Ponylines

[news] Pilarà-Piaget team announced, FiP zone playoffs, golden goals charity and much more

One tO Watch

Being forced to shuttle to and from caracas throughout the 2011 Florida high-goal season seems to have little effect on either the quality of Venezuelan banker Victor Vargas’s play or on the success of his Lechuza caracas team. they captured both the c.V. Whitney and the Us Open championship, and took audi to overtime in the final of the UsPa Piaget gold cup. a familiar figure on the high-goal scene in the United states, england and spain, Vargas has led his team back from one of the game’s worst tragedies just two years ago, when 21 of his prized polo ponies died on the field-side while preparing to play. they were later found to have been poisoned by selenium. a 25-year veteran of the game, Victor is a constant scoring threat at the number one position. Rated among the top mounted patrons in polo, his disciplined organisation continues to produce one of the game’s most competitive teams.

The season is now well under way and as always the weather is once again a regular topic of conversation, but this year it is because a large swathe of the country is desperate for rain. As I write this, things are looking pretty desperate for polo players and farmers.

In spite of this, the first test match was played on near-perfect conditions on Lawns 2 at Cowdray, and there is no doubt that there has been a drift of players to Cowdray, where the priority has been the grounds since David Jamison’s time as Chairman.

On 21 April, prior to the season here, and at the tail end of the short season in Argentina, England fielded a team of Luke Tomlinson and Mark Tomlinson, James Beim and Malcolm Borwick to play against Argentina on the Number 1 Field at Palermo, Argentina. With the home side based around Gonzalito and Facundo Pieres, and with two very competitively handicapped players up the front, there were no illusions as to the challenge faced by England. Our team was not out-horsed generally, but Argentina had four or five ponies whose superior speed and agility enabled them to escape our clutches and score vital goals. Yes, we lost, but the Argentine players watching were genuinely impressed by England’s performance and congratulations are due to the team for a good game. Our thanks go to Harald Link for supporting the team and making it financially possible, and of course to the AAP who laid on what everyone considered to be a very successful day.

Turning back to this season, the extension of the crossing rule to exclude turning left as well as right if slowing down appears to be making a difference, although I have heard that ponies are being hit more. The HPA is also trying to reduce the ‘working’ of the umpires, something that is usually done by the higher handicapped players on the team. Again, so far this has been well received.

There has been much discussion on the proposal to introduce a home-grown player rule, and as always, not everyone will be pleased. But the HPA Stewards will do their best to introduce a rule that is fair to those who pay for the teams and to our own players, as well as being good for polo here.

With three international matches in May, June and July, the 14-goal FIP qualifiers in Italy in September and hopefully the World Championships in Argentina in October, plus the various Young England games, there will be plenty of players wearing the new Joules England shirts. In the first outing, we saw a good game but a loss against a South American team at Cowdray. The next test match will be against New Zealand and they will be very keen to avenge their defeat last season. Then Brazil, who have no players or horses here for the high-goal season, have very sportingly accepted the challenge to play for the Coronation Cup, for which they will be flying over ponies and players. It will be a special day; not only the last for Cartier after a long innings but also the Centenary match for the Coronation Cup. 2011 auDi polo aWarDs

Over 400 guests, including the greatest stars in polo, came together on16 May for the sixth annual Audi Polo Awards at Coworth Park. Andrew Hine, director of Polofix – organisers of the Audi Polo Awards, remarked: ‘There is no doubt that last season was highly thrilling – not least with El remanso and Enigma – two young teams who have been involved in high goal for just two years.’ Having won both The Queen’s Cup and The Gold Cup – a very rare achievement, Ali Albwardy’s Dubai team swept the board taking home four awards including The Apes Hill Most Outstanding High Goal Team.

Adolfo Cambiaso was awarded The Coworth Park Most Outstanding High Goal Player with his Dolfina Caridad receiving The Kerry Packer Most Outstanding High Goal Pony. rashid Albwardy added further recognition for the Dubai team by picking up The royal Salute Most Outstanding High Goal Patron.

For the English contingent, success came in the form of James Beim, who was awarded The Audi Most Outstanding British Professional, and Nina Clarkin, who received The Pommery Most Outstanding Lady Player award. The Life Time Achievement Awards were introduced in order to honour individuals who have made a lifelong dedication to the sport of polo. This year the Life Time Achievement Awards went to Buff Crisp, Secretary of the HPA from 1989 to 2000, and Alan Budgett, Chairman of the HPA from 1967 to 1974.

philly youth victorious

Kareem rosser, 18, captain of the winning Cowtown/Work to ride team at the USPA National Interscholastic Championship in March, stumbled upon polo by mistake. He and his brothers were out cycling when they first discovered the Work to ride barn, a non-profit programme founded by Lezlie Hiner in 1994, aiming to give Philadelphia’s underprivileged children riding lessons in exchange for help with looking after the horses. From there, rosser’s polo career took off.

