Polo Times June 2014

Volume 19 • Issue 5 • June 2014 • £6.50

www.polotimes.co.uk

100 page bumper issue

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Guest Edited by

Mark Tomlinson 23/05/2014 14:54

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T HERE ARE STORIES THAT DESERVE TO BE CAPTURED FOREVER.

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THE GRANDE MAISON It was in 1833, at the heart of the remote Swiss Jura valley, that Antoine LeCoultre founded the first workshop of what would become the Manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre. The Swiss watch industry pioneer revolutionised the field of precision by inventing the first pinion-cutting machine. A decade later, he created the world’s first instrument capable of micron-level measurements: the Millionometer. The founder’s inventive spirit, perpetuated from generation to generation, has enabled the Grande Maison to register almost 400 patents and create 1,242 mechanical movements – an absolute record in the watchmaking world. United under one roof, over 180 watchmaking professions ranging from the rarest manual crafts to cutting-edge technologies enable the creation of exceptional timepieces from A to Z.

THE LIVING LEGEND The Reverso watch was born in 1931, at a time when British colonial army officers stationed in India dreamed of finding a timepiece able to withstand the rough and tumble of polo tournaments. In response to this daunting challenge, the Manufacture came up with a simple yet brilliant solution in the shape of the swivel case. The Reverso was nonetheless not solely destined to assert itself on polo fields. Its elegance and customisable case-back aroused immediate enthusiasm among devotees of Fine Watchmaking and aesthetes with a taste for Art Deco styling. Since 1931, the Reverso has acquired authentic iconic status and has been constantly reinvented by the Jaeger-LeCoultre artisans and watchmakers, in terms of both design and function. Within the Manufacture, cases and movements are simultaneously developed and produced, which means each calibre is perfectly fitted to the shape of the case, be it round or rectangular. Aesthetic

refinement and technical excellence go hand in hand, in harmony with one of the cardinal values of Jaeger-LeCoultre: integrity.

RARE SKILLS SERVING THE ICON The watchmakers’ talents are echoed by the virtuoso skills of the artists who transform the Reverso into a genuine work of art. The back of the Reverso provides unique space for personalisation. Family crests, monograms or initials: the engraver sculpts the metal to preserve the trace of a tender tie, a symbolic date, or a precious moment. Jaeger-LeCoultre also houses one of the world’s only workshops still exercising the discipline of enamel miniature painting, which calls for endless patience. Jaeger-LeCoultre’s gem-setters display peerless mastery of precious stones and have indeed developed their own gemsetting techniques in order to accentuate the beauty of the swivel case. By way of example, the “snow setting” technique created in the gem-setting workshop of the Manufacture gives pride of place to the sparkle of gems to light up a Reverso. Whether by an engraving, a miniature enamel painting or the radiance of precious stones, our artists will immortalise your legend. Choose the moment that belongs to you. A Reverso just for you.

1931 Reverso patent

GRANDE REVERSO ULTRA THIN TRIBUTE TO 1931.

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YOU DESERVE A REAL WATCH.

Jaeger-LeCoultre London Boutique, 1A Old Bond Street, Mayfair, +44 207 491 6970 Harrods, Fine Watch Room, +44 207 730 1234 Selfridges, The Wonder Room, +44 207 318 3830 Wempe London, 43-44 New Bond Street, London, +44 207 493 2299 www.jaeger-lecoultre.com

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Tally Ho Farm EUROPE’S LARGEST POLO SUPPLIER

Official Equestrian Supplier to the England Polo Team

We would like to congratulate Max Charlton on winning the Tally Ho Farm Most Outstanding British Professional at the Polo Awards 2014

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Contents

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46

Contacts Publishers Nick Hine & Richenda Hine publisher@polotimes.co.uk Guest editor Mark Tomlinson

Deputy editor Polly Bryan polly@polotimes.co.uk Polo reporter and researcher Tilda Woodd tilda@polotimes.co.uk Advertising manager Ben Bovill ben@polotimes.co.uk

June 2014 News 8

Foreword by Mark Tomlinson, Guest editor

9

All the latest news

www.polotimes.co.uk www.polotimes.co.uk

58 Gastric ulcers in polo ponies 60 Guest editor comment: The HPA 62 Equine inter-discipline comparison: eventing 64 The importance of supplements for the health and fitness of polo ponies

Knowledge 70 Know your horse

18 HPA news 20 International news

Comment 24 Your views: letters

Accounts Angie Clark - accounts@polotimes.co.uk

56 Three young players to watch

14 Club news

22 Guest columnist: Andrew Barlow

Contact details Holbrook Farm, East End, North Leigh, Oxfordshire OX29 6PX Tel: 01993 886 885 Fax: 01993 882 660 email: admin@polotimes.co.uk

51 Off-field preparation

67 Pony running reports

Sarah Foster sarah@polotimes.co.uk

Dave Alcock, Andrew Barlow, Abigail Butcher, Lorna Edgar, Mark Emerson, Alli Godbold, Griselda Handy, Dicky Hepburn, Gary Hulton, Charley Larcombe, Harry Meade, David Morley, Jane Newnham, Tony Ramirez, Bob Reeves, Winston Squire, Juan Tedesco, Martha Terry, Charles Whittington, David Woodd

Guest editor special

13 News feature

Subscriptions

Contributors

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What’s inside...

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Features 26 Looking back at 30 years of Cartier polo with Arnaud Bamberger

72 Pony power 74 Get chukka-fit with Winston Squire 78 Equine legal advice 80 Retraining of Racehorses

Youth polo 82 Copenhagen Cup, Guards 82 Bristol Varsity series

Sidelines

30 Interview with Singaporean player Ameer Jumabhoy

84 Gossip: Don’t be the last to know

34 Polo club anniversaries

87 What’s on in June

Reports 38 St. Regis International Test Match, Cowdray Park 42 Nations Cup, Palermo 46 Maserati US Open, IPCPB

86 Social pages 92 Polo directory 94 Polo Times Marketplace 98 Passions: Glen Gilmore Cover Photograph: The jubilant England team of Luke Tomlinson, James Beim, Mark Tomlinson and Max Charlton lift the St. Regis International Cup at Cowdray Park. By www.imagesofpolo.com

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From our Guest Editor Mark Tomlinson

Available for Stud Zorro 2003 Liver Chestnut 15.1hh Stallion Chess x Forrest Jointly owned by Mark Tomlinson he is now in his sixth season used as both a breeding and playing stallion.

His Dam, Forrest, played for Ellerston in the UK. Firstly and most importantly I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute tofull Javier Novillo Astrada, whoand sadly passed His sister, Sativa, owned played byaway Sapoon Caset in theMay UKafter 2010suffering Gold Cup won bestwas playing Friday 23 fromwinning terminalteam, cancer.

Javier a truepony the 2011 USPA goalpolo Piaget Gold went on to gent andinthe thoughts of the26 whole world areCup with and his family, excel in the Argentine Open in December 2012. especially his wife Delphina and their four young children. I hope Polo Times will be able to do a at proper to JavierEmbryo in a future issue as Zorro is currently stud tribute with Beaufort Transfer Centre he really was a legend ofGloucestershire, our game, both where as a player andfresh a person. in Westonbirt chilled, or frozen semen available on request.

I remember well when Javier firstiscame to England in 1996. He spent the summer at Beaufort and he won the Royal Windsor with Please contact more Los Locos, playing alongside myMark brother, Tomlinson Mum and Henryfor Brett.

He information – Tel: 07971873599 was such a kind person and at the same time you could see clearly how much focus and thought he put into the game. I was lucky enough to both play with and be coached by Javier, and a personal highlight was when he coached England to the 2009 Westchester RUOH\ HTXLQH 4XDUWHU SDJH SRUWUDLW 1(: LQGG Cup victory in Florida. You will be greatly missed Javier; thank you for everything.

I felt very honoured when I was invited to guest edit Polo Times, one of the world’s leading polo magazines, and I hope I am able to do some justice to such an opportunity. If nothing else, it has made me realise how hard the magazine’s team work in order to ensure everything is up together for the print deadline; it is a lot more work than it might seem. Thank you to Nick, Richenda, Polly and the team for all the hard work you put in, not only for this issue but also all the past and future ones. The magazine does a great job of keeping people up to speed with all the happenings of today’s manic polo scene, and long may it continue.

I will admit that I was under quite a tight schedule, but nonetheless have tried to think of as many of what I believe to be the topical issues in polo today, and I hope the various articles are of interest. I certainly enjoyed researching the different topics, but fret not as you will see that in most articles I have relinquished the title of author, and it has been fascinating to hear the views of so many experts on such a variety of subjects. I hope there is something for everyone, whether it is how to keep your horse ulcer-free, or tips on SPECIALISING IN one THEday, BACKING YOUNG players’ diets, or even how to, stand onOF a Swiss ball!HORSES OUR NEW FACILITY IN THE HEART OF RURAL WILTSHIRE IS NOW TAKING BOOKINGS The season is now fully underway and it was great for England to get off to a good start at the St. Regis Test Match, where particular credit has to go to Cowdray Park for the outstanding condition of their Lawns 2 field. With STEPHANIE the gamesGORE: now coming thick747 and672 fast, I +44 (0)7768 wish everyone a successful and an enjoyable – all214 the029 best!

DARIO DALPONTE: +44 time (0)7442

01666 577 215

INFO@MORLEYEQUINE.CO.UK

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News

Photograph by Tony Ramirez, www.imagesofpolo.com

Zacara scoops top honours at Polo Awards

Winner of the Royal Salute Most Outstanding High Goal Patron, Lyndon Lea of Zacara

THE 9TH ANNUAL Polo Awards took place at Guards Polo Club in May, with Zacara almost making a clean sweep of prizes.

Lyndon Lea’s team, which won both the Queen’s Cup and Gold Cup in 2013, was named the Most Outstanding HighGoal Team. Dubai, El Remanso, Cortium and Talandracas were also nominated.

One-goaler Lea also picked up the Most Outstanding High-Goal Patron award.

Zacara’s ten-goaler Facundo Pieres, who is playing for the side again this year, won Most Outstanding High-Handicap Player, fending off competition from 2013 teammate

This year’s Polo Awards were held at Guards Polo Club for the first time, with 250 members of the polo community in attendance.

Rodrigo Andrade and fellow ten-goalers Adolfo Cambiaso, Juan Martin Nero and David Stirling. Pieres was given more reason to celebrate when his mare Open Top Model was voted to be the Most Outstanding High-Goal Pony, beating his other nominated mount, Galactica.

The Most Outstanding British Professional award went to six-goaler Max Charlton, who beat James Beim, Luke Tomlinson, Mark Tomlinson and Matt Perry to the title. Charlton celebrated multiple successes in medium-goal tournaments last year, as well as victory in the FIP Snow Polo World Cup as captain of the England team, and in the St Moritz Polo World Cup on Snow.

HPA Lifetime Achievement awards were presented to Arthur Douglas-Nugent and John Tylor, while touching tributes were made to the late Carlos Gracida, who was killed in a polo accident in February. The former ten-goaler and ten-time Gold Cup winner was posthumously honoured with the Outstanding Contribution to World Polo award, which was collected by his son Carlitos.

Polo Awards winners 2014 The Kent & Curwen Most Outstanding High Goal Team: Zacara The Royal Salute Most Outstanding High Goal Patron: Lyndon Lea The Guards Polo Club Most Outstanding High Handicap Player: Facundo Pieres The Tally Ho Farm Most Outstanding British Professional: Max Charlton The PNN Most Outstanding High Goal Pony: Open Top Model The HPA Lifetime Achievement Awards: Arthur Douglas-Nugent & John Tylor The La Martina Outstanding Contribution to World Polo Award: Carlos Gracida The HPA Victor Ludorum Awards: 18 Goal–La Indiana; 15 Goal–Emlor C; 12 Goal–Cadenza Juniors; 8 Goal–Windmill Farm; 6 Goal–Chester Polo More social pictures of the Awards will follow in our July issue

Cambiaso and Facundo Pieres team up to play England for Coronation Cup

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England has already made a successful start to the home international campaign, having beaten South America 11.5-8 to win the St. Regis International Cup at Cowdray Park Polo Club on 17 May. Following Audi International Day at Guards, England will face the Rest of the World at Chester Racecourse on 6 September, to conclude the Audi International Polo Series.

To buy tickets for Audi International Day please visit www.coronationcuppolo.com/ tickets. HPA members receive a free car pass and are entitled to a discount for seats in the South Stand.

Entry to the Audi International at Beaufort is free for cars displaying an HPA car sitcker, or costs £10 in advance and £15 at the gate.

Call 08444 771000 for tickets.

To read a full report from the St. Regis International Cup, turn to page 38

Courtesy of Audi

THE ARGENTINA TEAM has been revealed for the Coronation Cup on Audi International Day. Spectators will be in for a treat as tengoalers Adolfo Cambiaso and Facundo Pieres team up to face England, playing alongside three-goalers Julio Ruggeri and Francisco Belaustegui to make up a 26-goal opposition side. The England team and captain will be selected closer to the time.

This year’s Audi International Day will be held at Guards Polo Club on Saturday 26 July. Prior to this, England will take on Goldin Group Hong Kong in the first Audi International of the year on Saturday 21 June at Beaufort Polo Club.

The 25-goal opposing team, which is representative of Hong Kong, has been fielded by the Goldin Metropolitan Polo Club from Tianjin, China. The team will comprise of eight-goalers Argentine Guillermo Terrera and New Zealander John Paul Clarkin, five-goaler and former president of the Argentine Polo Association (AAP) Luis Lalor and Brit John Fisher, who will play off four goals. The England side is yet to be selected.

England captain Luke Tomlinson and Adolfo Cambiaso in action during the 2009 Coronation Cup

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News Aiming high HORSES AT COWORTH PARK: Horses staying at Coworth Park can enjoy luxuries such as an aromatherapy oil muscle massage, an equine manicure and a post-ride bubble bath as part of Coworth’s new Ultimate Horse Check-In

English high-goal now underway

POLO FANS: Tally Ho Farm and PoloCam have collaborated to provide video coverage for an average of 200 matches during the UK season, including the high-goal

Swinging low MARTIN FEWSTER’S PONIES: Three ponies belonging to the two-goaler were killed recently, after nine horses in total escaped onto the road after being moved from Northampton to Kirtlington for the summer CLINTON MCCARTHY: The Emlor patron was rushed to hospital after a fall in May. He suffered several broken bones and a punctured lung, but is now on the road to recovery BANK HOLIDAY POLO: Players and patrons were left disappointed after matches across the country were called off on the Bank Holiday weekend in late May, due to rain

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Photograph courtesy of Cartier

WALES POLO TEAM: Welsh jewellery brand Clogau will continue to sponsor the Wales Polo Team until 2017. The team has also agreed a partnership with sports brand PlayerLayer, which will become the team’s official kit supplier

Fifteen teams are battling for a place in the Cartier Queen’s Cup final at Guards on 15 June

THE ENGLISH HIGH-GOAL season is now in full swing, with the Cartier Queen’s Cup in its early league stages as Polo Times went to press. Fifteen teams are contesting the 22-goal tournament, which began on Tuesday 20 May and concludes on Sunday 15 June.

A second all-British high-goal team was announced as a late entry into the Queen’s Cup. Six-goalers Tom Morley and George Meyrick and five-goalers Max Routledge and Jack Richardson have teamed up for Fox & Hounds and will play in the Queen’s Cup only.

The all-British Halcyon Gallery line-up of George Hanbury, James Beim, Mark Tomlinson and James Harper will contest the Gold Cup only. In total, 14 British professionals have secured places in this year’s high-goal, compared with 12 in 2013.

The leagues for the Queen’s Cup were revealed at the President’s Draw on Tuesday 13 May by Cartier’s executive chairman Arnaud Bamberger. Last year’s winners, Zacara, who

this year field a slightly changed line-up of patron Lyndon Lea, Facundo Pieres, Gonzalo Deltour and Brit Matt Perry, have been drawn in league three, and will play Enigma, HB Polo, Sifani and King Power during the league stages of the tournament. They made an excellent start to the tournament, beating Sifani 14-6 in the opening match. 2013 finalists El Remanso will be joined by Dubai, Aravali, Twelve Oaks and the all-British Fox & Hounds in league one, while league two will consist of Talandracas, Lucchese, Black Bears, Cortium and UAE Polo.

The two top teams from each of the three leagues, plus the next two best teams, will progress to the quarter-finals on 7-8 June.

The semi-finals will be played on Wednesday 11 June, with the final taking place on Sunday 15 June at Guards Polo Club.

To view the teams and keep up to date with results, visit www.polotimes.co.uk

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News

Top teams set to return to Sotogrande

Javier Novillo Astrada dies JUST AS WE went to press Javier Novillo Astrada died in Buenos Aires on Friday 23 May, following a battle with terminal cancer.

The former nine-goaler, brother to Eduardo, Miguel, Alejandro and Ignacio Novillo Astrada, was aged 37.

Javier played in the Argentine Open 17 times, reaching the final three times and making history when he won in 2003, playing alongside his three brothers for La Aguada. He was appointed coach to the England polo team in 2008, coaching them to victory in that year’s Coronation Cup and the following year’s Westchester Cup in Florida. He also lifted the Gold Cup at Cowdray Park three times, with Labegorce in 1997 and with Black Bears in 2002 and 2006.

Javier played off nine goals for thirteen years between 1999 and 2012, when he dropped to eight goals.

He leaves wife Delphina Rodriguez and four children, Manuel, Simona, Nina and Clara.

Action at the iconic Santa Maria Polo Club in Sotogrande.

THE WORLD’S TOP players will once again contest the highgoal at Santa Maria Polo Club, Sotogrande. Adolfo Cambiaso, Facundo Pieres, David Stirling and Juan Martin Nero will all be in action in the 22-goal section of the Land Rover International Tournament this year. The tournament will run from 25 July to 31 August, with Bronze, Silver and Gold Cups played at low, medium and high-goal level.

12 teams will contest the high-goal, up from 10 in 2013, amd are expected to include defending champions Ellerston, Valiente, Las Monjitas, Halcyon Gallery, Mansour, Scapa, HB Polo, Ayala Polo, Dos Lunas, Lechuza Caracas and La Indiana. Fourteen teams will play the medium-goal and 6 are set to contest the low-goal.

Islamabad Polo Club welcomes new facilities

Islamabad Polo Club hosts polo for the first time

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ISLAMABAD’S FIRST POLO ground was inaugurated on 20 March by the President of Pakistan, at the Islamabad Polo Club. Besides the main ground, which was designed in collaboration with Battro Polo Fields, the club now boasts a stick and ball field, an arena and stabling facilities for 60 horses. Three exhibition matches have so far been held on the new ground to celebrate the new

ground, with a large number of local and foreign players in action.

Islamabad Polo Club will also host a polo academy, run by Marcus Hancock and Adriano Di Gianvittorio, with a number of aspiring players already receiving training. The polo season will run from September through May, with the schedule of tournaments currently being finalised.

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savills.co.uk

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Charles Elsmore-Wickens cewickens@savills.com

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About 30 acres Guide £2.5 million

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News Feature

The English polo season is not just about the high-goal being very last minute, I felt that due to my current commitments for the season in the medium goal, I would be overstretching myself and my horses if I was to play.

I did not want to risk letting Max Charlton and Richard Le Poer turned down the chance to play this year’s high-goal, instead down my Four preferring to concentrate on their many medium-goal commitments Quarters polo teammates and my Dell Park teammates.

WITH THE ENGLISH polo season now in full If I agreed to play I would also only be risking flow, it is often very easy for both the press, letting down my Fox & Hound teammates and the polo fans to be slightly starstruck and sponsors. Therefore I felt it sensible and by the high-goal factor, writes Tilda Woodd. in everyone’s best interest to decline the However, it is important to remember that offer.” the Queen’s and Gold Cups are just two Charlton and Le Poer are certainly not in tournaments among the hundreds that take the minority; out of the top 25 British players, place across Britain. only eight are committed to the high-goal.

