team USA consisted of myself, Athena Malin, Alyson Poor, Bridget Sibson and Carolyn Stimmel. Stimmel, who played in the event last year, was going to help coach and serve as alternate. Ed Armstrong, co-founder of the tournament, was our coach and mentor. The U.S. team arrived a few days early and had a chance to meet the ponies and stick and ball. It also visited the Ima Keithel Market (mother’s market), a 500-year-old market run exclusively by women, and the Marjing Temple, the only temple for ponies. The Manipuri ponies were certainly different. These small- to medium-sized ponies are about 12 hands or smaller. Every player used mallets between 45-47 inches. Despite their size, these ponies were tough. At the end of the tournament, prizes were given to the best playing pony and the naughtiest pony. I was fortunate to have played on Thok-thak (“rascal”in Manipuri) the naughtiest pony, and I will say, it was a well-deserved award for this fiery chestnut