Named ‘Number 1 All-Star’ of the tournament, the humble rosser insists that it is his teammates (brother Daymar rosser, 16, and Brandon rease, 15) who are the secret to his success: ‘Without them, there would be no team.’

The National final – a rematch of the regional final – was played against Baltimore Polo Club. The match was tough, as rosser describes: ‘Baltimore came out scorching, cutting the lead to five with three minutes to go.’ However, the WTr team stepped up in the final moments, finishing victorious 24-17.

Not only a historic moment for the Work to ride team, the win has also given rosser and his teammates idol status as they aim to ‘lead the way in opening doors into this great sport’. isabella hislop

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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Eduardo and Pepe Heguy of Chapa II will play with Julio Arellano and Alejandro Novillo Astrada in the Triple Crown, making their team 33 goals. Other teams will include La Dolfina (39 goals), Ellerstina (37), La Aguada (36), Estancia Grande (36) and Pilará Piaget (33). There are two more further slots which São José (32), Alegria (32), La Quinta (30), Miramar (29) and Engima (28) will play for.

In the Gold Cup there are 18 teams: two less than last year. There are six English patrons, three French, two Italian, two Australians and one each from Brunei, Chile, Columbia, Dubai, Germany and Thailand. Five teams are new this year, and there are also several new sponsors: Richard Mille, Stella Artois and Thai Polo.

Cartier has announced a three-year deal to sponsor the Queen’s Cup at the Guards Polo Club starting in 2012. After 27 years of sponsorship of the Coronation Cup, Mr Arnaud Bamberger, Cartier UK Executive Chairman said, ‘We felt it was time to change the formula to one which is more tournament focused.’ The opportunity is now open for a sponsor to take over the Coronation Cup which is celebrating its 100th anniversary and is the world’s number one spectator polo event.

The Brazilians are making a huge effort to play in the Coronation Cup. The team will consist of José Eduardo Kalil (6 goals), Luiz Paolo Bastos (7), Rodrigo Andrade (8) and João Paulo Ganon (8). They are flying in 12 horses for the game. Brazil have only played once before, in 2001. They lost 8–7 at Cowdray as Guards was closed for the foot and mouth outbreak.

In 1539 the first races took place at Chester race course. This year, the Duke of Cambridge played in the middle of the course on 1 June. It was the Duke’s first polo game since his marriage to Catherine Middleton in April. He and his brother Prince Harry were due to play the Sentebale Polo Cup on 12 June at Coworth.

During the winter Nick Evans and his wife Kinny rode in a number of hunt races across natural hunting country. The highlight was the Melton – the hunting man’s Grand National – in Leicestershire on 5 February, which takes place over three miles and several jumps. Sadly Nick fell at the fifth fence but Kinny finished a very impressive ninth. They both rode to raise money for the Nepalese Tibetan Children’s Charity.

In a new book, Polo – 40 Years Behind the Lens, polo photographer Mike Roberts charts four decades of the sport at Guards Polo Club. The foreword is written by HRH The Prince of Wales. This unique collection of rare photographs is limited to 250 signed and numbered copies. blacklockspoloart.com Book releaSe

Polo in the United States is the latest book by Horace A Laffaye. His writing charts the development of polo in America from its beginnings in New York City in 1876 to the 2010 US Open Championship in Florida. The book’s 26 chapters cover a myriad of subjects: arena polo, university games, women’s polo, the game in the US army, the Olympic Games, as well as seldom-mentioned topics, such as the literature of polo and artists’ depictions of the sport (the book contains more than one hundred illustrations). Although polo history is usually confined to the deeds of prominent personalities and the big clubs, Laffaye also covers regional polo and lesser-known clubs and players. In his foreword, historian Dennis J Amato considers this work, ‘one of the most important books ever published on the sport. It is destined to become a major reference work for decades to come.’

Zone PlayoffS

The United States and Mexico have advanced out of the North and Central American zone to the 2011 FIP World Championships this October in San Luis, Argentina. The qualifying tournament was hosted by Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic from 6 to 15 May with Canada, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic also participating.