Many consider a run in the high-goal Six-goaler Chris Hyde reveals his plans for to be the wish of every British professional. the season, and his views on medium-goal However, with there only being 15 teams competition. “I have a very full season of 8, in this year’s 22-goal competitions, it is 10, 12, 15, 16 and 18-goal polo, all playing inevitable that there is not going to be a for my full-time patron Jonathan Munro Ford place for every one of the top British players, for his Black Eagles team,” he told Polo and some may be surprised to discover that playing the high-goal is in fact not everyone’s Times. “I’m looking forward to the 15-goal the most as I think it is one of the best levels greatest desire. to play in and also to watch as all the teams Six-goaler Max Charlton and five-goaler seem to be more balanced and realistic on Richard Le Poer are just two of the Brits their handicaps, unlike the high-goal where who have proved that a run in the 22-goal there seem to be four or five super teams. is not necessary for them this season. Both The Royal Windsor Cup is the one all the Charlton and Le Poer were offered a spot in teams will be wanting to win.” the all-pro, all-British Fox & Hounds team, It is not uncommon for the medium-goal but politely turned down the chance to play to produce just as good, if not better displays the Cartier Queen’s Cup this year, indicating of the sport, with the teams often featuring that perhaps the desire to play the high-goal equally talented players as in the high-goal, is not as great as it used to be. Charlton and there is obviously the added bonus that reveals: “While I would have loved to have there are more tournaments available to enter. been a member of a competitive Queen’s Cup team, my pre-existing busy schedule for The high-goal is much more of a dog-eat-dog this season did not permit me to take up that world with teams guaranteed to change year on year whereas in the medium-goal, there offer”, which shows true professionalism and seems to be a more consistent relationship commitment. Le Poer similarly explained: “I between the patrons and the players, with got asked to play the high-goal with the Fox patrons tending to build their teams around the & Hounds team, which was a real honour same professionals year after year. and an amazing opportunity. However, it www.polotimes.co.uk

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With this in mind, we take a look at each of the top 25 British professionals to find out what each of them is up to this year *Luke Tomlinson (7) – High-goal with Lucchese *James Beim (7) – High-goal with Halcyon Gallery, 18-goal with Four Quarters Orange, 15-goal with Shalimar, 12-goal with Salkeld *James Harper (6) – High-goal with Halcyon Gallery, 18-goal with Emlor C, 15-goal with Salkeld, 8-goal with Las Estrellas *George Meyrick (6) – High-goal with Fox & Hounds, 15-goal with Clarita *Tom Morley (6) – High-goal with Fox & Hounds; 15 and 18-goal with Four Quarters Orange *Mark Tomlinson (6) – High-goal with Halcyon Gallery, 15-goal with Casablanca, 12-goal with Thunderbirds Malcolm Borwick (6) – 18-goal with Dell Park, 15-goal with Casablanca Max Charlton (6) – 8 to 18-goal with Dell Park, 12-goal with Four Quarters Black Satnam Dhillon (6) – 15-goal with Creed Nacho Gonzalez (6) – 12, 15, 18-goal with Emlor S Chris Hyde (6) – 8, 12, 15-goal with Black Eagles *Jack Richardson (5) – High-goal with Fox & Hounds, 15-goal with Four Quarters *Max Routledge (5) – High-goal with Fox & Hounds, 12 and 15-goal with BHC Polo, 15-goal with Salkeld Dave Allen (5) – 8-goal with Aryana,15-goal with Clarita Henry Brett (5) – 15-goal with Cadenza Juniors Will Emerson (5) – 15-goal with Cowdray Vikings, 15-goal with Cadenza Juniors, 12-goal with Gales, 12-goal with Conosco IT Partners, 8-goal with Tashan Andrew Hine (5) – Coaching/managing three high goal teams Oli Hipwood (5) – Playing with BHC Polo, played the 12-goal in Sotogrande with Andrew Nulty’s Dragones.

Ed Hitchman (5) – 12-goal with RH polo, 8-goal with Emlor Richard Le Poer (5) – 12, 15, 18-goal with Dell Park, 15-goal with Four Quarters Black Will Lucas (5) – Managing Longdole Polo Club Ryan Pemble (5) – 8-goal with Los Locos Peter Webb (5) – 8-goal with AFB Jonny Good (5) – 8-goal with Clashleigh, 12, 15-goal with Black Eagles *denotes playing the high-goal Polo Times, June 2014

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Club News Club news Club newsin brief

Young Brits chosen as Guards ambassadors

THE DRUIDS LODGE Spring League is underway, with four teams taking part. The finals will take place over the 28-29 June.

Entries are open for the Druids Summer League, which will run through July and COWDRAY PARK POLO Club has appointed Peter August.

Please contact abi@druidspolo.co.uk BLUEY’S POLO CLUB is Barfoot as its new club chairman for the 2014 season. forcurrently details. offering membership He takes over from Robin Butler, who has retired after for the 2014 season for just

New chairman at Cowdray Park

Photograph by Images of Polo

Club news in brief

seven years in the role.

GUARDS POLO £400, if taken upCLUB beforebrought its 12Barfoot is the former chairman of New Forest Polo goal Valerie15 Halford forward in its Tuesday April. Trophy For more Club, where he also worked as treasurer, and has information please contact calendar this year, holding it in early May played at Cowdray Park with his Maiz Dulce team for polomanager@blueyspolo.co.uk. rather than August. Spencer McCarthy’s the past 14 years, from 4-goal to 12-goal level.

Emlor took the honours, with a 10-7 win “It would be difficult to replicate the special Cowdray HEATHFIELD POLO CLUB will over Black Eagles in the final.

run two new tournaments this atmosphere anywhere else,” he said. “I know all the season. The La Golondrina Cup, HURTWOOD PARK POLO Club will playing members really well and I also look forward for players aged 18 and below, is host Rock & Horse Power on Saturday 14to meeting as many of the non-playing members as on 12-13 July, while the ladies’ possible during the course of the season.”

June.

The charity eventruns will raise Tie Polo tournament frommoney for17-18 Prostate Cancer UK and feature a August.

George Meyrick, Max Charlton, Richard Le Poer and Jack Richardson with Guards chief executive Neil Hobday

Young England match, charity auction andPeter Barfoot, the new chairman at Cowdray Park Polo Club performances

by TheCLUB’S Who, The Mechanics RUTLAND POLO Hobday and polo manager Glen Gilmore GUARDS POLO CLUB has appointed Max 6-goal Cupmusic tournament and manyAssam more live acts. for the club’s new Polo Ambassadors’ Charlton, Richard Le Poer, George Meyrick will be added to the Victor Ludorum fixture POLO list for 2014.

It its Programme. They will represent Guards at a and Jack Richardson as club ambassadors.

LACEY GREEN Club held takes place from start of season party12-22 at PJsJune.

Bar and Grill The four British professional players were variety of events both in the UK and abroad on Thursday 8 May, with more than 60 DALLAS next three years. selected

by Guards chiefhas executive Neil as aduring 20-goalthe four-a-side arena tournament.

BURSTON POLO Club announced ST ALBANS POLO Club will members in attendance. The top raffle it will host two new tournaments in 2014, with a The winning teams of each tournament will once again host Polo for Heroes prize of club membership for the 2014 combined prize pot of £20,000. receive £10,000 in prize money. Entries are this summer. The charity event season was wonon bySaturday two-goaler Ben will take place currently open for the 12-goal tournament in July, The first of two IXL Gold Cups will be played at Maitland 28 June and feature a match with team entries costing £400.

12-goal level on 12-13 July, as part of the club’s

Two new events at Dallas Burston

between military and civilian

White Rose hosts polo clinic with Jason Dixon

Fine & Country Polo Day. It will be the highest

WALLERSTEIN POLO teams. To find out more CLUB email handicapped ininfo@stalbanspoloclub.co.uk.

Germany hosted a battle of the tournament the sexes tournament on 7-11 May. For Warwickshire club THE OUTDOOR POLO season the first time, the tournament pitted WHITE ROSE POLO Club hosted a polo has hosted to date. is already underway the Vale ladies’ teams against at men’s teams clinic with former England captain Jason The second IX of York Polo Club, with the first with the ladies’ Tagmersheim side of Dixon chukkas played on grass on will for be the third year. Members of the Elya Duissemaliyeva, Isabel Beyer von Gold Cup Yorkshire club enjoyed a full day of tutoring, Sunday 9 March. The club’s Morgenstern, Polina Nazarowa and Brit played in the club’s polo field is built on glacial sand covering tactics and game-play, plus SuperArena in Lucy Taylorgiving coming out on top. deposits, it great drainage. re-visiting some of the basics. Students November, saw fast results, especially in their

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Polo Polo Times, Times, April June2014 2014

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Please email phil@rugbypoloclub.com for further details or to enter a team.

positioning on the field.

White Rose will hold its second charity Ladies’ Day on 3 August, and encourage The Dallas Burston ladies from across the country to get SuperArena, which will from host the 20-goal involved, with great prizes Mint Polo up arena tournament in for grabs. Call 01430 875767 November for more details.

www.polotimes.co.uk www.polotimes.co.uk

21/03/2014 16:44

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Club News

Hosts win RAF event THE RAF POLO Association annual development tournament took place on 3-4 May. The RAF fielded three teams, one from the newly-affiliated RAF Cranwell Polo Club, who took on three Army teams and three civilian teams from local clubs Leadenham, Vale of York and Rutland. Fittingly, it was the RAF Cranwell team who triumphed, defeating RAF Spitfires, who finished second and Vale of York, who finished third.

Action from the RAF Polo Association event

Photographs by Images of Polo and Paul Saxby

Oakley Court wins Queen Mother Centenery Trophy

The victorious Oakley Court team

OAKLEY COURT WON the La Martina Queen Mother’s Centenary Cup at Guards Polo Club in May. Mark Wadhawa’s team, featuring

Hernan Muzzio, Dirk Gould and Alejandro Muzzio edged past Charlie Pidgley’s Cadenza Juniors side in the final, to take the title 8-6.

Pidgley was joined on his team by Henry Brett, Will Emerson and Peter Webb.

Seven-goaler Alejandro Muzzio was named most valuable player, also picking up the best playing pony prize for Brandy.

Spencer McCarthy’s Emlor side won the subsidiary final with an 8-7 victory over Shalimar. The match went into extra time, and it was a golden goal from Nacho Gonzalez that secured the win.

New Forest Polo Club expands its social calendar THE NEW FOREST Polo Club has built a new pavilion for the summer, with the aim of increasing its social events to attract new members, writes Abigail Butcher.

The new pavilion, at New Park Farm in Brockenhurst, Hampshire, has been donated by chairman Roger White to replace an old pavilion that was no more than a “garden shed”, according to polo manager Lloyd Ellis.

The new, elevated building has a viewing platform and will seat around 70 people, with a permanent kitchen. It is situated in a prime viewing position halfway down the field.

“At a later stage we will install some bleachers (grandstands),” said Ellis, a former one-goal player. “The aim is to have a social www.polotimes.co.uk

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evening every month to start, as well as food at every weekend fixture which we haven’t done before.”

Players such as Jamie Le Hardy and Ben Turner started their playing career at New Forest Polo Club, which offers would-be players on modest incomes the opportunity to join and progress. Adult playing membership, which includes Thursday evening chukkas and weekend games, costs £500. It also has a large number of junior members who play Pony Club polo.

The club holds three HPA fixtures each year, starting with the Spring Tournament on 31 May and culminating in its 6-goal summer tournament from 14-17 August where eight teams vie for the Blue Jackets trophy.

Polo Times, June 2014

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Club News

Enigma takes Four Quarters Orange lifts Trippetts Tyro Cup Challenge title Photograph by Vanessa Taylor

SIMON ARBER’S FOUR Quarters Orange won the Tyro Cup at Cowdray Park Polo Club in early May. The 12-goal tournament was the first major medium-goal fixture of the season, with ten teams taking part. The team, which also featured Pedro Harrison, Zac Hagedoorn and Tom Morley, defeated Maiz Dulce, led by new Cowdray Park chairman Peter Barfoot and featuring Glenn Sherriff, Chris Mackenzie and Alan Kent, 7-4 in the final.

Jerome Wirth’s Enigma team won the subsidary final. Wirth teamed up with Henry Fisher, Guillermo Wellington and Edward Hutley to defeat Las Estrellas 7-6.

ENIGMA GOT THE season off to a good start when they won the Jaeger-LeCoultre Trippetts Challenge at Cowdray Park in May. Patron Jerome Wirth led Chris Mackenzie, Guillermo Wellington and Sapo Caset to an impressive 13-5 victory over Adrian Kirby’s Cortium in the final of the 22-goal tournament.

Five high-goal teams – El Remanso, Talandaracas, UAE Polo, Cortium and Enigma – took part in the tournament prior to playing in the Queen’s Cup.

Tally Ho Farm inspires polo jewellery company New British jewellery company, Charmingly British, has launched a new range of designs for the polo market, in conjunction with Tally Ho Farm.

Following an invitation to the Tally Ho Farm Festival in 2013, Tally Ho Farm’s Jeff Thomas provided Charmingly British with marketing advice for the new range, which is now available at www.tallyhofarm.co.uk.

Brand new from the world of motorsports and skiing comes the innovative Alter-Real protective waistcoat now available to the equestrian world Its flexibility and versatility makes it ideal for every discipline from polo and hunting to race exercise and hacking.

It fits unobtrusively under clothing, acting not only as superior back protection but also a breathable base-layer that becomes even more manoeuvrable when warm.

This innovative protective waistcoat is characterised by a hexagonal construction which guarantees maximum efficiency in terms of coverage and mobility.

The Alter-Real allows you to use your full range of movement – this means you have the flexibility to perform to your best, safe in the knowledge that you are protected to BETA level 1.

Available in black, blue, or brown.

Email: info@portopolo.com | Tel: 01342 835529 | www.portopolo.com 16

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www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:01

Metropolitan Polo Club An Exceptionally Refined World at Your Service www.metropolitanpoloclub.com Tianjin Goldin Metropolitan Polo Club, 16 Hai Tai Hua Ke Jiu Lu, Bin Hai Gao Xin Qu, Tianjin 30384, China.

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News

The grassroots view Pony Club Polo chairman Charles Whittington rounds up the latest youth polo news

This month was notable for the Pony Club Polo branch managers meeting, which is when all the Pony Club branches get together to plan the season and exchange information about teams and players. Nearly 40 branches were represented from Inverness-shire to Eggesford via Newmarket and Thurlow and all points in between. Many thanks to all of those who took the trouble to travel. We discussed the rule changes for 2014 and a certain amount of health and safety and safeguarding of children, an increasing feature of running youth organisations.

Then, in a new feature, managers of all seven sections (more or less equivalent to age groups) made themselves available to discuss teams and spare, or “pool”, players who can’t form a team from their own branch in a “section managers fair”. We hope this helped branches with planning for the summer.

We completed our arena season with a tournament kindly hosted by Ascot Park Polo Club and Jenny Blake Thomas, and organised

by Jo Whittington. A remarkable feature of this tournament was the number of teams – no less than eight fielded by the Old Surrey and Burstow branch alone! They look to be a formidable force for the summer and congratulations go to the OS&B for mustering up so many young players.

Illustrating the reach of the Pony Club, I have accepted a kind invitation to visit, this autumn, the Isle of Man branch, which has started polo with the help of former Pony Club player Cameron Houston. We wish him the best of luck in preparing Isle of Man teams to come and compete against other Pony Club branches.

Richard Le Poer’s recollection of his Jorrocks days in last month’s Polo Times brought a smile to my face. Riding onto a polo ground as four friends is something very special to Pony Club Polo, and is, indeed, the “best of times”.

Good luck to all young players who are playing for their school this term with SUPA, and we hope to see you all in the summer holidays playing with the Pony Club.

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Latest from the HPA

HPA chief executive David Woodd rounds up the news from UK polo’s headquarters Congratulations to the England team for winning the Copa de las Naciones in BA. Although they had lost their first game to the Rest of the World by one goal in an excellent open game of polo, they went on to beat Colombia convincingly and then Argentina by one goal, winning the tournament on goal difference. Their victory is a just reward for the individual commitment of the players and also for the support given by the chairman and members of the International Committee.

POLO AWARDS AND HPA LIFETIME ACHEIVEMENT AWARD The Polo Awards took place on Tuesday 20 May at Guards Polo Club where HPA Lifetime Achievement Awards were presented to Arthur Douglas-Nugent and John Tylor.

INTERNATIONAL MATCHES Audi International at Beaufort, Saturday 21 June 2014 England will play Goldin Group Hong Kong on Saturday 21 June on Audi International Day at Beaufort for the Golden Jubilee Trophy. Entry is free for cars displaying an HPA car sticker. The England team is yet to be selected but the Hong Kong team will be: Goldin Group Hong Kong L Lalor 5 G Terrera 8 JP Clarkin 8 J Fisher 4 25 goals Audi International at Guards, Saturday 26 July 2014 England will play Argentina on Saturday 26 July for the Coronation Cup at Guards Polo Club. HPA members receive a free car pass. HPA members are also entitled to a discount for seats in the South Stand. By purchasing a stand seat, members are entered into a draw to win a trip to El Remanso including business class flights.

Please visit www.coronationcuppolo.com for more information.

Young England Test Match at Suffolk Young England will play Clogau Wales on Sunday 29 June.

Audi International at Chester, Saturday 6 September 2014 England will play the Commonwealth on Saturday 6 September on Audi International Day at Chester for the Chester Diamond Jubilee Trophy.

INSURANCE A summary of the HPA’s Members Liability Insurance cover is set out on page 391 of the Blue Book. It is the responsibility of all Associate Members to satisfy themselves that the insurance which is provided through the HPA is sufficient for their polo activities and meets their appetite for risk management and to take out concurrent or additional insurance as they think desirable. Please note that as in previous years players of 3 goals and above are considered to be in the business of playing polo and need to take out their own insurance.

HPA WEBSITE The HPA will have a new website shortly. It will be a responsive website and will replace the current app with a downloadable icon on the website.

DATES FOR THE DIARY Wednesday 11 June – Coaching seminar (HPA coaches and instructors, Berkshire area – TBC) Monday 16 June – Mid-season handicap meeting, Sunningdale Park Hotel Wednesday 18 June – HPA Stewards meeting, Cavalry & Guards Club, London www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:01

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27/05/2014 17:01

International News

Americans triumph in annual international at Wicklow POLO WICKLOW WELCOMED a team from the USA for the 21st year in April.

A squad captained by Eileen Flint also comprised of Jim de Angelis, Stephanie Montine, Liz Brayboy and Leighton Jordon who travelled from Yale for three days of intensive arena polo against the Irish.

Siobhan Herbst, Michael Herbst and Dennis Connolly took to the arena to represent Wicklow on the Friday. They held the advantage until the third chukka, when Yale came into their own, displaying accuracy and good discipline to record a Action from the final in the Polo Wicklow arena 13-9 win.

But the Irish made their opposition sit up and think the following day, with Caroline Keeling, Micky Herbst and Siobhan Herbst piling the pressure on the Americans, who alternated their players between chukkas. The match proved to be one of the fastest of the season, with a narrow 17-16 win for the home team.

Sunday’s final showdown was full of incidents, with Montine being forced to withdraw, and Siobhan Herbst being replaced for the first chukka after a heavy fall. With Michael Herbst handing over the reins to Marco Herbst, only Aiden Farrell played all four chukkas for Wicklow.

The patched up Irish team proved to be a force to be reckoned with however, providing the crowd of spectators with some very entertaining polo. But, the American teamwork proved too much for the Irish, who had to settle for defeat to the Yale team, 12-10.

Russia-representative team win on the beach in Miami

Florida’s South Beach hosted the Miami Beach Polo Cup

THE MIAMI BEACH Polo Cup returned to Florida’s South Beach in April, with Yellow Cab taking this year’s title. The team defeated Raleigh 12-5 in Sunday’s final to claim victory.

Representing Russia, the Yellow Cab side was made up of Tyler Garber, Tavi Usandizaga and Sebastian Merlos. Merlos was named most valuable player, and also topped the scoring table having put away nine goals for Yellow Cab during the final. Six three-man teams contested this year’s tournament and it was unusual to see no British players among the line-ups.

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Singapore Triple Crown underway THE SECOND LEG of the Singapore Triple Crown, the 6-goal International ProAm tournament, took place at Singapore Polo Club in May. The Paisano Dragons team of David Bernal, Nicolás Pieroni, Ronnie Lim and Tan Hock narrowly defeated Spirit Sports/ Head Hunters 6-5 to take the title. The Triple Crown, which kicked off in April with the 4-goal Diplomat’s Cup, will conclude with the 10-goal Singapore Open, which runs from 3-8 June.

Coupe PGH concludes THE COUPE PGH concluded at Chantilly Polo Club with victory for Maybach Jemalong-La Victoire. The 12-goal team of Johnny Kahlbetzer, Martin Aguerre, Juan Losada and Tommy Rinderknecht beat Tom Tailor 9-6.

Fagan’s team wins in Sotogrande RICHARD FAGAN’S SILEX team won the Conde de Guaqui Cup, held at the end of April at Santa Maria Polo Club, Sotogrande. The team of Alvaro Alvarez, Santiago Cernadas, Santiago Torreguitar and Carlos Piñal, who replaced Fagan for the final, defeated Sapphire Baywater 8-6 to win the 12-goal tournament and lift the trophy.

British player Nacho Gonzalez was on the winning side of the subsidiary final. The six-goaler played alongside Mario and Gabriel Gomez for Roger Carlsson’s FCT team, and defeated Los Dragones 12-11.

www.polotimes.co.uk

Polo Times, June 2014 Action from the final of the Miami Beach Polo Cup

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27/05/2014 17:01

Comment

Guest columnist Andrew Barlow

Polo can learn much from horseracing when it comes to weight, training and fitness

I

was greatly encouraged to read Tilda Woodd’s excellent “Weighty Issues” article last month. Having played and ridden in both sports over the years, I have always been struck by the disregard the polo world often has towards the enormous weight sometimes carried by polo ponies. In jump racing, a weight carried in excess of 12 stone 7 pounds, even on a large thoroughbred, would be regarded as unfair on the horse. Compare this to the weights carried by much smaller polo ponies often far greater than this, and the way they are ridden and asked to perform in a chukka of a similar duration to a three-mile steeplechase, albeit with breaks when play is stopped and at variable speeds without jumping.

My point is that there are surely welfare as well as performance considerations here, as outlined very accurately in the article, and in polo we would do well to consider other aspects of racing. For example, racehorses are walked at length before and after races, not least afterwards to remove the build up of lactic acid and to relax the horse mentally and physically. Can you imagine a racehorse being led straight from the track after a hard race and being tied up to the side of a lorry until the bar had closed?

The connections would be ostracised.

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between the two sports, the robustness of different thoroughbreds and nonthoroughbreds and how each chukka is played. At least in polo you can change a pony mid-chukka when it is tired and you won’t get banned for non-trying! I am not suggesting that the majority of players do not hold the welfare of their ponies in the highest regard, but I wholeheartedly support the view that players should consider the combined weight that ponies carry as well as general fitness for polo, and in respect of equipment, I also thoroughly commend George Meyrick for his work on designs for lighter polo saddles.

Clearly it would be undesirable to impose any regulations in respect of weight in polo, but an ongoing debate in the polo community would assist in improving players’ performance in terms of acceleration and speed, and surely ponies’ stamina. In terms of welfare generally, efforts to reduce the weight of players and equipment would also enhance the reputation of polo amongst the wider equestrian community and public. Is it also true that more of the top players are lighter in today’s professional game?

The comparison with racing also has a role to play with regards to equine fitness and in particular training. The top trainers often win races not just because their horses are

better, but because they are fitter. How many polo ponies get fit using hill gallops? How many polo yards have equine swimming pools? These are just some examples of how racing on the whole does things differently, and there are many considerations as to why these may not be practical, necessary or financially possible in polo.

In the UK we are amongst a world-class racing industry, holding race meetings most days of the year, and with training

yards operating all year round up and down the country from which there is much to admire and learn from, both good and bad. Perhaps a comparison with dressage would also provide further insights into training polo ponies?

To return to the main theme of this article, imagine a commentator announcing on Ground No.1 before the final “And the back on the blue team carries 3 stone overweight”…

Now there’s a thought.

“Imagine a racehorse being led straight from the track after a hard race and being tied up to the side of a lorry until the bar had closed” www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:01

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27/05/2014 17:01

Comment

Your views

Letters Write to the editor in the following ways: ◗ letters@polotimes.co.uk ◗ The Editor, Polo Times,

Holbrook Farm, North Leigh, Oxon OX29 6PX

Don’t forget those who are not in the high-goal

Letter of the month

Polo is decades behind other equine sport in application of science Dear Sir I just wanted to say how incredibly pleased I was to read Tilda’s piece about weight carried by polo ponies. I’ve long since watched the advances in other equine sports both in terms of management and technological progress in kit and equipment. Biomechanics are at the forefront of eventing and dressage with revolutionary girths that allow freedom of movement in the forelimbs, and eventing and racing have long since learnt that overheating tendons causes injury and use air cooled boots. Polo players persist in using thick fleecy bandages with some plastic tendon boots over the top for good measure. These not only build up heat but don’t allow it to dissipate. Alternatives exist but no one uses them. George Meyrick and I have had many discussions about this and he is very progressive in his attitude – hopefully younger players will see what he does and copy him.

Polo is literally decades behind in the application of science and it’s about time we caught up.

I look forward to Tilda’s next feature.

Aurora Eastwood, Winchester The writer of the Letter of the month wins a bottle of BLOOM Gin

Dear Sir, I wondered whether each June edition of Polo Times could also cover those players and teams who will not feature in the high-goal. For example, what has happened to Les Lions, Salkeld, Emlor, La Bamba and Sumaya?

What about the Novillo Astradas, the Heguys, the Merlos, Rodrigo Andrade, Nachi du Plessis, Nacho Gonzalez, Malcolm Borwick, Matias MacDonough, Hilario Ulloa etc? If they’re not in the high-goal here, where are they playing?

This is just an idea that I think would make interesting reading in Polo Times each year following your announcement of the highgoal teams.

Arthur K Johnson Editorial note: Arthur, we are clearly on the same wavelength.

As you will see on page 13, we have taken a look at why some professionals chose not to play the high-goal this year, and what they are doing instead. We hope this answers some of your questions.

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If we can beat Argentina at Palermo, surely the England football team can win the World Cup

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:01

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27/05/2014 17:01

Feature

Interview with Cartier’s Arnaud Bamberger

Marking 30 years of Cartier polo 2014 marks the 30th anniversary of Cartier’s commitment to polo. Polly Bryan meets the face of Cartier polo, executive chairman Arnaud Bamberger, to find out why he thinks the relationship between the two has remained so strong, and his favourite memories from the past three decades of Cartier polo

Polly Bryan

T

Executive chairman Arnaud Bamberger has been the face of Cartier polo for much of the past three decades

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in London

he story of polo and Cartier began in 1984 as the brainchild of Pilar Boxford, and has gone from strength to strength over the years.

In 1992 Arnaud Bamberger took over the reins and has grown to become the “face” of Cartier polo in the time since. Now, three decades on from Boxford’s original concept, the Cartier and polo association is looking as strong as ever, and its main man sees no reason why it shouldn’t stay that way. Arnaud Bamberger is all at once aloof, intimidating, charming and enviably self-assured. He is a man who recognises the impact he has made and doesn’t play it down. Nor does he boast; he is rightfully proud, but also incredibly matter-of-fact.

Polo Times is given his undivided attention for one precious hour in his cosy office at Cartier’s New Bond Street store as we look back at Cartier’s 30-year journey, and ahead to its future. www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:02

This year, we’re celebrating 30 years of Cartier’s commitment to polo. What is it that makes the relationship so strong?

Polo is all about the principles of passion, elegance and beauty and all these three things are part of Cartier so it ties in very strongly. I have always felt it was the right association and it has certainly proved to be. It is only for the wealthy and so it was guaranteed to attract the right people. Polo is a dangerous sport, but so exciting and elegant too, with the beautiful ponies, and players. We knew Cartier and polo was a relationship that should work well so we brought it to the UK and developed it quite drastically here. It works well in England because we have the right recipe here, which we don’t have anywhere else. Polo on the Queen’s Ground at Guards is very special, and it is also easy to reach, not too far from London and Heathrow, and it’s a very nice place for international people to come to.

Then there is the presence of the Queen and other members of the Royal Family.

How has the Cartier sponsorship in England changed over the years?

When Cartier sponsored the HPA’s International Day, there was a sense of big competition with England against another country. I’m not English but it was very special. We had a lovely tent, good food and wine, and really made it something. But then it became too big, and I couldn’t control it.

At one time we wanted to rejuvenate the whole thing, so we brought in Chinawhite and it was fun at the beginning, but that began to bring out the people who didn’t really care for polo. We had 30,000 people one year and it was a tiny bit too much, so I suggested we re-centre the whole thing and make it more vis-à-vis the sport of polo. It’s complicated because of our contracts with Guards and the HPA and everybody, but I was lucky enough to be able to mastermind the switch from Cartier International Day, which was getting too big for us and not systematically attracting the right people, and was also a little too late in the year in July, to the Cartier Queen’s Cup. The Queen’s Cup is more centred on polo itself, rather than the booze, the showbiz and the Chinawhite party. We wanted to be more polo-orientated and the Queen’s Cup is an acclaimed high-goal tournament that people really look forward to because it’s the patrons of polo playing, and they all really want to win. Now it’s up to us to continue to bring the traditional www.polotimes.co.uk

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Feature

Photographs coutesy of Cartier

Interview with Cartier’s Arnaud Bamberger

Cartier’s presence at polo has been seen all around the word, from England to Beijing

hospitality of Cartier, with a nice lunch and tent and all that, and the right people, who are first and foremost the aficionados and fans of the sport. We try to maintain the nice combination, the nice recipe that works.

People go to have fun and also to watch and discover polo.

You’ve been on quite a journey with Cartier and polo. What is it you love about the sport and how have you seen it change over the years?

I’ve been in England for 23 years. As a journey for me it’s been very exciting. I didn’t want to lose too much control over what we were doing so I’m happy that I was able to rejuvenate the polo and bring more young people to it, which we did with International Day, but also change the Cartier association to the Queen’s Cup. It’s still extremely exciting and I enjoy more and more the actual polo. The high-goal is very intensive, with beautiful horses. It’s still very close to my heart the polo, I must tell you. I think we’ve done well for the sport, and the sport has done a lot for us too.

Let’s not dream: I don’t see how polo can be opened up to everyone, because if you want to play it costs a huge amount of money, so it’s quite elitist and that’s just the way it is.

A lot of people cannot have access to it. A few can play through schools and small clubs, but very few. Generally, if you don’t own horses, you can’t play. I’m not looking to reform that – it’s just the way it is.

I do see more excitement in polo, and we have developed more awareness of the sport, so there are more people watching it, and viewing it as a sport. More people understand the rules, so it becomes less boring. There are a lot of rules, and if people don’t understand, it’s complicated.

It remains vibrant and speedy and fun, which is what I like. It’s always been quite a professional sport as far as I’m concerned, at least the high-goal has, and that’s what makes it so exciting: the pros playing each other. With the handicap system, everyone has a chance to win and everyone wants to win. That’s what I like about it.

I particularly love the people in the polo world. In general people who are involved with polo are people with certain values and sporting values and I like that. I don’t want to name anyone in particular but I do like the amateurs who play. Polo is their life and it’s all they think about. The patrons play with the best players in the world and as an amateur that is difficult. I play golf, not well mind you, but if I played with Tiger Woods every day, it would get more competitive and more difficult. That’s what it’s like for patrons. Most work very hard too, and have been successful because of that. They want to pursue their passion at the same time as their work. I’ve a lot of respect for that.

Polo players risk their lives every time they play – polo’s not like tennis for example, and it’s very important to realise that. Just look at Carlos Gracida.

Polo Times, June 2014

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Feature

Interview with Cartier’s Arnaud Bamberger

The Gracidas played for the Cartier team in the high-goal in Palm Beach many years ago and I feel very sad about Carlos’ death.

I knew him well and have lots of old memories with him. He was a great guy, Carlos, he was somebody I really admired and enjoyed.

I have never played the game myself.

I did give it a try when I was younger in America but I don’t think I would have been a good player. I’m a bit scared of horses; they are something you can’t really control.

It’s not for me. But I love watching it. My children ride, but they never showed a specific interest in playing polo although they love to watch it. I don’t push too much because I know what it takes to play polo and because I don’t have the means of raising children in the sport of polo.

just know I always need to make sure we have enough umbrellas to hand in case it rains. I’ve been here long enough; I don’t complain about the rain anymore.

What hurdles have you had to overcome along the way?

At one time, I felt International Day was becoming a bit boring because there weren’t enough young people. That was when we decided to rejuvenate the whole thing. We invited Prince William when he turned 18 and he came – that was a big coup for us.

I always believed in this association between polo and Cartier, but at times it was not that obvious at my headquarters in Paris to spend so much money on polo events. I decided to take a risk, and to push for it and stick to what I believed in, and I finally won the decision to carry on sponsoring polo.

I just acted as I felt and I felt very strongly about polo. I still do. The risk paid off. I have shown over the years that I was able to turn and change as necessary, bringing the event up to 30,000 people, and bringing it back to become more sport-centred with the Queen’s Cup. I’m very happy with the changes I made and I think they not only reflect the personality of Cartier and what we like, but it reflects my personality too, and how I do things.

Can you tell us about Cartier’s commitments to other global polo events, from St Moritz to China?

We had a good experience doing elephant polo in Nepal, a long time ago, in the early 1980s. We had quite a few celebrities, Ringo Starr being one, and it was extremely popular and well received by the press. So that gave us the idea of moving away from just doing the international at Windsor.

When there was an opportunity to do polo on snow at St Moritz, we went with it. It’s fun, although it’s not the same as polo in England. It’s fun to see polo in places like Dubai and Beijing too, and we still do some polo in the USA, in Palm Beach, New York and California.

I can’t comment much on polo in the Far East. It’s left to the local managers to decide whether they want to use the world of polo to further instil the image of the brand. We don’t have a worldwide policy – it depends on the opportunities more than anything else. In England, polo is something quite traditional and we’ve developed this over the past 30 years and we know we do it well. In other parts of the world we may want to do something else which is more appropriate as sponsorship. It is very difficult to say whether it is the right medium to use everywhere in the world. I know it works in England, but elsewhere it is not so systematic.

But it doesn’t hurt our image to be associated with polo at all. It’s one of the few sports with which we can be associated – we don’t want to be associated with Formula 1 or football because those sports have too wide a population and they don’t have the right clientele for us; we’re quite elitist. We can’t go everywhere, so it’s quite difficult.

How has Cartier ensured it has stayed ahead of its competition and flourished in the tough economic climate?

We remain really focused on what we do.

Instead of going everywhere or trying to do everything we focus on what we know we do really well, and that is polo. We make sure we maintain our attention to detail, whether it’s the party or the good food.

All these things make us successful. The only thing I cannot control is the weather, but we’re in England so I live with it, and

What are your thoughts on this year’s Cartier Queen’s Cup? I don’t like to make predictions. But the winner last year, Lyndon Lea and Zacara, was very impressive and I know Lyndon wants to defend his title, so that is going to be very interesting to follow. Do I want him to win? Not necessarily – I want the best to win. I want it to be an open competition. I like the excitement of every patron because they all want to win the Queen’s Cup and they really go for it. Of course this year we’ll

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“How many people can say that they’ve been served cake by the Queen? I’m very proud of that” see all the usual suspects, the big Argentine players who I know well now. I like to see the skills they bring into the sport, each of them. They’re all great players. I would love to see some of the British professionals perform well too. I’m not British, but I do live here, so I’d like to see them do well.

Can you share some of your favourite memories from the past 30 years?

One of the standout moments was in 1997 when the Westchester Cup was played for at Cartier International Day, and it was the first time since 1914 that England won. I remember watching with the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh and getting so excited about England winning.

Another special time was when the Queen celebrated her 80th birthday in 2006 and I did a special cake for her in the Royal Box after the match. I have a fabulous picture of her cutting the cake. That was something I was very excited to be a part of.

How many people can say that they’ve been served cake by the Queen? I’m very proud of that.

Depending on the years we always had some fun people, some big celebrities. We don’t bank on having celebrities come to the event, but we have had some important people over the years. We’ve had people like Keira Knightley – she’s beautiful, Sharon Stone, Cate Blanchett and Angelina Jolie.

What does the future hold for Cartier and polo?

Personally, I see a good future for the association between Cartier and the sport of polo, especially in England. I will do my utmost to further the association because I know it works. I can’t promise it’ll go on forever but I’m all for it; I feel strong and happy about it. I think we’ve done a lot for the sport of polo: we brought a lot of awareness of the sport itself through our implication, encouraged so many people to watch polo and talk about polo through our skills of communication. We were able to develop awareness of polo on a worldwide scale and we want to keep bringing new people to the sport.

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Interview with Cartier’s Arnaud Bamberger

Feature

Bamberger and the Queen share a laugh during the 2012 Cartier Queen’s Cup

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Feature

Interview with La Martina’s Ameer Jumabhoy

A new era of polo Singaporean one-goaler and La Martina ambassador Ameer Jumabhoy talks to Polo Times about his mission to raise the profile of polo around the world, and why he thinks the game is moving into a new era

Polly Bryan reports

Firstly, can you tell us a bit about your background in polo?

I’m a third generation polo player.

My grandfather started playing quite late in life, aged 26, but the rest of us all started young. I began riding at five and began playing polo at 11. But I’ve always been around horses; Dad would carry me on a horse as a baby.

Polo is a big part of my family life and it’s brought us all closer together. Until very recently, my uncle, Iqbal Jumabhoy, was president of the Singapore Polo Club. I am based in Singapore, and Singapore Polo Club is my family club, but the family team, La Sarita, is based in Malaysia.

Where do you usually play?

I play mostly in Southeast Asia. The La Sarita family team is named after my sister, Sara, and means “little Sara”. It was Sara who suggested we have a family team, rather than all play separately. The team is based in Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia and we play in the Royal Malaysia Polo Association (RMPA) international league, which encompasses teams from Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore. Depending on the handicap of the tournament I play with my brother or my dad [FIP council member Asad Jumabhoy]. 16-goal is the highest level of polo played in Malaysia. Unfortunately the Singapore and Malaysian polo calendars don’t mix too well, so there is a lot of shuttling back and forward between the countries. It’s only a 40-minute flight, but even that becomes taxing when you’re doing it every few days.

We have a string of 28 horses in Kuala Lumpar and seven in Singapore, which are kept at Singapore Polo Club.

The growth of polo in Asia is great: Asia is the birthplace of polo. The way the sport is growing, with new players and new sponsors, makes it much more international which I’m very happy about. I was at the FIP Snow Polo World Cup in Tianjin, China in January and it was great to see the capabilities of a polo event when it has great sponsors and facilities.

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www.polotimes.co.uk

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Interview with La Martina’s Ameer Jumabhoy

Feature

You do a lot of charity work within polo – how did that begin?

I was lucky enough to meet Nacho Figueras in 2010. He became a close friend of mine and I was inspired by what he was doing in polo to help raise money for charity and promote the sport. I was going through some difficulties at that time, with some people very close to me suffering from cancer. So I collected my thoughts, and decided not to mope about it anymore and instead step up and do something. I started a charity program in Houston, which later moved on to Lahore, Pakistan – an event called Golden Goals, where people donated $10 for every goal I scored.

I wanted to see something good being done with sport, and polo is a sport many people can enjoy, if we help make it tangible for them.

This needs a channel of communication between players, brands and the public.

It’s great to be working with La Martina.

They really support me in the things I want to do within the sport and are very receptive to new ideas. It is an authentic polo brand and really believes in the mission of polo players.

So tell us about your mission to open up the sport of polo to more people.

I want to change the elitist image of polo.

To do that it is a question of having the right ingredients: the right brands involved, and encouraging more people to experience the game. The model is the same as for Formula 1.

But I think Formula 1 is more inaccessible as a sport than polo – the average person could never drive a Formula 1 car, or chat to Lewis Hamilton. But most people can try riding, and you can meet and chat to polo players at events. Polo has a great social element and we need to market that to different types of people. The social connotation of polo – the image of the “game of kings”– is where the root of the problem lies. It’s now like unscrambling www.polotimes.co.uk

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Photographs courtesy of La Martina and Singapore Polo Club

Where else in the world have you played polo?

I have also played in Pakistan, Argentina, the US and Australia. I’ve had a good time playing in most countries; they each offer a different element to the sport. I was really impressed with the polo in Pakistan, where I was playing to raise money for pediatric cancer. In March I played in the inaugural Czech Snow Polo Masters in the Czech Republic. That was interesting, snow polo is a very different game.

It was a great experience and I would tell all players to give it a go. I have never played in England but I really want to.

I love playing abroad, but I also love playing at home – my family’s here.