The first weekend saw both the USA and Canada defeat Guatemala to set up the much anticipated showdown between the bordering countries with a spot in the World Championship on the line. Canada jumped out to a 4-1 lead after two periods but the US got on track in the second half, led 10-6 heading into the final period and won 10-8. USA Captain John Gobin was awarded MVP.

The following weekend Mexico defeated the Dominican Republic 2-0 in a best-of-three series to earn their ticket to Argentina. Mexico won 9-7 in their first match and 13-10 in the second meeting to qualify for the World Championships later this year. The beautiful setting of Casa de Campo was a great location for the event and a good group of horses was gathered by manager Cali Garcia-Velez for the teams to play at a high level.

nicholaS SnoW

the love of my life

Pony’s name La Fortuna Sex Gelding origin Argentina

Polo was just one of La Fortuna’s jobs. My father found him at Dickie Santamarina’s ranch in Argentina. They had gelded him because of his parrot mouth, in those days considered a genetic defect. My dad loved him, but Dickie wouldn’t let him buy him because of his mouth so he gave him to Dad with the promise that he wouldn’t say where he came from. When I was six I asked Dad if I could buy him for a penny. He told me he’d cost a penny and a kiss. La Fortuna and I then went everywhere together; from the start of a 26-goal game until the barbecues at night. A polo sponsor wanted to buy him for a big sum in the Eighties, but Dad refused because he was my horse. La Fortuna took me to rodeos, polo games and eventually retired as a babysitter for the weanlings. He not only raised me, but he raised my father as well, helping him achieve his 10-goal handicap. He was, and still is, a legend in the sport of polo.

HookEd oN PoLo

Lord Rothermere’s media career began at the International Herald Tribune in Paris. In 1997 he became managing director of the Evening Standard in London, and one year later was later appointed executive chairman of Daily Mail & General Trust. Polo is one of his many sporting passions, which also include tennis, riding and skiing.

I started playing polo four years ago at Druids Lodge Polo Club, based just outside salisbury in wiltshire. My son, Vere, was very keen on the game, having started with the RA Pony Club, and he then continued the sport at school. I would take him along to weekly lessons and eventually Giles Ormerod, who owns and runs Druids Lodge, persuaded me to play. This is how I, like so many others, got the bug.

There are three factors that make polo particularly special for me. Firstly, I love my string of ponies – the majority are from Argentina, with the odd one from south Africa and new Zealand. secondly, there’s the joy of being able to play on the same team as my children – my eldest daughter, Eleanor, has also started to play in a few low-goal tournaments. Finally, the friendship and camaraderie of my talented teammates is something I cherish. I currently play 12 and 15-goal tournaments, and I’d say my perfect match involves a great pitch, a harmonious team and fluid play.

My most memorable game was the final of the Palermo Tour, Ferne Park versus Amadeus, which I played in Buenos Aires in February 2011. And we won 11-9! The team featured myself, Eden Ormerod, Joaquín Pittaluga and Michel del Carril.

I have a huge respect for my teammates as players – they demonstrate an incredible level of dedication to the game, which, coupled with great horsemanship, is a privilege to be part of. The more I play, the more I appreciate that this is a game of subtlety, skill and above all hard work. The amount of effort and dedication that goes into a team, from the grooms upwards, forms the basis of its success. It is that esprit de corps which I enjoy the most. obITUARy: THE MAHARAJAH

of JAIPUR (1931 – 2011)

Brigadier sawai Bhawani singh, who died on 17 April aged 79, was the last titular Maharajah of Jaipur. Given the nickname ‘Bubbles’ by his British nanny because of the gallons of champagne consumed at his birth, Bhawani singh was the first male heir born to a reigning Maharajah of Jaipur for generations. Educated at Harrow, he later opted to serve in the Indian Army and was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra, India’s second-highest gallantry award, for his contribution in the 1971 India-Pakistan war.

In 1966, he married Princess Padmini Devi of sirmour and was later blessed with his only child, Princess Diya Kumari. with no male child, he later chose to adopt his grandson as his heir to the throne in 2002.

A keen polo player, the Maharajah was instrumental in the formation of the Federation of International Polo (FIP) as well as the FIP world Championships. His polo legacy shall be continued by his adopted son, Maharajah Padmanabh singh, and son-in-law, Maharaj narendra singh, who is a FIP Ambassador for India.

His funeral at Jaipur was attended by scions of the erstwhile royal families and top politicians as well as thousands of locals among whom he was immensely popular because of his humility and concern for the common man. vIkRAM RATHoRE

PILARÁ PIAGET LAUNCHES NEW TEAM

During a dinner at the International Polo Club Palm Beach on March 19, Marcos Heguy, international brand ambassador, presented the new Pilará Piaget team that he captains.