Ameer in action at his home club, Singapore Polo Club, in the Diplomat’s Cup earlier this year

“Formula 1 is more inaccessible as a sport than polo – the average person could never drive a Formula 1 car, or chat to Lewis Hamilton” scrambled eggs, as we show that polo can be for everyone. Brands like La Martina help change this, as do public polo events all over the world. We must establish a clear channel of communication so people are helped to understand the sport, and I’m hoping more brands will get involved with this. Polo can be accessible – there is a market for new people to try it. Yes, not everybody can make it to the Argentine Open, but it’s not too expensive to ride a horse compared to lots of other things.

In Singapore it can be more expensive to have piano lessons than learn to ride.

It will be a slow process; we will see lots more interest in polo as a spectator sport but how much of that will trickle into people learning to play, I don’t know. The main thing is that people see both the players and the sport as approachable. The idea of polo as an elitist sport is simply wrong information – it’s not.

What are your thoughts on being a brand ambassador for La Martina?

It’s funny being part of La Martina and having a contract with them; it has kind of come round in a full circle. I remember when I was 13 in 2002 I was given the chance to play polo outside of Singapore for the first time with my dad in Argentina and I was told about this new polo fashion brand that had started becoming quite successful. Dad and I decided to go and check out La Martina at the Arribenos store. What I love about it is it’s a really nondescript store on the outside but when you walk in it opens up into this beautifully lacquered old casa. The first shirt I saw on the wall was a replica of the “Singapore 4” shirt my dad wore in the 2001 World Cup qualifiers. I bought the shirt that day, and still have it, and it is really a pleasure to be representing the brand in the Polo Times, June 2014

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Feature

Interview with La Martina’s Ameer Jumabhoy

capacity of ambassador. I have tremendous respect for what the Simonetti family has accomplished with La Martina all over the world.

So what are your plans for the rest of 2014?

We’re now heading into the high-goal in Southeast Asia and I’m also in training for the Singapore Open in June.

I’ll also be playing in a couple of exhibition matches in the US, in Newport and also at a new polo club in California called Temecula Valley. I’m really excited about that; it looks beautiful. I’m going to have a busy year, what with my La Martina commitments too, but that’s how I like it – I love to stay busy. I would say I’m a bit of a workaholic in everything I do. If you really believe in something and you want to see your beliefs come to fruition then you have to make the effort.

I am also hoping to make it over to England in July. I would love to see Guards and Cowdray, and catch some of the high-goal. I’ve got some good friends in England, and we’re trying to get all the La Martina ambassadors together this summer.

Ameer had his first taste of snow polo in March, playing in the Snow Polo Masters in the Czech Republic

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Looking further ahead, what are your goals for both yourself as a player, and for the sport of polo?

From a sporting perspective, I’d love to hit three goals in the next few years. Four would be amazing but three is a realistic target. I’m not a handicap chaser, although I always give 100 per cent to my game. I’m just doing the best I can in my capacity.

I also want to participate in a lot more public polo events in the next few years and help bring polo to the people.

Nacho Figueras is a big inspiration, but he is only one person – there needs to be more of us. It’s hard when you’re an eight, nine or ten-goaler playing at the pinnacle of polo. But for guys like me, there is more bandwidth to try and do more to make changes happen within the sport. There’s no right and wrong, everybody has got different limitations and tries to do the best they can with what they do, and that’s the main thing. I’m never going to be ten goals, but I can contribute to the sport in other ways, with more emphasis on the marketing aspects. We are heading into a new era of polo and I’m really excited.

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Feature

Polo Club anniversaries

2014 anniversaries Several UK polo clubs will celebrate notable anniversaries in 2014. We take a look at the journeys of some of these clubs, and find out how they came to be where they are today YEARS

Beaufort – 25 years

The Tomlinson name is synonymous with English polo, and the family’s Beaufort Polo Club has also been a major player on the UK polo scene for 25 years. Claire and Simon Tomlinson revived the original Beaufort Hunt Polo Club in 1989, and 25 years on, the Gloucestershire club is looking as healthy as ever.

To mark the 25th anniversary of this remarkable club, Polo Times has taken a trip down memory lane to find out more about its growth under the Tomlinsons and its 19th century origins.

Making a mark on the polo map The club as it is known today dates from 1989, when it was first registered with the

HPA, but it was some twelve years prior to this that Claire and Simon Tomlinson purchased Down Farm, at Westonbirt, Gloucestershire, and began making their aim of reviving the club a reality. Beaufort grew fast, boasting four boarded grounds, a stick and ball field and an indoor polo school within just four years. In 1993, it was ruled that Beaufort could no longer include its players and teams in the domestic tournaments of nearby Cirencester Park Polo Club, meaning the club had to stand on its own two feet, which it duly did. The very next year, the club gained valuable international recognition when it hosted the European qualifying rounds for the FIP World Championships. And at the other end of the polo spectrum, its youngest players were making a name for themselves too, as the Beaufort Hunt Pony Club won the prestigious Gannon section at the Pony Club Polo Championships.

High-goal achievements It was during the 1990s that Beaufort firmly established itself on the UK high-goal scene, with the Tomlinson family’s Los Locos side of Claire Tomlinson, Adrian Wade, Milo Fernandez Araujo and Mariano Aguerre

2009, Beaufort plays home to Sir Charles Williams’ Apes Hill polo team including the high goal line-up who won The Queen’s Cup.

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playing the Gold Cup and the Warwickshire Cup in 1995. Two years later, a 21-year-old Luke Tomlinson made his high-goal debut, playing for C.S. Brooks, reaching the final of the Gold Cup before losing out to Ellerston.

In 2001, Beaufort hosted the 26-goal All England Club Championships for the Argentine Club Cup, open only to players of four goals and above. Tournament sponsors put up £1,500 in expenses for every player and Simon Tomlinson’s aim for the tournament was to give players the chance to play higher-goal, all-pro polo. The winning team was Los Indios-AMG, made up of Luke and Mark Tomlinson, Pepe Heguy and Milo Fernandez Araujo. Two years later, in 2003, the bar was set even higher as the handicap of the championships was raised to 28-goal, and once again Mark and Luke Tomlinson took the title, alongside Henry Brett and Pepe Araya. In the same year, the Hildon Sport team of Nina Vestey, Mark and Luke Tomlinson and John Paul Clarkin won the Gold Cup, and both Luke and Mark have since been stalwarts of the senior England team, having won the Coronation Cup six times between them, and the Westchester Cup twice.

In 2005, the Beaufort hosted its first international Test Match, now the annual highlight of the club’s fixture list. In the nine year history of the Beaufort Test, England has only triumphed three times, in 2007, 2008 and 2011, and interestingly, only ever against New Zealand. However in this, the club’s anniversary year, England will face a new challenge on home ground, in a visiting Goldin Group Hong Kong team, fielded by the Goldin Metropolitan Polo Club from Tianjin, China.

Encouraging new players Beaufort and the Tomlinson family have long been supporters of the grassroots game, promoting low-goal and beginner polo in addition to encouraging English players to play at the highest levels. The club’s fixture list includes an array of 2, 4, 6 and 8-goal tournaments, including Victor Ludorum www.polotimes.co.uk

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Polo Club anniversaries

1995, Ali Albwardy’s Dubai team begins to play at Beaufort. L~R: Robert Thame, Ali Albwardy, Mrs Lucas, Will Lucas, Glen Gilmore

tournaments. The women’s game is also strongly supported and in 2007, Emma Tomlinson was a member of the first allfemale team to win an HPA Victor Ludorum tournament, when she won the 8-goal Gerald Balding Cup at Cirencester Park alongside Nina Clarkin, Tamara Vestey and Lucy Taylor.

In 2010, Claire Tomlinson demonstrated the forward-thinking nature of her club, in introducing County Polo. The innovative variation on the summer game is designed to help players bridge the gap between beginner lessons and club chukkas, by offering instructional three-a-side chukkas.

In this way, minus-one or minus-two goalers are introduced to competitive polo without having to buy more than one pony, such is the relaxed nature of the system. County Polo almost certainly contributed to the 30 per cent increase in polo played at the club in 2010 compared to the previous year, and six per cent rise in numbers of practice and match chukkas the following year.

A charitable club In 1994, the club raised £24,000 for SSAFA, The National Armed Forces Charity, thus beginning what was to be a long-term value of polo as a way to raise awareness and money for a variety of causes. 1997 saw the inauguration of the charity Chakravarty Cup, which is still played for today, amongst a variety of other charity events.

In 2002, Beaufort hosted the first eventers versus jockeys polo match, which would become an annual charity event.

Among the participants in the first year were jockeys Richard Johnson, Chris Maude and Richard Dunwoody and eventers Rodney Powell, Leslie Law and Zara Phillips.

Beaufort was also thrust into the public eye in 2003, when it took part in the Channel 4 programme Faking It. Malcolm Woodcock, a bicycle courier from Manchester, was given just four weeks to become a polo player under the instruction of Caspar West and Claire Tomlinson. www.polotimes.co.uk

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The oldest club?

Strictly speaking, the Beaufort can claim the title of the oldest polo club in Britain. It can be traced back to 1872, when Captain Frank Henry, a former officer of the 9th Lancers, established the Beaufort Hunt Polo Club at Norton, Gloucestershire. It is unknown exactly how long the Beaufort Hunt Polo Club was active for, though it was thought to have ceased activity by 1895.

The second chapter of the club’s history began in 1929, when Canadian Herbert Cox revived the club, adding his seven polo fields at Down Farm, Westonbirt to the original grounds in order to significantly expand the club. Many foreign teams and players were welcomed at Beaufort over the following decade, including the Maharajah of Jaipur, who arrived at the club in 1933 complete with 39 ponies and 51 syces. The mid-1930s were heady years for the club, with esteemed players from across the world welcomed to Beaufort. Polo was played almost every day during the season and exhibition and international matches were organised for visiting national teams. But, along with the vast majority of English polo, the club fell foul of the Second World War, and for the second time, Beaufort polo ceased to exist.

That is, until 1989, when the Tomlinsons came to its rescue. While the club this year celebrates its 25th anniversary in its current form, if its periods of abeyance are taken into account, Beaufort Polo Club is, historically, an impressive 144 years old.

Looking to the future And what does the future hold for a club that complements its deep roots with a forward-thinking attitude to polo? Links with Argentina were strengthened in 2006, when

Mark Tomlinson on a hunter in 1998 season, aged 16

Feature

the Tomlinsons purchased a polo farm in Pilar, naming it La Quinta Beaufort, as a base for Luke, Mark and other English players to train during the winter. The set-up now boasts four fields and an indoor arena built by the late ten-goaler Eduardo Moore and around 30 professional players of four goals and above are now in action at the club.

Beaufort Embryo Transfer was set up in 2002, and with Emma Tomlinson at the helm, is now an established leader in the UK equine embryo transfer field.

With around 70 current members, Beaufort continues to provide an extremely high level of coaching, while hosting numerous fixtures at all levels, charity days and of course, the Beaufort Test. “We are trying to encourage and develop polo as a sport for the masses,” said polo manager Caspar West. “We would like to facilitate a life-long dream of opening polo to a wider audience.”

Beaufort will host a ball to celebrate its 25-year anniversary on 19 July but 2014 is a year to remember in more ways than one, as three new members are welcomed into the family in quick succession. Luke and wife Cata Zavaleta celebrated the birth of their first child, Lucas Rufino Tomlinson, in April, while Emma and husband Nick Wood were expecting a new brother or sister for Harry in May. Luke’s younger brother Mark is following closely in his footsteps with wife Olympic gold-medallist Laura Tomlinson (née Bechtolsheimer) due to give birth to a daughter in July.

As the club celebrates 25 years of remarkable achievements, one thing is for certain – the future of Beaufort looks set to remain safe in Tomlinson hands.

HRH The Prince of Wales and Club founder Claire Tomlinson

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Feature

Polo Club anniversaries

Binfield Heath – 20 years

Diana’s daughter Tessa now runs Offchurch Bury

Offchurch Bury – 25 years

The idea of Offchurch Bury Polo Club first came about in India, when Diana and Harry Johnson were invited to visit the home of Colonel Raghvir “Rags” Singh, in Dundlod, which would later become the name of Diana’s team. The pair wanted to establish a club in Warwickshire, a far cry from the grasslands of Nepal where Diana captained the English Ladies’ Elephant Polo team during the early 1980s. It was during this time that she met Rags, senior coach of a team called the Rajasthani Rowdies, who offered to help with the launch of the club, and to take charge of the coaching.

And so Offchurch Bury was born, thought to be the first club in the UK to be started by a woman. At the time, the closest club was Kirtlington Park, in Oxfordshire, so Offchurch Bury fulfilled a geographical gap on the polo map, as well as establishing themselves on the arena polo circuit. Several of the early members were clients of Diana’s hunter hireling business, who she wanted to provide with a summer activity to keep them riding fit all year round.

In 1993 the club relocated to Stoneleigh Abbey, adopting the name Stoneleigh Park Polo Club. During its time there, one of those who took up the game was Dallas Burston. When the club found itself without a home in 2001, he offered his Stoneythorpe Estate, and the club became Royal Leamington Spa (RLS). Six years ago, it was all change once again, but this time the club returned to its original location, reviving the name Offchurch Bury. It is now run successfully by Diana’s daughter Tessa, and her husband Grant Collett, hosting the SUPA University National championships every summer while continuing to encourage new players into the game.

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This year, Binfield Heath Polo Club celebrates 20 years since it was founded in 1994.

The Checkendon Park Polo Club was launched two years prior at the same grounds between Reading and Henley-on-Thames by Toby Greenbury and Lord Francis Phillimore, and it was the core members of this club who decided to replace it with the Binfield Heath Polo Club.

The club has come a long way since its launch 20 years ago. In the early days, the club didn’t have any trophies, so instead, teams played for a large cardboard cut-out of one.

Nowadays, there is plenty of silverware to be won at the many 0-6-goal fixtures held over the summer months on the club’s two irrigated grounds, as well as its annual highlight, the Summer Festival. But, with several of the original club members still involved with the club, such as current chairman Michael Mylonas and committee member Lisa Spiers, the ethos of Binfield Heath remains the same: to bring about the highest possible quality of low-goal polo, as well as providing a friendly introduction to the sport for beginners. This year, the club will be especially busy, with a 20th anniversary tournament to be held on 28-29 June, with Mike Cunningham, Lord Francis Phillimore, Garth Bearman and Paul Lucas receive a cardboard action at 0 and 4-goal levels, as well as a trophy, in the days before the club had its own silverware party to toast the last 20 years, and look ahead to the next.

Cirencester Park – 120 years

2014 marks the 120th anniversary of one of the oldest polo clubs in England – Cirencester Park Polo Club. First set up by Seymour Henry the 7th Earl Bathurst in 1894, in his own Cirencester Park, the club is now one of the world’s few 19th century polo clubs still in existence.

The club began life as Cirencester Polo Club, with a membership fee of 10 shillings and six pence, and its polo matches held in conjunction with gymkhana games and other equestrian events to help introduce the game to the public.

It was a combination of the effects of the Depression and the establishment of the Beaufort Polo Club at nearby Westonbirt that caused player numbers to decline during the 1920s and in 1933 the decision was made to close the club.

But when the Henry the 8th Earl Bathurst and his brother George developed a taste for polo, they resurrected the club, now named Cirencester Park Polo Club, in 1953 on the original grounds. Since then, the club has gone from strength to strength, with return of high-goal polo there in the 1950s and Cirencester-based teams such as Foxcote, Los Locos, Black Bears and Bulldogs making a significant mark on high-goal polo in England and abroad during the latter part of the 20th century.

Nowadays the high-goal tournaments hosted by the club are the 22-goal Warwickshire Cup and the 26-goal Gloucestershire Cup.

Silver Leys – 120 years

Dating back to 1894, Silver Leys is amongst the oldest clubs in the UK. Originally known as the Stansted Polo Club, it has retained its original location at Bishop’s Stortford in Hertfordshire. The grounds had originally served as Army barracks, but were converted into polo grounds by Tresham Gilbey, president of the Polo Pony Society.

Alfie Boyd-Gibbons revived the club on the same grounds after the Second World War, when it adopted the name Silver Leys.

The club is now run as a not for profit private member’s club and boasts almost 50 members.

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Reports

St. Regis Test Match

England prevail at Cowdray Park England put the defeat of last year behind them with a solid win over South America in the first Test Match of the English season

Polly Bryan Reports

England South America

E

11.5 8

ngland got the season off to an excellent start when they beat South America to win the St. Regis International Cup at Cowdray Park on Saturday 17 May. Team stalwarts Luke and Mark Tomlinson and James Beim returned to England after victory in the Nations Cup at Palermo, and with 24-year-old six-goaler Max Charlton slotting in at number one, the 26-goal side successfully held down their opposition to win the first Test Match of the English season.

The two sides had faced each other on Cowdray Park’s Lawns 2 ground exactly a year ago. South America came out on top of an 11-9 win on that occasion, despite Nacho Figueras suffering a crashing fall that sidelined him for several months with a fractured pelvis. This year four Argentines once again lined up to face the red and white shirts of England under the banner of South America, with Figueras back to full strength, but without last year’s talisman, ten-goaler Facundo Pieres. Instead, brothers Eduardo and Alejandro Novillo Astrada took to the field, with young four-goaler Guy Gibrat, proving a force to be reckoned with but ultimately not able to crush the English.

With two sets of brothers on the field, there

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was plenty of familiarity within the two teams, but the Tomlinsons’ vast experience of playing with Beim showed, as England worked and communicated well as a team, to record an 11.5-8 victory.

England started the match with a half-goal advantage on handicap, and soon added to it with a goal from Mark Tomlinson. But South America took the lead almost immediately, bringing the score to 3-1.5 early in the second chukka. England appeared to be a little slow off the mark at times, giving away a couple of fouls and struggling to contain eight-goaler Alejandro Novillo Astrada, who sent the ball flying through the posts from 60 yards during a lapse in the English marking. But as the third chukka got underway England began to assert their dominance on the match, with Mark Tomlinson and Beim linking up well in the middle, and Luke Tomlinson doing a good job of closing down the South American attack.

By halftime England were clinging to a fragile 7.5-5 lead and despite a stunning goal from Beim after carrying the ball the length of the field and showing off his superior horsepower, it was clear England were in danger of letting their lead slip, as Alejandro Novillo Astrada put three goals on the scoreboard to close the gap to 9.5-8.

But the fifth and final chukka belonged to the English, as they closed the door on the South American attack, not conceding a single goal, while strengthening their lead with two more goals from Mark Tomlinson and Beim, aboard his Polo Times best playing pony Yacht.

And so it was England who lifted the first trophy of the Test Match season, a good omen for the Audi International Series,

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 17:02

St. Regis Test Match

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Reports

Polo Times, June 2014

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Reports

St. Regis Test Match

which gets underway at Beaufort Polo Club this month. It was a particularly good day for seven-goaler Beim, who deservedly picked up the most valuable player prize having outfoxed his higher-handicapped rivals on several occasions while playing in the unfamiliar number three position.

Charlton, who made his England national team debut at the Cowdray Test Match in 2013, was also praised by his teammates. “Max was strong at the front,” Mark Tomlinson told Polo Times. “He’s very powerful and made a few holes for Beimy and me. I think the team went well overall. We were a bit scratchy and rusty to start with, having not played together since the game in Argentina three weeks ago. But we got it together.”

Captain Luke Tomlinson was philosophical about the win as he looks ahead to clashes with Goldin Group Hong Kong, the Rest of the World and Argentina

“We all played well but I wouldn’t say the team was firing like it could. We still have lots of things to work on” – Luke Tomlinson later in the year. “The two Novillo Astradas are very good players and played excellent polo but we were coming to the match off the back of the Nations Cup win, with a bit more rhythm and confidence. We didn’t have a great game though, although we all played well. Beimy had some brilliant moments, but I wouldn’t say the team was firing like it could. There are lots of things to work on.”

For social pictures from the Test Match, see page 86

Polo Times best playing pony – Yacht James Beim tells Polly Bryan about his liver chestnut gelding Yacht, who won the Polo Times rug for the best playing pony of the Test Match How old is Yacht and where is he from?

Yacht is 13 and was bred by Ellerston in Australia.

He is by Norman Pentequard and out of a mare named Dinghy.

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St. Regis International Cup; Cowdray Park Polo Club; 17 May 2014 Result: England beat South America, 11.5-8 Handicap: 27-goal Principal sponsor: St. Regis Most valuable player: James Beim Polo Times best playing pony: Yacht, owned and played by James Beim Teams England (26): Max Charlton 6; Mark Tomlinson 6; James Beim 7; Luke Tomlinson 7 South America (27): Guy Gibrat 4; Alejandro Novillo Astrada 8; Eduardo Novillo Astrada 9; Nacho Figueras 6

What prizes has he won in the past?

I brought him over from Australia when he was six so he’s played here for many years. He has won best playing pony in the Coronation Cup with me, and various other prizes.

What makes him so good?

He’s incredibly fast and amazing on the sides. He’s probably a little harder in the mouth than I would like but I play him accordingly. He’s got serious speed, like his mum had.

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Reports

Nations Cup

England top the podium at Palermo

Photographs by www.imagesofpolo.com

L

et’s face it; it’s not that often that England beat Argentina in Test Match polo, let alone on Argentine turf. But this was exactly what happened in April, as England triumphed in the Copa de las Naciones, or Nations Cup, at Palermo.

Luke Tomlinson, Ollie Cudmore, James Beim and Mark Tomlinson flew the flag for England in the 26-goal tournament, and it was a welcome return to the field for captain Luke Tomlinson, who had undergone surgery for an injury caused by a ball to the face, only the month before.

This year was the third edition of the annual Nations Cup International Series, with England having finished a frustrating, though respectable, second in both previous years.

But it certainly proved to be a case of third time lucky for the team, who claimed the title over teams from Argentina, the Rest of the World and Colombia this time around.

For the second year in a row, the overall winner of the series was determined by goal difference. Last year, despite a win over Argentina by England, the goal difference statistics had swung in the favour of eventual winners South Africa. This year it was England’s turn – both they, Argentina and the Rest of the World finished the three-match series with two wins and one loss apiece, but it was England who were crowned champions, having scored the highest number of goals across the whole tournament. This did mean a slight tempering of the immediate celebrations that followed the final match, as English players and supporters tried to work out exactly what they had to celebrate.

“The England team and its supporters had assumed HPA rules, which state that the games of the team or teams not involved in a three-way tie on points are discarded,” explained David Woodd, chief executive of the HPA, who travelled out to Buenos Aires in support. “However, this is generally not the rule in Argentina, so the results of the games against Colombia were included.

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England could not have asked for a better start to the 2014 season, as they defeated Argentina at Palermo to lift the Nations Cup for first time Polly Bryan reports

England Argentina

10 9

Hence, the England team raised the cup, after thinking they had come second.”

England had achieved a resounding victory over Colombia, putting them back in contention for the title after a disappointing start to the tournament when they were narrowly beaten, 12-11, by a tough Rest of the World side. Colombia fielded Felipe Marquez Ochoa, Federico Uribe Abad, Ignacio Novillo Astrada and Camilo Gutiérrez Espinosa, but the foursome were never able to quite combat their opposition, going down to all three of the other teams.

And so it was England and the Argentina line-up of Juan Martin Zubía, Diego Cavanagh, Alejandro Agote and Rodrigo Rueda that went into the final day of play with the chance for a crack at the title.

A large crowd expectantly filled the iconic Palermo stands, and the final showdown was no disappointment. The match was extremely close, characterised by close marking, with no more than two goals separating the teams at any one time, and three of the six chukkas ending with the scores level. A long season was showing in the condition of the ground, which was fairly cut-up, making it hard for both teams to find a rhythm as they fiercely tried to maintain possession. But with play finally starting to open up in the last chukka,

England took control just when it mattered.

“All four team members played very well and it does bode well for the English season, although of course, this isn’t the best team Argentina can field,” said Woodd.

“But I would say that our players proved more valuable off their handicaps and to beat Argentina at Palermo is a hell of an achievement. Lots of thanks must go to www.polotimes.co.uk

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Reports

England captain Luke Tomlinson and Argentina’s Alejandro Agote race for the ball

Eduardo Heguy, who coached the team and provided several horses.”

This year, for the first time, the Nations Cup International Series was raised from 22 to 26-goal level, with all team members playing off their Argentine handicaps.

While England, Colombia and the Rest of the World fielded the highest calibre of player they could, Argentina inevitably kept www.polotimes.co.uk

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back their best players, putting forward a relatively unknown, albeit talented, lineup, thus ensuring a close and competitive tournament.

“It’s a credit to the AAP that they hosted the tournament at a level which allowed other countries to compete,” commented England captain Luke Tomlinson. “If Argentina only wanted to win, they would

every time – if you play open there’s not another country that can beat Argentina. It was a good tournament, and they still put forward a very competitive team.

“We tried to play classic fast, open polo and that helped us out in the final. Everyone played well in their positions. Ollie Cudmore especially went from strength to strength throughout the tournament.”

Polo Times, June 2014

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Knowledge Pony Power Reports Nations Cup Luke Tomlinson, James Beim, Mark Tomlinson and Ollie Cudmore hold the trophy aloft

Argentina will be back with a vengeance to contest the Coronation Cup at Guards in July. But one thing is for sure: England has got its 2014 international campaign off to the best possible start.

Nations Cup International Series; 22-26 April 2014; Palermo, Buenos Aires Results Tuesday 22 April: ROTW 12, England 11; Argentina 14, Colombia 10 Thursday 24 April: England 12, Colombia 6; Argentina 9, ROTW 6 Saturday 26 April: ROTW 5, Colombia 4; England 10, Argentina 9 Overall winners: England Handicap: 26-goal Number of team entries: Four Teams Argentina (25): Juan Martín Zubía 3; Diego Cavanagh 8; Alejandro Agote 8; Rodrigo Rueda 6 Colombia (23): Felipe Márquez Ochao 5; Federico Uribe Abad 5; Ignacio Novillo Astrada 5; Camilo Espinosa Gutiérrez 4 England (26): Ollie Cudmore 5; Mark Tomlinson 7; Luke Tomlinson 7; James Beim 7 Rest of the World (26): Pascual Saínz de Vicuña 6; David du Plessis 6; Nachi du Plessis 8; Francisco Irastorza 6

Team ENGLAND ARGENTINA REST OF THE WORLD COLOMBIA

Played 3 3 3 3

Won 2 2 2 0

Lost 1 1 1 3

Points 4 4 4 0

How the final unfolded...

First chukka

Third chukka

Argentina open the scoring with a 60-yard goal from Cavanagh’s stick after a foul

by England shortly after the throw-in.

Cudmore replies with a good under-theneck field goal, finishing a series of good passes by England. But another foul from England sends Cavanagh back to the 60yard penalty spot, where he converts again.

England 1, Argentina 2

The hit in is taken from the centre, but England are in a muddle and pay for it as Argentina scores. Cudmore puts England into the lead with two field goals, having been well set up by his teammates.

Cavanagh converts a penalty and the home side looks well on the way to another goal until the whistle goes with the ball within 20 yards of the English goalposts.

England 4, Argentina 4

Second chukka A foul is blown against Mark Tomlinson, but is overruled. Agote gets clear to have a shot at goal, but sends it wide to the relief of the English. England win a penalty, which is swiftly taken from 30 yards by captain Luke Tomlinson. Cavanagh then misses two goal opportunities for Argentina, followed by a missed penalty from Luke Tomlinson to leave the teams level.

England 2, Argentina 2 44

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Fourth chukka The second half opens with a spot hit to England. A good pass from Cudmore leads Argentina to foul, and Luke Tomlinson puts away a 30-yard penalty. But two more goals from the on-form eight-goaler Cavanagh means England remain slightly on the back foot, with just two chukkas left to go.

England 5, Argentina 6

Goals for 33 32 23 20

Goals against 27 26 24 31

Goal difference 6 6 -1 -11

Fifth chukka England start with a spot hit, but Agote intercepts Beim’s dribbling, and scores.

Mark Tomlinson then gets his own back, stealing the ball from Cavanagh and finding the posts. A foul by Argentina against Mark then gives his brother a chance to level the score once again, with a 30-yard penalty, sending the teams into the final chukka on level footing.

England 7, Argentina 7

Sixth chukka A good start for England as Argentina commit two fouls in rapid succession, and Luke successfully converts each penalty. But this was followed by a nervy spell for the English supporters as England give away two goals due to fouls. Mark Tomlinson runs the ball to goal from the line-out but misses his final swing at the ball. But Cudmore gets to it in time, and dissects the posts, giving England the lead just at the right moment.

England 10, Argentina 9 www.polotimes.co.uk

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25/04/2014 15:43 27/05/2014 17:02

Reports

Maserati US Open

Alegria overcomes Valiente to take US Open title Gary Hulton reports from Palm Beach

Alegria Valiente

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Maserati US Open

For the second time in a matter of months, an Alegria team came up against the tournament favorites in a title battle. But having lost out in the final of the Argentine Open, this year’s US Open was finally to be the moment for the Mannix family’s team, as Alegria clinched victory over Valiente.

A

legria lifted the Maserati US Open Championship trophy at International Polo Club Palm Beach in April, after defying tournament favourite Valiente 11-10 in a tense final.

The 2014 final of the US Open was played on a beautiful Easter Sunday, with a pre-game Easter Egg hunt for the youngsters. Hundreds of brightly coloured eggs were scattered about the lush green polo field to be scooped up by joyful children, eager to fill their baskets with goodies. But once the game began, a strenuous tug-of-war ensued between Alegria and Valiente, two extremely well-organised and closely matched teams. Bob Jornayvaz’s Valiente team went into the final as favourites, having already secured victory in both the preceding 26-goal tournaments of the US season, the C.V Whitney Cup and the USPA Gold Cup, beating Alegria to win the latter.

But disaster struck in the semi-final of the US Open, and Valiente’s talisman, tengoaler Adolfo Cambiaso, was forced onto the sidelines with an injury, to be replaced by fellow ten-goaler Juan Martin Nero with just a few days to go before the final. Whatever psychological advantage Valiente may have had was perhaps tempered at the last minute, as they had to adjust to a new team make-up and a different line-up of horses. Not that this change would have made much of a difference to Nero as a world-class player, but it would certainly have impacted on the team as a whole, which also featured Sapo Caset and Santi Torres. The result was that the final was a truly even matching of teams. Julian Mannix led the Alegria team, playing alongside Hilario Ulloa, Clemente Zavaleta Jr and Mariano Aguerre, who celebrated his second US Open victory.

The entire game was played fast and fairly, with everyone making their contributions

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visible through excellent teamplay in both offence and defence. Individual strokes of brilliance, visible across the board, were exemplified by Torres who, just after the throw-in at the start of the sixth chukka, stole the ball from Ulloa along the boards, escaping the efforts of Zavaleta, and drove a sharpangled neck shot through the posts to score.

The two teams were so evenly-matched throughout the game that it was no surprise to find the score tied up at 10-10 by the end of the final chukka. After a brief rest, the teams returned to the field for overtime, when it came down to a 40-yard penalty conversion by Ulloa to break the tie, and win the tournament for Alegria.

Hilario Ulloa took away the best playing pony prize for Mia, while Clemente Zavaleta was named most valuable player, a welldeserved reward for his great defensive play throughout the game. It was certainly the icing on the birthday cake for his father, Alegria’s team coach Clemente Zavaleta Sr, who celebrated his birthday on the same day as his team and son lifted the US Open trophy.

For Valiente, the defeat was history repeating itself, having lost out in the final of the 2013 US Open, after dominating the season. With just a goal in it, the final could easily have gone either way, as Alegria patron Mannix acknowledged. “Valiente was an awesome team all season,” he said. “They gave us all we could handle. In the final it’s nearly always going to be won by one goal, and luckily enough we were able to win.

It’s a dream come true to win the US Open.

It’s taken hard work and a lot of planning, and a lot of moving parts to win such a big tournament so we’re just all very, very happy.”

Reports

Gary Hulton speaks to nine-goaler Sebastian Merlos, who reached the quarterfinals of the US Open, to get his take on the final Who did you expect to win today?

I knew it was going to be a close game.

Both teams are very well-organised and had a good season and a good tournament.

The result doesn’t surprise me but I wouldn’t have put money on either of the teams. Both were very good: they played amazingly; they played fast. There were not many goals at the beginning, but everybody played well. Julian Mannix played an awesome game, Bob Jornayvaz also. Zavaleta had an amazing season with the team.

How do you think Cambiaso’s replacement affected the match today?

Juan Martin Nero is an amazing player and Adolfito’s horses are very, very good, but it’s not the best to have to fill in at the last moment and to play only one or two practices.

It’s hard to get used to the way the team plays and get used to the different horses.

But I think that he played amazingly well.

Juan Martin played a great game.

Both teams had chances to win and when you go to overtime it’s anybody’s game. It was an overtime chukka that started from the centre of the field too. It’s where luck plays a role in the outcome.

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Maserati US Open

Chukka by chukka: how the US Open final unfolded First chukka

Second chukka

Third chukka

Alegria was the first team on the scoreboard with a goal only 35 seconds into the final. But Valiente’s Santi Torres quickly replied, scoring twice, followed by Adolfo Cambiaso’s Valiente substitute Juan Martin Nero, who found the posts to give Valiente a 3-1 lead.

Alegria 1, Valiente 3

Alegria didn’t hesitate in getting themselves right back into the game as the second chukka began, reacting to Valiente’s strong attack by upping their defence, and recording goals from Hilario Ulloa and Julaim Mannix for good measure.

Alegria 3, Valiente 3

Valiente responded with the same approach in the third chukka, effectively shutting out the Alegria attack with strong defence, while adding a goal to the scoreline from Sapo Caset.

Alegria 3, Valiente 4

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Maserati US Open

Reports

Charley Larcombe, editor of The Polo Magazine, explains why International Polo Club Palm Beach is an ideal winter polo location

Poolside at the clubhouse

W

ith an average temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit and 234 days of sunshine year-round, is it any wonder that Florida, and the Palm Beach area in particular, is an ideal polo winter base? From January through to April, the likes of the Novillo Astradas, the Merlos’ and Cambiaso fly into Miami airport laden down with polo sticks and their families, all heading to the polo clubs which are huddled together in the self-proclaimed equestrian capital of the world, Wellington.

Driving along the razor-straight highways, you’ll notice every other gateway leads to a polo barn, show jumping yard or dressage facility; when

you nip out for coffee after riding sets (get up early to avoid the heat) you’ll see that jodhpurs or whites are almost a uniform here. If you thought the Windsor-Ascot corridor of Berkshire had a high polo population, it is nothing compared to the many clubs and facilities on offer in the fivesquare-mile stretch of Wellington.

The most well-known of these is undoubtedly International Polo Club, Palm Beach, home to the 26-goal. An incredible facility, which combines immaculate, world-class grounds with a relaxed pool and clubhouse, and a family-friendly restaurant with the ultimate Sunday party brunch venue, IPC is the perfect

Fourth chukka

downfield and swiftly into goal to take the lead for Valiente but Alegria’s Mariano Aguerre was on the case, converting a ball from Mannix to even the score. Another Caset penalty gave Jornayvaz’s side the lead once more, but Alegria seized their final chance, Clemente Zavaleta driving the ball through the posts to make it 10-10.

Alegria 10, Valiente 10

A high-scoring fourth chukka began with a penalty goal each from Ulloa and Caset, followed by three more successful penalty shots from Ulloa as the nine-goaler pulled Alegria into the lead for the first time in the match.

Alegria 7, Valiente 5

Fifth chukka Caset was quick to cut Alegria’s lead to a single goal.

Mannix soon reinstated the 2-goal margin with his second goal of the day. But Caset soon brought Valiente back within easy reach of the lead with another penalty goal.

Alegria 8, Valiente 7

Sixth chukka The teams were neck and neck again early in the sixth chukka after a goal from Torres. Caset carried the ball

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Overtime chukka The teams returned to the field for a sudden-death chukka. The pressure gets to Valiente, who give away a penalty shot for victory to Alegria. Ulloa’s shot goes wide, but Manix’s team had luck on their side and earns a second chance after a Valiente foul on the boards. Ulloa was not giving away a second crack at the title, scoring from 40 yards to secure the win.

Alegria 11, Valiente 10

location to witness some of the best high-goal polo.

Malcolm Borwick, who spent part of this winter based at Luis Escobar’s Santa Clara farm running polo clinics and playing in medium-goal tournaments, sums up the location perfectly: “Palm Beach is a fantastic winter polo alternative to Argentina.

For patrons looking to take their families away with them, it offers the full package: sun, beaches, great restaurants, and top-class polo – and is only eight hours away. As a professional, as the States comes out of recession, I believe the number of teams playing there will increase and therefore offer good opportunities to players established there. From a spectator’s point of view, you have all of the world’s best players in one 5-square-mile block for four months.”

Away from the polo, it is a positive playground for the polo professional. Players can opt for golf at any one of the emerald-coloured greens interspersed between the polo barns, or surfing at one of the pristine beaches on the 47 miles of coastline. There’s also exercising the credit card at The Gardens Mall or indulging in a diet cheat day with cocktails and suppers in West Palm.

In short, with exceptional polo on offer and a jam-packed itinerary of equine-free entertainment, Palm Beach county is an ideal winter location. See you there next season.

Maserati US Open Championship; Sunday 20 April 2014; International Polo Club Palm Beach Result: Alegria beat Valiente 11-10 Handicap level: 26-goal Number of team entries: ight Principal sponsor: Maserati Most valuable player: Clemente Zavaleta Teams: Alegria (26): Julian Mannix 3; Clemente Zavaleta 5; Mariano Aguerre 9; Hilario Ulloa 9 Valiente (26): Bob Jornayvaz 1; Santi Torres 6; Sapo Caset 9; Juan Martin Nero 10 (sub)

Polo Times, June 2014

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27/05/2014 17:03

Guest editor special

Focus

Off-Field preparation The face of a polo player’s fitness has changed dramatically over the last 20 years. Most high-goal and even some lower-goal teams now have a support team of personal trainers and physios. Players have come to recognise the need to prepare their bodies, and at the top level I would say it has now become a pre-requisite to be physically fit if you want to do well. Personally the fitness side has always been

MARK SAYS...

I am lucky to have a narrow physique that can take quite a lot of food before weight gain becomes a problem. Therefore, when I was younger and it came to eating, the emphasis for me was on quantity. More specifically it was a matter of stuffing my face until I was virtually sick. I still very much enjoy a good pigging-out session, but over time I have started to understand the benefits of actually thinking about the quality, as well as quantity. Not eating a huge amount for dinner for example makes for a better night’s sleep, and snacking on fruit and nuts as opposed to service station trash just makes for a better life in general. While I am sure my diet is still not what it should be, I have definitely felt the benefits of the few things I have learnt. At the end of the day, food is our fuel, so it goes without saying how important this aspect is.

NUTRITION We all know that “you are what you eat”. Alli Godbold explains how diet can impact on a polo player’s performance The secret to good health is to achieve balance in the body and this can only occur if the body is getting all the nutrients it needs. Constant stress, whether mental or physical, takes its toll on health (the adrenal glands, which pump out the important stress hormones adrenalin and cortisol, require a plentiful supply of many nutrients including magnesium, vitamin C and www.polotimes.co.uk

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of real interest to me and it is something I have enjoyed. My interest in other sports, including a passion for football, has shown me how much difference it can make by being ‘fit’. Whilst this feature is tailored for top-level polo, the information given below by the various experts can be useful to players at all levels and even help our everyday lives outside of polo.

B vitamins). Long-term stress, coupled with an inadequate diet, will leave the body depleted of nutrients and make it impossible to achieve optimal sports performance or optimal health.

One of the key areas to get right is blood sugar balance. The level of glucose in the blood governs how much energy we have; it is fundamental to good mental health and it is a major factor in maintaining a stable weight.

How we fuel ourselves is crucial – every time we eat sugar and refined carbohydrates (processed foods such as white rice and white bread) our blood sugar levels soar. Drinking tea, coffee, cola and alcohol also increases sugar levels. If this sugar is surplus to requirements, the body responds by quickly producing a surge of insulin to deal with the excess, resulting in a sugar slump – this is when we typically experience a dip in energy and reach for tea and biscuits.

The best way to avoid sugar highs and lows is to focus on eating unprocessed foods. Eat food in its most natural state – opt for plenty of vegetables and include lean meats, chicken, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds and their oils as well as some fruit, beans, peas, lentils and wholegrains – and you can’t go wrong.