The next Triple Crown, which will take place in Buenos Aires in the autumn of 2011, is already showing signs of being highly competitive. Pilará Piaget will certainly be able to count on their new team to take on the new polo season. Led by managing director, Marcos Heguy, with his 10-goal handicap, the team will draw as much on their experience, embodied by Bautista Heguy, as on the determination of the 2010 discoveries in the form of Hilario Ulloa, Cristian Laprida and Tomás Garcia del Río. The team collectively makes up a handicap of 33.

Philippe Léopold-Metzger, CEO of Piaget, commented: ‘For a brand as committed to the transfer of knowledge and competencies as Piaget, the new Pilará Piaget team has a particular meaning. On the one hand, there’s the experience of Marcos Heguy… and the family tradition represented by Bautista Heguy on the same team; and on the other, the audacity and ambition of new talent in Argentinian polo. Piaget is proud not only to have been associated with promoting this most noble of sports since the Eighties, but equally to support a team that is perfectly in harmony with the values that are so dear to us.’

GoLdEN GoALS CHARITy

Polo is at a continual crossroads where we, as a sporting community, can choose to either rest on the laurels of the game established over generations or collectively choose to adopt modern initiatives that will bring the sport to the forefront in the future. This is where Golden Goals comes in. while one-off charity games happen from time to time, generating sizeable crowds, I feel that there needs to be a system of continuous giving back to those who may not be as fortunate as us to experience the thrills of the Game of Kings. with Golden Goals chairty I can fuse my polo playing abilities with helping people. I do this firstly by finding sponsors to donate money to charities for every goal I score this season. I then take time out at polo events to interact with kids and families affected by cancer. I invite them to games and on pony rides, getting to know them as individuals. Personal interaction brightens their day and I want be the voice of these kids through my ambassadorship at the Texas Children’s Cancer Center. Although only in its first year, the Golden Goals project has generated a lot of interest and already I have 22 sponsors and counting! AMEER JUMAbHoy

yoUNG INITIATIvE AT GUARdS

Having previously had a reputation for frowning upon children cluttering up their pitches, Guards Polo Club have now embraced youth polo with a passion! On 10 May, a mixture of the most talented and promising players from wellington, Eton and Harrow (soon to be joined by other local schools) lined up on pitch nine to be welcomed by Guards member, wellington parent and the driving force behind this initiative, Alex Brodie. watching the quality of these young players as they trained, I could see this type of academy – the first in the UK – is an inspired idea. The pooling of such talent helps these future stars push each other to the highest level, and keeps the cost down! It is overseen by HPA-qualified coaches, and some Guards members, perhaps trying to recapture their youth, joined in with the youngsters. This is the first incarnation of the Academy. In future, places will appointed after a selection procedure, and run through the summer term into the holidays.

The HPA and sUPA are both keen to get and see this as a blueprint for what can be achieved at other clubs around the country. watch this space! JoHN GALE SAddLE UP WITH…

GUILLERMo CASET, JR. Nationality Argentine Age 25 Handicap 8 (Argentina), 9 (UK), 10 (UsA)

sapo Caset showed heroic resilience, bouncing back from the loss of top horses in the tragedy of 2009 to receive the honor of owning the Best string of Ponies in the Us Open in 2011. Averaging nearly seven goals a game in high-goal play during the Florida winter season, sapo saw his handicap elevated to 10-goals after the UsPA spring meetings

To what do you attribute your success this past season? My horses. The Lechuza Caracas team suffered heavily two years ago, and it took time and effort to rebuild. I put every penny I earned back into my horses, and it paid off. My father has been a great help to me as well, and having friends like Tommy Lee Jones [the actor and keen polo player] helps to make up for not having a great family organisation like the Pieres and Heguy families.

How did you achive the ultimate aim in polo: a 10-goal handicap? Again I have to give much credit to my horses, Victor Vargas and the entire Lechuza Caracas family and my teammate for the last two years, Juan Martin nero. I learn from him every day. He has helped me elevate my game to another level and is such a pleasure to play with.

How did winning the 2011 US open feel? It was very important to everyone on the team. we won the CV whitney to open the 26-goal season and then lost the UsPA Piaget Gold Cup in overtime. The Us Open was the only cup that Victor hadn’t won. we needed to vindicate ourselves and nothing short of an Open win would do it.

What is your team for the Triple Crown for 2011 in Argentina? I will play on the Audi são José team with Rodrigo Andrade, Polito Pieres and Jaime Huidobro.