For breakfast, choose from eggs, porridge, wholegrain breads, berries, smoked salmon, green juices (spinach and pineapple is a favourite). Have a salad for lunch with a good source of protein such as chicken breast or a hard-boiled egg, along with a slow release source of carbohydrate such as brown basmati rice or chickpeas. For dinner, choose fish, chicken or lean meat with plenty of vegetables – stir-fried, roasted or steamed – and limit potato, rice, pasta, bread and other stodgy foods to a fist sized serving.

Avoid fuelling yourself with teas and coffees throughout the day and limit alcohol intake to a minimum. Opt for hydrating herbal teas, green tea and plenty of water. If you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated and this will reduce your concentration and zap your strength.

If you are hungry and need a snack midafternoon, choose unsalted nuts and seeds, oatcakes, humous or berries. Avoid snacking

on chocolate and crisps as these won’t provide any nutritional benefits and will leave you feeling hungry a couple of hours later.

Ensuring adequate protein is key – so try to eat a good quality protein at every meal – the rule of thumb is to aim for at least 1g or protein per kg body weight each day – a chicken breast contains roughly 45g of protein, a large egg approximately 8g protein and a salmon fillet about 30g protein. If you are vegetarian or find it difficult to eat this much protein, it is worth including a protein powder – a protein smoothie at breakfast or mid-afternoon is easy to incorporate into the day – aim for a protein powder from whey, rice, hemp, pea or soy that provides 15-20g of protein per serving.

The timing of eating before a match varies from person to person. Some people digest very efficiently and can handle a big meal just before they play, whereas others need a little more time, otherwise they feel uncomfortable. Aim to eat a slow-release carbohydrate such as brown rice, for a steady supply of energy, along with a good source of protein, such as fish or chicken.

During the game you will need to stay fuelled – this is when sugar is allowed in your diet. You can buy energy powder that you add to water (eg Torq Energy Drink) which supplies carbohydrate and electrolytes in perfect balance.

Some sportsmen prefer glucose gels but if all this seems a step too far, then drinking fruit juice diluted with water would be a good choice.

Immediately after the game, you should refuel with carbohydrate and protein to restore energy reserves and support muscle. This is one of the few times when refined carbs are allowed, like a banana and peanut butter bagel.

If you eat natural, unprocessed foods 90 per cent of the time and limit alcohol to a few glasses of wine a week, you will soon notice the difference in terms of health and improved sports performance.

Alli Godbold, Dip ION mBANT CNHC, is a nutritional therapist and the author of Feed Your Health – available from Amazon or www.feedyourhealth.co.uk Polo Times, June 2014

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MARK SAYS...

One of the factors that makes polo different from many other sports is the fact one can go on playing competitively until quite a late age. In sports like football, rugby and athletics you’re considered ‘over the hill’ at 30, whereas in polo there are several players, both professional and amateur, who play over the age of 50. Therefore the idea of ‘maintaining’ our body is another key part of what we can do off the field.

Jane Newnham is one of the top physios in the polo world and I will never forget being treated by her sometime ago when I had one of those back pains that never go away. As well as treating me and solving the problem, Jane gave me a series of three or four exercises that I was to do every day in order to prevent the problem coming back. Those exercises take me about two minutes and I still do them every day. To me they are now a vital part of keeping my body feeling good. I have now moved on to doing regular Pilates and this is a common method we can use to keep our bodies symmetric amidst all the in-balance of riding and polo. To me, this merely underlines the idea that we can do as much, if not more, in the way of prevention as we can in solving the injuries or aches and pains when they occur.

BODY MAINTENANCE Compared to athletes in other sports, polo players often have particularly long playing careers. Cowdray Park sports therapist Jane Newnham explains how to increase your potential for longevity in polo Whether you are a professional or an amateur, longevity in polo is only possible if you can keep your injury potential down and remain on the field.

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Polo is a dynamic contact sport and players have less control over extrinsic injuries caused by mallets, balls, horses etc but more control than they think over the intrinsic injuries caused by polo’s repetitive movement patterns creating imbalances, overuse syndromes and injury. An appropriate maintenance/pre-hab/prevention session helps the player to reduce excessive loading on commonly injured sites: groin, pelvis, hip pathology shoulder and wrist.

Polo subjects repetitive torsion (twisting) through the rectus abdominis/adductors (to name but a few) created by the horse below, and sudden changes of direction at speed by the mallet above, so it is not surprising that we find the player presenting with adductor or groin pain on many different levels. To evaluate these problems we have to look at the entire kinetic chain of the body: what is happening above and below this painful area. It is only then that we can prescribe the appropriate graded exercise program.

In my experience, the most common reasons for adductor pain are: • Pain radiates from irritated/weak/ overloaded symphysis pubis (osteitis pubis).

• Decreased range of movement at the hip joint can precede adductor/groin injuries.

• Weakness of abdominal muscles radiating/referring pain into adductors.

• Tightness of hip flexors (commonly right side) creating tension in sacro-iliac joints and lumbar spine affecting flexibility and increasing risk of injury to adductors/ groin.

However, if you have just impersonated ‘Tonto’ flat out down the field, you could be perfectly balanced and just have an isolated adductor strain, although this is not so common.

So the idea of a maintenance/pre-hab/ prevention program is to re-balance and re-align the body, working from top to toe, lengthen muscles that are too tight/short and strengthen the opposing muscle groups that have become weak as a result (antagonistic).

For example, lengthen hip flexors/strengthen glutes and we automatically reduce the workload of the adductors. Remember: for longevity we are looking to treat the cause not the symptom.

Along with our pre-hab sessions, regular visits to a consultant or therapist can be valuable for functional assessment testing and sports massage, as well as:

Photograph by Tom Reynolds

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Polo is a very physical sport

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• • • •

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Postural advice – I have treated many players at all levels who have had neck/ shoulder/upper back pain and polo has not been the cause. Instead, sitting slumped in car seats, watching polo for hours or over laptops has.

Self massage techniques (use of foam rollers/massage balls/tools).

Kinesiology taping techniques (You Tube is fantastic).

A variety of icing techniques (ice baths/ ice massage etc).

Hydration – from the moment your hydration levels drop, so does your performance, and potential for injury to soft tissue increases.

Rest/sleep – number one ingredient for body and mind repair.

Outside the polo box, professional road cyclists (yes we are talking Tour de France riders) have something in common with polo players, although unfortunately no tests have been done on players yet. Polo and cycling, even at top level, are low impact sports that put little mechanical load on bones, so weight bearing exercise, whether it is deadlifts, weighted squats or plyometrics are important to maintain good bone density.

Remember: Pre-hab is better, quicker and easier than re-hab! www.polotimes.co.uk

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MARK SAYS...

You will have no doubt heard top sportsmen banging on about the mental side of sport: their inner chimps, mind maps and all of that. Nowadays tennis players and golfers don’t go anywhere without their ‘pyschs’ and I would say that in polo it has become a large part of our off-field preparation, perhaps more than people think.

I can certainly vouch for the benefits of having someone independent to talk to who can help organise that oh so complicated place known as our minds. Whether it is a specific problem like losing the plot with the umpires, or missing 30-yard penalties when you slot all the others, or agro with your team mates, or even something more general, there are huge benefits to receiving mental attention in polo. In such a high intensity sport I would go as far as saying that it is essential.

SPORT PSYCHOLOGY As in any sport, playing polo involves many emotional and psychological elements, which can often stand in the way of a player’s progress.

Chartered sport psychologist Dave Alcock explains that help can be on hand “To be the best that I can be” – a simple phrase that captures, at its heart, the goal of most people who have ambition, dedication, and a vision of what could be.

Most elite athletes are well on the way to that place; a journey that will have been punctuated by sacrifice, emotional highs and lows, frustration, and satisfaction (often in unequal measure). It is increasingly well recognised that seeking to work with a sport psychologist is a mark of strength as opposed to a sign of weakness. It is an acknowledgement that, alongside the rigorous training, attention to diet, maintenance of high levels of physical fitness, and the multitude of peripheral www.polotimes.co.uk

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Riding onto the field with confidence takes mental preparation as well as physical training

demands placed upon them, it is vital that elite athletes attend to the mental side of the game and seek to ensure that it is as finely tuned as it can be.

But what is it that sport psychologists do? I certainly can’t speak for all chartered sport psychologists; suffice to say there are marked similarities and differences in the way we, as a profession, carry out our work.

If you are thinking of working with a sport psych, talk to them about how they work, what tools they use, and explore in detail how they might help you.

So what do I do? As a chartered sport psychologist, my aim is, from a psychological perspective, to enable you to be the best that you can be. Delving a little deeper, I work within a framework of “selfdetermination”. My work with athletes will address issues around: • Competence (Do I have the skills to do what I need to do? How can I maintain focus in times of extreme pressure?

What psychological tools can I use to improve my skills? How can I deal with pre-match nerves?)

• Autonomy (What are the elements of my game that are under my control? How can I control my emotions? How can I change habits that I know are affecting my game in a negative way? How can I improve my game even further?)

• Relatedness – polo is a team sport and as such, how you relate to your teammates is an important ingredient of successful performance. (How do I want to “be” with my teammates? Can I

optimise my communication skills? How can I improve my leadership skills?)

There isn’t enough room within this article to describe the full range of specific interventions/strategies that I might use but it would not be uncommon for the following to be explored at some point: • Mind-mapping the journey to the “ideal” (this almost always takes place) • Imagery, goal setting, self-talk • Relaxation and controlled breathing • Working with “controllables” and “uncontrollables” • Attention focus, centering, thought stopping • Mindfulness techniques • Positive psychology techniques Rest assured, there are many more “tools in the armoury”.

Reaching and maintaining elite performance can, at times, be a lonely and challenging place. Having a non-judgemental ally to work with you on the psychological elements of optimal performance is, in my opinion, an essential part of the process.

David Alcock (C Psychol; MSc; BA(Hons); PGCE(FE)) is a chartered sport psychologist and senior lecturer at The University of the West of England.

His sport psych experience includes involvement with: Bristol rugby (current position), The Warrington Wolves Super league team, England Women’s football, Celtic Crusaders rugby league, Bristol City Football, Welsh National pistol shooting, Jersey Commonwealth shooting squad, elite rowing, gymnastics.

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MARK SAYS...

Juan is a personal trainer who has been working in polo for almost 10 years, and he works out of Jerome Wirth’s Enigma set-ups, both in England and Argentina. He trains several top players including Pablo MacDonough, Juan Martin Nero and Luke Tomlinson. Juan has always been passionate about studying the sport, and has even written a book on the subject.

PHYSICAL FITNESS Most professionals now engage in personal fitness training. We hear from Juan Tedesco, personal trainer to the Enigma high-goal team, about his approach to polospecific physical fitness training

A Swiss Ball is a useful training tool particularly important for polo

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Polo is one of the sports that have evolved the most in terms of professionalism in recent years. This has meant polo players need more workout resources in order to pursue their careers in the best physical way possible. It allows players, among other benefits, to avoid injuries, speed up recoveries and muscular discharge, improve physical, coordinative and visual qualities, and above all, maintain their maximum level of performance for as many years as possible.

One of the most important things all polo players and trainers must take into consideration is to plan for the season ahead.

We consult the polo player on his main and secondary objectives for the season.

Based on that, we draw up an action plan to ensure players are in the best physical shape possible when they get to the important matches, having incorporated the plan into the training. At the same time we register absolutely everything: number of chukkas played, stick and balling sessions, games, physical evaluations, objectives per game etc.

This data will provide us with more knowledge of what is happening to the player, so that we can adjust the intensity of the physical work and therefore, prevent over-training and injuries resulting from overcharging the muscles. For this, we have to listen to the player who is ultimately the only one who is actually feeling what is going on.

The training must be specific for polo. If you train in a non-specific mode, you will see average results, but training specifically for polo will produce unique and specific results, increasing power and the capacity to produce energy.

The physical capacities to concentrate on are: resistance strength (at the beginning of the season), to provide functional symmetry to the player in this non-symmetric sport, explosive strength, speed, power, intermittent aerobic resistance and flexibility. Additionally, we must train the physical coordinative capacities such as balance, stability, space orientation etc. The training must also include visual and cognitive abilities along with the physical abilities, making the polo player experience similar situations from the ones on the polo field. I call these physical-mental activities.

The ideal is to combine different exercises in one session, prioritising the one which is less developed, because if we over-do the same type of exercise we increase the risk of overcharging the muscles. We must alternate exercises as well as the physical qualities that are being developed.

In polo, the mid-zone of the body is very

important, and generally neglected. The midzone is the fundamental support that allows the correct execution of the majority of the polo manoeuvres. The movements of rotation and inclination, crucial for many of the actions, depend on the work we do on the obliques.

The upright position that a polo player has on the horse causes him to constantly contract his lumbar muscles in an isometric manner, which develops the muscles remarkably in that area. But on the other hand, the majority of polo players neglect their abdominal muscles, which can lead to an unbalance of strengths. The same situation occurs in the hips, with very strong groin muscles but weaker antagonist muscles. An unbalance of strength increases the likelihood of injury.

Some people like to do as many repetitions as possible when it comes to abdominal exercises, with which they only focus their work on the slow muscle fibers.

Fast muscle fibers predominate the abdominal muscles, therefore they respond better if worked with weight and short sets, with fewer than 15 repetitions. Working the abdominal area is one of the key ways to help reduce pain in the lower back area, which many players suffer from.

The external rotators are very important for some of the different polo shots, like a neck shot or a nearside backhand. After the impact with the ball, those external rotators are in charge of absorbing the inertia from the arm with an eccentric contraction. It is in this final gesture of any polo swings where injuries may occur due to lack of strength and excessive tension on the connective tissue.

The rotator cuff is inferior to its antagonist, the major pectoral muscle, therefore I recommend strengthening this small muscle group to achieve a balance between the internal and external musculature of the shoulder. I recommend working with dumbbells, bars and for those who suffer from any discomfort or pain in a specific area of the shoulder, there’s the option of working with elastic bands.

Polo belongs to the category of intermittent sports; those who demand short efforts of high intensity followed by periods of recovery. The aerobic capacity is not worked in a continual and long duration manner, since these athletes never go more than 40 minutes or one hour straining themselves non-stop.

When the ball goes over the boards, a foul is committed or the chukka ends, the players finds themselves in a physiological rest or recovery period. The same occurs in football when there is a foul, there is a safety penalty or a free kick. My proposal for working www.polotimes.co.uk

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To be most effective, fitness training should be tailored specifically to polo

this physical quality in polo players is doing short, high-intensity exercises, specifically for polo, where the heart rate rises fast, with three minutes rest in blocks of seven minutes, replicating the intermittent aerobic format of the sport.

Polo is also characterised by a high level of uncertainty; the ball never bounces the same way twice. The environmental conditions are uncontrollable and the variations due to the adversary make the sport wonderfully complex because of the coordinative and physical characteristics that the player has to show in those situations.

In short, for me, the training for a polo player must be a mixture of science and art; science, because it’s important for the stimulus to have scientific foundations. As for the artisanal aspect of the training and

what to do in certain circumstances, it is exclusively up to the individual capacity of each trainer to make the appropriate decisions at the right time. For this, he must have full knowledge of the sport of polo and the athlete to determine what effects the training intensity has on the player, how and in how much time he can recover, listening to the player’s sensations, who needs to know the purpose of each stimulus because he is the one receiving it.

Strengthening the core is particularly important for polo

Juan Eduardo Tedesco, Prof. Nac. de educ. FĂ­sica, has a degree in sports performance and is a professional high-performance personal trainer, specializing in polo, and currently working with the Enigma high-goal team.

Contact:juanitedesco@hotmail.com www.polotimes.co.uk

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Guest editor special

I

t is now almost 10 years that I have been part of the England team and while I am a long way from getting tired of it there is definitely now a feeling of players snapping at one’s heels. British players are finding it hard to play in our top level, but despite this there are still players who are breaking through and those players I have chosen in this piece illustrate how we are able to produce exciting talent in Britain. Seeing young talent and potential stars for me is hugely exciting and I feel it is important for senior players to support and nurture our homegrown talent as much as possible.

Matt Perry The fact that Matt has, at such a young age, already won the Queen’s and Gold Cups is an amazing achievement, and he is no doubt one of England’s up-and-coming stars. He was not born into a polo family, which makes his progress all the more impressive. Furthermore, it wasn’t until he was in his late teens that he actually had exposure to anything above 6-goal polo. He owes a lot to Malcolm Borwick and James Beim, who spotted him playing at his then home club at Newmarket and gave him the opportunity of a placement working in Jerome Wirth’s Enigma set-up. Matt’s best qualities are his horsemanship and goal-scoring ability but perhaps his top asset is his super character: Matt is a great bloke and this will definitely help him along the way.

Ollie Cudmore Ollie has been picked for the high-goal regularly over the last four or five years and this shows he is highly regarded by the high-goal Argentine players; a vital ingredient when trying to go far in this sport. Having played with Ollie several times now, the thing that strikes me the most is how consistent he is. He is one of those players who is able to put in a solid performance 95 per cent of the time and this is such a good attribute for any player to have. Like Matt, Ollie has clearly realised the importance of playing as much as possible in Argentina, and his outstanding play for England in the recent Copa de las Naciones highlights how far he has come with this organisation. Ollie may not have gone up in handicap at the end of last season, but it is widely recognised what a steal he is off a four-goal handicap and I see no reason why he cant keep nudging his way up the ranks for many years to come.

Kian Hall I have to be honest and say that I have not even seen Kian play, but if you’re looking for a slightly younger future star who has not quite broken on to the scene yet, then I am told by reliable sources he is very much one to watch. In the lead-up to this year’s high-goal season he has been playing for the UAE team in the absence of their patron who had not yet arrived in the country. The few practices and Trippetts Challenge warm up games Kian played were enough to impress, and several of the nine and tengoalers are now talking about him. Like Matt, Kian is not from a typical polo background, and so hopefully this can be another success story.

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Matt Perry

Handicap: 4 Age: 22

www.imagesofpolo.com

MARK SAYS...

E

ssex-born Matt Perry had his first taste of polo at a “have a go” day run by the Cambridge and Newmarket Pony Club. Having grown up in a horsey family, he soon caught the polo bug, rising up through the Pony Club ranks. In 2009 he was invited to stable five horses at Enigma after the high-goal season, before spending time playing with Malcolm Borwick and Jerome Wirth at the Enigma base in Argentina. In 2010 he played for Black Bears, in everything from 2-goal level up to 18-goal, before securing his first run in the highgoal with La Bamba in 2011. Since then he has been a regular British pro in the English high-goal, playing for Les Lions in 2012 before being signed to Zacara in 2013. Thus followed his most successful summer yet, and now, with the Queen’s and Gold Cup victories under his belt, he is playing for Zacara once again in 2014.

Major wins and achievements • • • • • •

Represented England in 2013 Copa de las Naciones in Argentina Won the 2013 Queen’s Cup with Zacara Won the 2013 Gold Cup with Zacara Several best playing pony prizes for self-made ponies 6 year old Coco, a mare he retrained himself won Best Retrained Racehorse of the Year, 2011 His mare, Biscuit, won the ROR prize for Best Playing Pony in the Gold Cup Semi Finals, 2013

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Three to Watch ...

Handicap: 4 Age: 24

Kian Hall

Handicap: 0 Age: 16

www.imagesofpolo.com

Ollie Cudmore

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orn in Australia, Ollie started to ride at just four years old. With a great grandfather, James Cudmore, having played polo in the 1920s, Ollie is a fourth-generation polo player.

Moving to England aged five, it wasn’t long before Ollie was embarking on his polo career with his first stop being the Cotswold Hunt Pony Club.

Ollie has since gone on to play at all levels of the sport, picking up his first high-goal run in 2010 with the Zacara team and has continued to be selected for the high-goal every season since then, making him one of the most regular English faces in the Queen’s and Gold Cups. Ollie’s polo talent has put him into national teams and taken him all over the world, to places as far as New Zealand and China. Most commonly however it is to Argentina, where he has built up a string of ponies. Having just returned from a winter playing in Dubai and Argentina, where he was part of the winning Engand team in the Copa de las Naciones, Ollie will play the 2014 high-goal season with HH Sheikha Maitha’s UAE side.

Major wins and achievements • • • • •

Winning the 2011 Ellerstina Gold Cup with Valiente Named most promising low handicap player at the 2012 Audi Polo Awards Winning the 2013 Warwickshire Cup with Halcyon Gallery Winning the 2013 St. Regis Test Match at Cowdray Park, playing for England Winning the 2014 Copa de las Naciones, playing for England

www.polotimes.co.uk

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K

ian first started to play polo at the age of 11, just five years ago, and since then he has achieved an incredible amount. Having not been born into a polo playing family, it is his own determination and perseverance, as well as a pure love of the horses that has got him where he is today.

His first encounter of polo was at his mother’s workplace on polo playing Law family’s estate. It was there that he met two Argentine professionals, Lucas and Jeronimo Gahan and from then right until this day they have been a key influence in his polo-playing career.

Starting at the very bottom of the polo ladder, Kian would groom for them on weekends and in the summer holidays, and in return they taught him to ride and helped him stick and ball.

This season we are seeing Kian, who is a member at Cowdray Park, take the polo world by storm, as he plays in HH Sheikha Maitha’s UAE shirt for at least the first few games in the Queen’s Cup. At just 16 years old, he is playing the UK high-goal, something that any player dreams of.

Major wins and achievements • • • •

Playing in the 2014 Queen’s Cup with UAE Selected for the HPA Development Scheme Selected for 2014 HPA coaching trip with Buster Mackenzie in South Africa Took part in the 2013 12-goal Texaco Cup at Cowdray Polo Club

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MARK SAYS...

I believe the issue of stomach ulcers to be one of those great unknowns in our sport. Sadly people have no idea how much of a problem it is. If studies prove that 90 per cent of racehorses have ulcers then, despite the fact we have not carried out a similar study in polo, I would say it is a pretty safe bet to assume there is a similar percentage in polo, if not higher! Dicky Hepburn is one of the top vets in the country in this field and I hope this article can serve as an education to the players and grooms in polo. Furthermore it should help to explain that we really don’t need to make big changes to our stable management in order to counteract this problem. By making small changes we can make a huge difference to the horse’s health and comfort, and even its performance on the field. From personal experience, all I can say is that it is amazing the difference one can see in a horse when it has been cured of his/her ulcers. From not eating, looking skinny, acting grumpy, being highly strung, a horse can actually feel comfortable again.

Richard Hepburn BVSc MS CertEM(IntMed) DipACVIM MRCVS Dicky Hepburn is a Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons-recognised specialist in equine internal medicine, having completed a residency (the veterinary equivalent of consultancy training) in the USA in 2004. He has a Masters degree in gastric ulcer research and is currently enrolled in a part-time PhD looking at equine glandular ulceration. He works at B&W Equine Hospital, a 28-vet equine practice in Gloucestershire, and gastroscopes 350-400 horses a year including those on several Team GBR squads.

What are ulcers and how can they affect the horse?

The horse has a single chambered, compound stomach (fig.1). The top half is lined by a white squamous epithelium, which has no digestive role and minimal protection 58

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Fig. 1

Gastric ulcers in polo ponies against stomach acid. The bottom half is lined by a pink glandular mucosa, which continuously secretes stomach acid, whilst protecting itself by simultaneously producing an acid retarding mucus coat. These two tissue types are also distinct clinically, as squamous and glandular ulceration are not related either in presence/absence or severity.

In a horse given free access to forage a top-to-bottom pH gradient exists, with the squamous mucosa at the top being least acidic (pH5-7), and the glandular mucosa at the base being most acidic (pH1-2). A similar layering of gastric contents occurs (fig. 2), with dense pellets trapped at the bottom by the more fibrous material above. This layering is vital to normal gastric health, but is significantly disrupted by daytime forage deprivation, as well as feeding large, hard feed meals. Reduced layering allows acid to reach the unprotected squamous mucosa, rapidly leading to ulceration (fig.3). Other

squamous risk factors include: intensive exercise, where splash lesions can develop, (fig.4); prolonged stabling; frequent travelling; water deprivation and administration of concentrated electrolyte pastes.

Ulceration of the glandular bottom half of the stomach is poorly understood, with lesions reflecting failure of acid defences and development of a localised inflammatory response (fig.5). This type of ulceration is much less common in racehorses and polo ponies than in sport and leisure horses (where up to 65 per cent are affected). The reason for this difference and the cause of glandular ulceration is currently unknown.

One factor that is not responsible, contrary to popular belief, is the administration of NSAID drugs such as bute. Glandular ulcers rarely cause a change in appetite or weight loss, and are more commonly associated with behavioural change and development of girthing pain. A diagnosis of gastric ulceration is made by gastroscopy, www.polotimes.co.uk

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Fig. 3

with endoscopic examination of the entire stomach taking about five minutes.

Gastroscopy is performed under light sedation, after eight hours of starvation.

When dealing with populations of horses I will typically aim to survey 10-30 horses, identified by the presence of at-risk clinical signs described below.

The prevalence of gastric ulceration in a large population of polo ponies has not

develop squamous ulceration within the first six weeks of starting training, yet not all of these horses will be clinically affected. The most useful signs to identify that significant squamous ulceration may be present are: altered eating activity (variable appetite, slowed eating); weight loss or failure to maintain body condition; and behavioural change or below-expected performance.

The presence of these signs roughly doubles the chances of finding significant lesions.

Squamous ulceration can also adversely affect performance by reducing stride length and impairing aerobic development, meaning these horses run slower and tire more readily.

How can we avoid ulcers?

Understanding that horses need to eat forage during the daytime is crucial to squamous ulcer prevention. Ideally, over half the hay ration should be given during the daytime, with no longer than six hours between haynets.

This will concern many polo grooms given the assumption that horses must be starved prior to playing. There is actually no scientific evidence that feeding horses prior to exercise impairs lung function or causes colic. In fact

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there is evidence that giving a small meal within 30 minutes of starting exercise can increase blood flow to skeletal muscles, so may actually improve performance. In racehorses simply changing to giving hay throughout the day, along with a small pre-exercise chaff meal can greatly reduce the frequency of ulceration. It is reasonable to expect a similar effect in polo ponies. The addition of an acid neutralizing feed supplement to the feed of an entire stable at the start of the season can potentially reduce the frequency of subsequent ulceration even further.

What can we treat ulcers with?

When ulcers are diagnosed they are easily treated with the acid suppressant omeprazole (in the equine specific forms of GastroGard, Merial or the generic Peptizole, Norbrook).

Treatment at full dose for 14-28 days will heal 90 per cent of all squamous lesions in horses in full work. After resolution I recommend either continuing with a low dose of omeprazole (1/4 dose) or switching to an antacid feed supplement (containing neutralisers such as calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide), for the duration of the polo season to prevent ulcer recurrence.

Fig. 4

been reported, however it is my experience that it is not dissimilar to that reported in TB racehorses (which overall is up to 90 per cent), where the most common lesion type found is also squamous ulceration.

This likely reflects the breed, management and exercise similarities between polo ponies and flat racehorses. As racehorses enter training they are exposed to an environment where forage is withheld during the daytime, and they are exercised on an empty stomach. Up to 100 per cent will

Fig. 2 Fig. 5

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Focus

Guest editor special

MARK SAYS...

THE HPA...

...“57 OLD FARTS” ?

England six-goaler and Polo Times guest editor Mark Tomlinson offers his view on how the polo world can be modernised, and speaks to Bob Reeves, president of the Rugby Football Union (RFU), to find out how polo and the HPA could be brought into line with other professional sports Polo has to move forward with the times and for this to happen there must be some major changes. We are still considered the traditional rich man’s sport, and as far as other sports are concerned we are the laughing stock. Commercially, we have stayed in the dark ages despite the amount of wealth in polo and hence the potential for being financially viable.

While I realise the title of this article appears scandalous and completely out of order, I promise it is not my intention to administer a session of HPA-bashing.

The title is merely a reference to a gamechanging event which took place in rugby in the mid-1990s when the then England captain, Will Carling, accused the Rugby Football Union of being “57 old farts”. It is very much my intention to draw what I believe to be some valuable comparisons between what happened in rugby and what could happen in polo.

The HPA are obviously NOT 57 old farts.

Although the majority of the officials on our governing body’s various committees are over 60, as I said, I really don’t want to criticise these individuals, especially as my parents are heavily involved. These people give up their time and put a huge amount of effort into doing their best for our sport and furthermore, it is not as though there is a queue of younger candidates lining up to take on this responsibility. Somehow we need to get some younger people onto these committees, people who have more recently been involved in top-level sport, (not necessarily just polo) and can bring some fresh ideas.

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How can one change anything or move forward in any way when it seems we are so very much stuck in our ways? I am, however, very conscious of how easy it is for us to bang on about all the problems and fail to come up with any solutions and so here are some suggestions for possible ways forward.

Let’s not forget either that the HPA is The ‘Twickenham’ of polo a miniscule organisation with one small The HPA should have its own facility and office in Oxfordshire and with only a by facility I mean a polo stadium with a handful of people on the payroll to carry restaurant, offices, conference area, polo/ out the long list of jobs. Chief executive general fitness training centre and perhaps David Woodd has been a rock for the HPA even commercial property attached. The and the long hours he puts in should be RFU own Twickenham and this is a vital greatly appreciated. Due to the fact that jewel in the crown for English rugby. It also it simply doesn’t have the manpower or owns the adjacent Marriot Hotel, providing infrastructure, it seems hard to expect or a further source of income. Not only does imagine how the HPA can make significant this magnificent stadium house the RFU’s changes to our sport. offices, it is a top venue selling out for every Compared to other sports, there is England international and pop concerts also an upside-down hierarchy in polo. throughout the year, bringing in serious This might sound strange but the HPA revenue for the RFU. It therefore doubles up actually holds no authority when it comes as the home of the English rugby team and to the major decisions regarding polo in a very profitable commercial entity in its own the UK. The hierarchy goes something like right. In polo I think virtually every club prides this: patrons/sponsors, the patrons’ main itself on being the home of British polo, so professionals, the clubs, followed by the where is the home of polo in the UK? Is it HPA. Now while some of you may differ in Smith’s Lawn, Cowdray Park or even Ivy opinion on the exact formation of this polo Lodge, who knows? hierarchy I don’t think anyone can dispute The advantages of the HPA having its the fact that the HPA is not at the top. In own base are endless. For example, we football the FA and FIFA rule supreme; the have an issue with televising our sport: same goes for the RFU and the IRB in firstly that polo does not tend to get rugby and it is the same in all other televised and secondly that it is equestrian sports that work PATRONS a hard sport to televise. With under the BEF and the FEI. In SPONSORS our own stadium we could polo, sadly the FIP hardly quite easily set up a features and I even PROFESSIONAL PLAYERS specialised filming forgot to add them system which to the above list.

POLO CLUBS

THE HURLINGHAM POLO ASSOCIATION

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Guest editor special

Packed stands at Twickenham, the home of English rugby union would enhance viewing, making it possible to televise ‘properly filmed’ games every week.

Television is crucial to promoting a sport and encouraging big sponsors.

The AAP does have the issue of not owning Palermo, but even that set-up is of huge advantage to the AAP and polo in Argentina. The HPA needs to be sourcing a property within a close distance to London, the benefits are too great not to.

A qualified executive team: The HPA has a limited budget and we are all clear on that. I believe that to move anything forward we have to invest in a revised executive team. David Woodd on his own as chief executive with a small group of assistants behind him has no chance.

Rugby turned professional very recently and went through major changes, and there is so much we can learn from such examples.

I know polo is very different but there are individuals out there who have changed sports from top to bottom; they have the manual and it could be of real benefit to involve such people in the ‘modernisation’ of polo. We have dabbled with getting advice over the years, but there has never been a structured plan in place to give this line of thought a realistic chance. Let’s employ two or three people on decent salaries who can work with David Woodd and the HPA over a three-year period, for example. Give them a specific remit explaining what polo wants to achieve by ‘modernsing’ and keep it simple.

I appreciate that looking outside of polo may www.polotimes.co.uk

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seem risky as it’s a hard sport to understand, but it’s our only chance if we want to succeed in this quest to move forward with the times. Of course this costs money and these highly-qualified experts need paying well. Each year the HPA puts a large amount of its funds towards both the development of young players and the England team. One suggestion could be to re-direct these funds, only for three years, towards an expert HPA executive team with the sole purpose of modernising our sport and changing the face of the game. I realise that developing future talent is of huge importance and as someone who has recently benefitted from this system it is easy for me to now suggest spending the money elsewhere.

But firstly it is only for a short time, and more importantly, what is the point of developing and nurturing talented players in a sport that offers very little chance of a decent career?

Surely the HPA are largely responsible for creating a sport that provides a viable career, especially if it wants to spend time and money on developing talent. Therefore I see no reason why this temporary but focused re-direction of funds can’t be justified.

A Polo Premier League In rugby, and in football, the governing bodies do not own their major leagues.

Rugby’s premier league in the UK is owned and run by a company called ‘The Premier Rugby League’. The RFU works very closely with this enterprise and it provides all the referees. It also provides grants for clubs

Focus

according to the number of UK players on the books and to how many players are playing for England. The major polo tournaments in England might technically be the HPA’s but they are run and owned by the clubs.

This is not a suitable system as each club has its own interests, and it is highly unlikely that these interests include the sport of polo changing and being modernised. Perhaps we could look into selling our major tournaments to such an enterprise who in turn would take on all the costs involved with running the games, subsidising the teams and marketing the events. There is no reason why this enterprise shouldn’t work closely with the HPA and the clubs just as they do in other sports. It would not be up to the HPA, clubs or even wealthy individuals to fund our sport and instead, polo would be under the banner of an elite management group. Thus the game could have a realistic chance of becoming a more legitimate sport.

UK Sport Sport recognised by the government and forming part of UK sport are entitled to large grants every year in order to help ‘grow the sport’. To be in this category the sport has to show it is truly a nationwide sport and reaches people from all levels of the community. Needless to say, polo has never managed to cross this threshold and therefore misses out on valuable funds. It may well be a long shot to even consider, but have we even tried? Becoming part of UK Sport would be at the top of my list as far as the remit for a potential executive team goes and they should have experience in such a campaign. Of course, polo is unique but there are comparisons with other sports that we can exploit.

Olympic sports also receive a considerable amount of lottery funding. This really is a long shot, but as a starting point maybe we should consider polo becoming part of the FEI, and the World Equestrian Games.

In conclusion, for change to take place, people fundamentally must want it to happen, and my fear is that the people at the ‘top’ of our sport would rather polo kept its status quo. Any modernisation means major alterations, even major investment, and of course there will be criticism, but the HPA as a governing body in my view has no choice but to move with the times and my suggestions above could work towards helping this.

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Focus

Guest editor special: Inter-discipline comparison

MARK SAYS...

Photographs by Kit Houghton Photography

Ensuring our horses are suitably fit for the season is an important factor that contributes to our success on the field.

Compared to other equestrian sports, in polo there is a high intensity of games throughout the season. We often ask our top ponies to “double chukka” more than once a week over a four-month period and, given the demands of our sport, this is a big ask. How we carry out the pre-season fitness can seriously influence how well the horses cope with this workload and in turn we can also help to avoid injuries.

Harry Meade is a top three-day-event rider; he is well known for his thorough and calculated approach to horse management and such methods have brought him plenty of success. Harry is seen by many as one of the best cross-country riders in the world and this element of his sport is where the horse and riders as athletes are really put under pressure. Here Harry has kindly taken some time to give an overview of how he prepares a horse for Badminton Horse Trials in May. Considering he has just completed a remarkable comeback from injury, flying up the leaderboard to finish third in last month’s Badminton 4-star event, this is perhaps a good time to be hearing from such a hero in the eventing world. Badminton, like the Queen’s Cup, comes early on in the season for the eventers and therefore this merely highlights the importance of the preparation.

The two sports are of course very different, but I hope Harry’s account will be of interest to anyone involved in horse sport and, as with all these things, I am sure there are some lessons for polo to learn from it.

Getting an event horse fit for Badminton Horse Trials Harry is one of Britain’s leading event riders.

He has been placed at the CCI**** Badminton Horse Trials nine times, finishing in 3rd place in 2014. Harry is the youngest rider to have ever received an Armada dish, awarded for five Badminton completions. Harry has been selected on to the Lottery-funded World Class Squad for the sixth consecutive year for 2014 and is currently a member of the GB Nations Cup team.

Top level event horses are a rare breed that need to be brave and athletic as well as supremely fit. It takes a long time to get a horse to this level – the youngest horses competing at Badminton Horse Trials are 10 year olds – so whilst it's vital that they are fit enough it's also crucial that their training programme is such that they are able to withstand the work in order to maximise the length of their four star careers, preferably into their late teens.

The course at Badminton is over four miles long, similar in distance to the Grand National, and although the average speed around

the course is slower than in racing, anyone in polo would understand that repetitive acceleration and deceleration is very energysapping, so the demands on fitness should not be underestimated. Top event horses' fitness is tested to the extreme; at this year's Badminton a large proportion of the field pulled up with tired horses.

My Badminton horses start walking towards the end of November and build up, with a few weeks of road-work and some light schooling, to starting their fast work at the beginning of January. This provides four months of proper fitness preparation before

Harry Meade showjumping his way to third place at Badminton Horse Trials 2014

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Guest editor special: Inter-discipline comparison

Focus

Harry and Wild Lone navigate the Badminton Lake 2014

the event in early May. The horse will do two days of fast work every week for four months and the dressage and jumping training will be fitted around it.

Fitness training is a balance between sufficiently stressing the heart and lungs whilst not overloading the forelegs. Speed and concussion is the biggest killer for tendons and ligaments so I do all of my fitness work up a gradient. Living in the Cotswolds, I'm lucky to have access to good hills with varying length and steepness on springy old turf, which is better than any artificial surface. In order for fitness to increase, the horse needs to work anaerobically which is only achieved by the heart rate rising above 180 beats per minute during work. This is easily achievable up a hill, with very little concussion on the legs.

The main hill I use is only about two furlongs long. The horses start by going up twice during each session and this is gradually increased every fortnight as the horse becomes fitter: six weeks prior to www.polotimes.co.uk

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Badminton he will be going up six times.

Crucially, the speed throughout the programme does not increase, but the work load is amplified through repetition.

The walk down between each gallop allows the horse to partially recover, the principle behind interval training.

In the run up to Badminton, the horse will compete two or three times around a one day event, where the course is about half as long as Badminton itself. This will provide an important schooling ground to test horse and rider but in my opinion does not play a substantial part in fitness preparation. My horses would work far harder up the hills at home than around any one-day event.

Riders who frequently run their horses fast around the one-day circuit are less likely to keep their horses sound in the long run.

As a result most horses will have their final one-day run somewhere between three and five weeks prior to Badminton, and a month of holiday or very light work before building up in a similar way over the next

three months for Burghley Horse Trials or the respective championships (Olympics, Worlds or Europeans depending on the year).

It is interesting to have an understanding of other equestrian sports but there are obviously key differences between the requirements of an event horse and a polo pony. Endurance is tested more across country, while the polo pony must have explosive bursts of speed.

Perhaps an even more significant difference is the seasonal demands on the polo pony, who may be required to play fifteen hard chukkas over three months, often with international trips extending the season – a continuous demand as opposed to the four-star event horse who is trained specifically for one event and is let down mid-season before repeating the process.

Harry is always looking for new horses, owners and sponsors to join his team.

For more information please visit www.harrymeade.com Polo Times, June 2014

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Focus

Guest editor special

MARK SAYS...

If we think how much care we take in what we eat and how many supplements there are out there which can potentially help our performance as human athletes then there is no doubt we should be placing the same importance on what our horses eat, especially as they are doing most of the work!

I am very lucky to be sponsored by NAF who are one of the leading horse supplement companies. They not only provide my string with all the necessary nutritional support but they also supply all the useful first aid creams, dressings and wraps that you could possibly think of.

The fact that all the products are naturally produced and have gone through very strict testing is an added bonus.

The importance of supplements for the health and performance of polo ponies Health and fitness are essential when looking to maximise polo ponies’ performance.

Offering them the finest nutritional support possible is key to success and leading equine supplement manufacturer NAF takes us through several ways to help fulfil your ponies’ nutritional requirements Nutritional support for joints One of the most important areas for nutritional support is that of joint stress. Polo ponies’ joints come under a vast amount of pressure and without the right support the long-term soundness of the ponies may be compromised. That support will come from careful management, attention to ground conditions and the right nutritional support, which can include Glucosamine sulphate, MSM, Chondroitin sulphate and HA. NAF recommends Five Star Superflex for polo ponies, as nutritional joint support is recommended throughout their working lives to provide maximum flexibility for life.

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Nutritional support for the respiratory system The respiratory system may undergo stress, particularly in enclosed environments where heavy dust burdens such as hay, straw or arena dust can affect susceptible individuals.

NAF Five Star Respirator Boost contains nutritional support like no other. One of the most effective group of ingredients – naturally sourced, scientifically verified antioxidants offer valuable support to the respiratory system. Not only can these help the lungs by harmlessly flushing the toxins from areas that may be affected, but when combined with key herbal extracts for immune support, such

as Echinacea, and the natural essential oils of ingredients such as Clove and Eucalyptus, your ponies will be able to work towards peak performance much more happily.

Nutritional support for performance When polo ponies sweat they lose essential body salts. NAF Electro and Electro Salts will help to replenish those salt stores that have been used up, otherwise known as plasma salts. These are sodium, calcium, potassium and magnesium, which must be fed in a well-balanced electrolyte in order to maintain the salt balance in the body. To indicate the importance of salt, an average horse can lose www.polotimes.co.uk

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Guest editor special

Focus

About NAF

up to 90g of body salts in just two hours of work, emphasising the need to replace the salts.

It is not just the essential salts that are lost through sweat; so too is iron. Iron donates benefits for red blood cell formation as well as concentration, and is therefore a vital ingredient for overall health and performance.

Indications of low iron levels include lethargy and a lowering in performance, which can lead to anaemia if not addressed correctly. NAF EnerG liquid helps to ensure the pony’s diet is supplemented with an iron-rich supplement, which can help to restore nutritional balance and work towards maintaining performance.

B Vitamins also assist energy metabolism and help contribute to the health of red blood cells, and consequently the hard working equine athlete is provided with essential nutrients to work towards supporting energy metabolism.

Nutritional support for digestion and condition Horses and ponies evolved as a grazing animal that would choose to spend most of the day eating fibrous material which is then broken down and digested through a complex gut. The modern equine can find itself open to any number of gut-related issues, resulting in poor condition or weight loss. As much of the digestive processes are down to the www.polotimes.co.uk

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action of the microflora (bacteria and yeast) in the hindgut, this is an obvious area to support through supplements. Pre and Pro-Biotics as well as a good quality vitamin and mineral supplement are an important addition to the polo pony’s diet to help maintain their digestion and condition. NAF Pink Powder would be a superb addition to any polo pony’s diet to help balance the diet and maintain condition.

Increasingly we find within the subject of digestion, gastric ulcers are causing more concern for horses and ponies. Particularly prevalent in hard working animals on concentrate feeds, gastric ulcers may result in poor performance, temperament issues and lack of condition. Ulcers are caused by the action of acid mainly on the delicate areas of the stomach, so feeding a high-fibre diet will also help here. NAF GastriAid provides concentrated nutritional support from Antacids to help mop up any excesses as well as Pre and Pro-Biotics to further assist with the digestive processes.

NAF’s comprehensive range of unique supplements support overall health and fitness as well as offering nutritional support from a name you can trust with more than 30 years’ experience in the industry.

NAF are proud to be official suppliers to the British Equestrian Teams, which is a testament of the dedication to quality control and understanding of the importance of FEI clean sport compliance. NAF products are used widely across the Equestrian Industry, from British Gold Medallists to leading riders across all disciplines – further emphasising the trust riders have in the NAF brand.

Every batch of every product that goes through the manufacturing plant is tested for prohibited substances.

Furthermore, not only do they meet, they exceed the expectations of industry accreditations for manufacturing, best practice and quality control. These measures are all taken as standard, to ensure complete consumer confidence in NAF products, which without exception, all come with a Guarantee of Quality.

As a UFAS (Universal Feed Assurance Scheme) accredited company NAF adheres to stringent high quality control standards in how products are manufactured. It also guarantees full traceability of all natural ingredients used, right back to source. NAF was also one of the first companies in the UK to meet strict manufacturing requirements of the UFAS BETA NOPS code to ensure the control of Naturally Occurring Prohibited Substances (NOPS).

Conclusion The right choice of targeted natural supplements can support health and performance for polo ponies and are not limited to those discussed here. Consider NAF’s Five Star support if your polo ponies shows signs of compromise in any area, from a name you can trust.

For further information or advice please call the NAF Helpline on 0800 373106 or email info@naf-uk.com or go to www.naf-equine.eu/uk To read more about gastric ulcers in polo ponies, please turn to page 58.

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photo by tony ramirez

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His first 3 offspring all played the 2013 high goal season, pictured below.

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PJ’s plays proud host to the legendary ‘PJ’s Polo Party’ held annually to celebrate the start of the UK polo season.

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A

PONY running reports

s we all know, polo would be impossible without the ponies.

Players at all levels invest huge amounts of time and money into their strings, to ensure they are the best that they can be. Our Pony Running Reports series continues to look at six polo ponies, all played at completely different levels with players of varying abilities, keeping track of their progress throughout the 2014 season.

It’s no secret that horses are not cheap animals to keep, in work, with polo ponies often requiring particularly high expenditure. Shoes must be replaced monthly, costing the same as a pair of Nike Air Maxes, and transporting a horse from halfway across the world from New Zealand to England amounts to the same cost as a First Class ticket. Committing to polo is not something that can be taken light-heartedly.

We have asked our six subjects to give us an insight into the breakdown of costs for

each of their ponies each month, to indicate the effect polo ponies can have on one’s bank account, and also highlight the varying distribution of costs across the six ponies.

Fortune incurred the first costs of the year for Ollie Cudmore this month, as she flew into Heathrow from New Zealand.

The 24-hour long flight came at a price of £11,000, but as Polo Times went to press, she was looking set to play in Ollie’s next Queen’s Cup game, with UAE Polo, and Ollie has high hopes for her this season.

Chita has also had to endure a lengthy journey this month, by road from Scotland to Kirtlington Park in Oxfordshire, in order for her owner, Freddie Younger, to be able to play her whilst at school.

Malcolm Borwick has expressed his excitement in the fact that he has succeeded in teaching his 13 year old grey gelding, Irish, some new tricks which he hopes will benefit his game, while Hugo Taylor tells

Polo Times that Tiburon is really picking up and starting to look ready for her competitive season.

The real star of this month has to be the 13.2hh Jerry. Called up at the last minute to play the 2-goal at Cirencester Park when another horse of Zac Beim’s went lame, Jerry stepped up to the challenge, with Zac very nearly scoring a goal with him.

As the polo season launches into full flow, changing weather conditions means careful consideration is needed when it comes to rugging up and keeping ponies comfortable as the mercury rises and brings with it the eternal bane of every horse person’s life: flies. Rocky Racoon has been treated to a new fly rug this month. As well as offering valuable protection against flies and insects, the fly rug also helps with another summer issue, which only those with dark brown or black horses may have come across: bleaching. With Rocky having turned practically orange by the end of the 2013 season, due to bleaching from the sun, a fly rug is proving invaluable in more ways than one.

The polo season is now fully underway, and fitness regimes are being stepped up for all our six equine case studies. All the hard work through the winter and the spring is starting to pay off as ponies and players take to the field at all levels and we look forward to catching up with our contributors next month to find out how they are getting on.

See overleaf for this month’s pony updates.

Zac and Jerry before their 2 goal match at Cirencester

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ocky resplendent in his ne

y rug

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Knowledge

Pony running reports

FORTUNE

CHITA

Age: 9 Height: 15.2hh Sex: Mare Owner: Ollie Cudmore Type: New Zealand Thoroughbred From: New Zealand Base: Previously with Sam Hopkinson at Clevedon in Auckland, New Zealand.

She is now based at Anningsley Park, Surrey with UAE during the UK season Level of polo expected: High-goal (22-goal)

Age: 15 Height: 15.1hh Sex: Mare Owner: Freddie Younger Type: Argentine From: Argentina Base: Currently in Kirtlington Level of polo expected: Aiming for the HPA Hipwood. Playing SUPA for Radley College, club chukkas and the Scottish Pony Club Polo camps.

“Fortune arrived in England at the end of April, having travelled well on the flight from Auckland to Heathrow. Once she had landed I gave her a few days off in the field at home to get over the flight before taking her to the stables at Anningsley Park, where I am based for the season with UAE. When she arrived there we had to give her a full body clip as she had been growing her winter coat in New Zealand.

She was relatively fit when she first arrived, but we have now increased her exercise and she does 20 minutes trotting twice a day, the same as all of my horses. She has been going really well in the last couple of practices, and is proving to be one of the fastest horses I’ve ever ridden. At the moment she still lacks a bit of match fitness, but I am planning to play her in my next Queen’s Cup game.”

“Chita travelled from Scotland to Kirtlington Park Polo Club where she is now stabled with Martin Fewster. The journey south took 8½ hours, with several stops, but all the ponies travelled well. For the first time ever, we were asked to pull into a VOSA check point along with loads of other huge lorries. We had a horrible feeling we might be there for some time. It was a very hot day and the last thing we wanted was to have the ponies standing on the box for hours in the heat. Luckily for us, after a few tense moments they looked at us quickly and we passed all the checks and were soon on the road again.

“Chita is getting fitter and now cantering for about half an hour every day. She is enjoying her new home and is going really well. Her winter coat has gone and she is looking great. Going to boarding school can make it difficult to get out to exercise your ponies, but luckily my school takes me on a Tuesday and Thursday to Kirtlington for school coaching sessions with David Ashby where I ride Chita.

“At the weekends when I can get out of school, I stick and ball Chita with Martin and his son James. James is in my Hipwood team along with Christian Oberschneider and Charles Turk, so it is great to get some good practice in and even better to be out of school!”

May Overview: Number of matches/chukkas played: 5 team practices now and is in my string for the Queen’s Cup. Number of miles travelled: Approximately 11,500 (Auckland to London, London to Longdole, Longdole to Anningsley.)

This month’s cost breakdown: Flight £11,000, shoeing £80, dentist £100, transport in England £220 Total cost this month: £11,400 68

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May Overview: Number of chukkas played: 0 Number of miles travelled: 353 This month’s cost breakdown: £80 shoeing Total cost this month: £80

TIBURON Age: 7 Height: 14.2hh Sex: Gelding Owner: Hugo Taylor Type: Argentine Thoroughbred From: San Antonio d’Areco, Argentina Base: Cheshire, but moved to Trumps Farm, Windsor in April Level of polo expected: 6, 8, 10 and hopefully 12-goal

“Tiburon has been making lots of progress over the last month. He has been playing four times a week at Guards and Emsworth Polo Club. He is working very hard, getting fitter and is settling very well into his new home.

“We started off at a leisurely pace playing firstly slow chukkas, building up to 0-goal tournaments and recently 6-goal competitions. We have been experimenting using different bits and are now satisfied that we have found the best bit for him – a jointed copper Pelham that seems to suit him very well. He is building lots of muscle as a result of the feed used: one scoop of polo mix, one scoop of maintenance mix, half a scoop of Alfa A morning and afternoon. He has been clipped and his coat is looking great.

“His performance is improving with each match and he is probably my best horse.

Everyday, when he is not playing, he is either being schooled or having sets.

His sets consist of, 20 minutes walk, 15 minutes trot and 15 minutes walk.

Tiburon is kept in the stable for the majority of the time, however he does occasionally have grazing time.

May Overview: Number of chukkas played: 13 Number of miles travelled: 56 miles This month’s cost breakdown: £45 shoeing, £15 wormer, £40 Pelham Total cost this month: £100 www.polotimes.co.uk

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Pony running reports

IRISH Age: 13 Height: 15.3hh Sex: Gelding Owner: Malcolm Borwick Breeding: Blue X Norman Pentaquad From: Ellerston, Australia Base: Trippetts, West Sussex Level of polo expected: Medium to high-goal

“Knowing that we have a long 18-goal season ahead, with Sotogrande then following, it has intentionally been a slow start to the season for Irish. This month he has played only eight chukkas, two matches and six sets of practices.

“He is a terrible chukka horse, and spends most of his time shying at the lines, ball, boards and other horses, but thankfully by the end of May he starts to settle. The biggest improvement this year has been in his slow work, having never schooled him “western style” before it is helping his flexibility and he is starting to engage his back end much better. Time will tell over the season if it helps him to play any better! But at least this old dog has learnt a new trick!

At this point in the season I am feeding Irish Baileys’ custom recipe and free feed haylage.”

May Overview: Number of chukkas played: 8 Number of miles travelled this month: 250 This month’s cost breakdown: Two vet check-ups with the amazing Shane Foughty, £100 shoeing Total cost this month: £1,000 www.polotimes.co.uk

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ROCKY RACCOON Age: 6 Height: 15.3hh Sex: Gelding Owner: Polo Times “office” polo string Type: Irish Thoroughbred Breeding: My Native Gesture X Presenting From: Originally bred in Ireland, then trained by Jonjo O’Neill Base: Bishops Norton, Gloucestershire Level of polo expected: Low-goal – it’s his first real season “Work has really started for Rocky this month. He has played 7.5 chukkas which has helped with his fitness. With this being his first real season he is still a bit green and sometimes needs help “remembering” that boards don’t bite and that he really has seen them before.

“Board amnesia aside, he is doing exceptionally well and has played full (but gentle) match chukkas at 4-goal level and a half chukka at 6-goal. The spring grass has at last kicked in and Rocky is putting on a bit of summer weight. But not much; he is always rangy. So in addition to the grass, we also give him a generous daily feed with all the trimmings.

“We have invested in a new fly rug for Rocky because he is black and his coat bleaches really easily. Last season we did not rug him up and he was practically orange by the end of the summer – not nice. Overall Rocky loves his new polo life and watches avidly from the sidelines. His hurdling career is all but a distant memory. We are hoping his excellent progress carries on as the season gets busier; so far he has exceeded every expectation during his retraining.”

May Overview: Number of chukkas played: 7.5 Number of miles travelled: 284 (Games and practice chukkas at Edgeworth and Longdole) This month’s cost breakdown: £22.50 (new fly rug) Total cost this month: £22.50

Knowledge

JERRY Age: 22 Height: 13.2hh Sex: Gelding Owner: Zac Beim Type: Connemara X From: Various Pony Club families, but most recently from the Chamberlains Base: Longhill, Duntisbourne Abbotts, Cirencester Level of polo expected: Pony Club (Hipwood) and 2-goal “May has been a busy month for Jerry. Due to an injury to one of Zac’s polo ponies, Jerry had to come in as super sub for the Tyro Cup 2-goal at Cirencester Park Polo Club.

Jerry and Zac combined for four chukkas during this tournament.

“Although obviously much smaller than all the other ponies in the tournament, Jerry is a great confidence giver for Zac, who was playing in the unfamiliar territory of grown-up polo, but they did really well, keeping up with the play and almost scoring a goal! Jerry has also featured in the Cheltenham College Prep School team on the 31 May against Summerfields and in SUPA polo, again for the Cheltenham College Prep School team.

“At home, Jerry has been on set a couple of times a week, played chukkas at Longdole and been out hacking. He was pretty annoyed at having his trademark mane taken off though!”

Sadly, Jerry is for sale and is looking for his next 5-star home. Jerry loves his work and being busy, and so we feel it would be fairer on him to go to a younger player who will also enjoy hunting and doing Pony Club activities on him during the winter.

May Overview: Number of chukkas played: 6 Number of miles travelled: 50 This month’s cost breakdown: £3 turmeric 1kg (used as an anti-inflamatory supplement). Still no new shoes needed!

Total cost this month: £3 Polo Times, June 2014

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Knowledge

Know your horse

Mark Emerson MRCVS is a two-goal polo player and an ambulatory equine vet

Bone fractures in polo ponies

A fractured splint bone on a hind limb caused by a kick

Fractures occur in polo ponies as a result of physical trauma, such as collision or a kick from another horse, or due to physical exertion or over-exercise. Bones can break completely or just crack, leaving a fissure or a chip.

Fixing fractures in horses is a particular challenge: they cannot lie down for long periods of time without developing complications due to their weight, their 70

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physiology requires them to move around to keep body systems functioning properly, and behaviourally it is difficult to keep them immobilised for long periods of time.

However new techniques now allow us to fix many fractures that previously proved fatal.

The required treatment and prognosis can be determined by several factors including: the particular bone that is fractured, the specific part of the bone affected (e.g. joint, mid portion, etc.), the type of fracture (e.g. simple fissure, displaced fragments, etc.), the involvement, or not, of adjacent soft tissue, and the size, age and temperament of the horse.

There are a number of terms used to describe fractures, based upon physical and X-ray examinations. Simple fractures are those where a bone breaks into two pieces, while comminuted fractures are those where the bone breaks into multiple pieces.

Incomplete fractures are those where a crack develops part way through a bone.

Stress fractures occur as a weakness in the bone as a result of over-exercise and are common in the cannon bones, radius (in the forearm), tibia (in the gaskin), and pelvis. Stress fractures are often difficult to diagnose with X-rays and if suspected may need repeat X-rays to be taken a week or two after the onset of symptoms, when they are more likely to be visible. Alternatively a bone scan (scintigraphy) may be required to make the diagnosis. Affected horses can often walk quite normally; some may only experience fairly mild lameness at trot that may subside with rest and painkillers.

However, it is dangerous to return these horses to work as stress fractures can split open and become catastrophic.

Open fractures are where part of a broken bone penetrates through the skin and is exposed. In this type of injury, not only is there a major displacement but

infection is almost unavoidable, and as a result the prognosis is usually worse.

This is why when you suspect a bone may have fractured it is very important to stop and restrain the horse immediately at the location of incident because further movement can turn a closed fracture into an open fracture.

Small bone chips can appear in joints, often after intense high-speed exercise, and are common fractures in racehorses.

Occasionally a kick from another horse can result in a small chip fracture, although if diagnosed it is important to bear in mind that there could also be a more serious incomplete fissure behind the chip that may not be so easy to spot when first X-rayed.

The degree of separation between the fragments of a fractured bone is a very important factor to consider when deciding whether and how to treat a fracture.

Also, if a fracture involves a joint then there is a greater chance that the horse will develop arthritis in the joint once it has healed. If possible, fracture lines that run into a joint are best surgically screwed to minimise the degree of separation and the chances of developing career-threatening arthritis.

Occasionally horses may develop a socalled avulsion fracture, where a tendon or ligament pulls away from its attachment and takes a piece of bone with it.

Although polo ponies can sustain a wide variety of fracture injuries, the nature of the sport and the way in which they are looked after puts them at greater risk of certain types of traumatic fractures. Pedal bone, sesamoid bone and splint bone fractures, secondary to hits from sticks and ball are, unfortunately, not that rare. Also the large number of horses often in close proximity to each other at games, on yards and when being turned out increases the risk of www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

Knowledge Lorna Edgar - specialist equine nutritionist

Oats: unmasking the myth Over the last month or so I have had several conversations about adding oats to a “standard mix” for the ponies to play on. The ponies in question have come into work on conditioning cubes so I immediately query why we would firstly want to reduce the energy/calorie intake by using a low energy mix and, secondly, unbalance the ration by adding straight oats at a point when the ponies are working their hardest and need all the nutrition they can get?

So, before going down the oat avenue for more energy, I would be asking if: - Your ponies are receiving enough of their existing feed?

- If the ration has been ‘topped up’ with a balancer?

- If they are receiving enough hay/haylage?

A fracture of the short pastern of a polo pony

individuals kicking each other and sustaining fractures.

Fractures that are given a reasonable prognosis can either be managed conservatively or may require surgery (such as removing a chip or fixing with screws). www.polotimes.co.uk

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-

•

Are they on the right type of feed for that individual?

Is it stamina that is required?

•

I would also be concerned that a change from a conditioning feed to a standard mix is going to cause an individual to lose condition whilst playing and working hard.

So, using oats generally will ‘perk up’ your ponies but, and that’s a big but, it is a myth that oats are the only energy source to make a polo pony run fast.

• •

•

Oats only provide quick release energy, which is only available for a short period of time Oats are digested quite quickly and when a polo pony is playing at 3pm and was fed at 6am, the energy available

by the time of play will be minimal – you are better to feed a lunch feed with some forage Oats are deficient in good quality proteins and minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, all of which help with the metabolism and synthesis of energy Adding oats to cubes/mixes “dilutes” the nutrients in the oats (which are already nutrient deficient), thus unbalancing the diet and leading to reduced speed/energy/stamina, a loss of condition and muscle and increased risks of tying-up.

Feeding oats on their own has the same implications.

Feeding lots of oats is similar to a human athlete on a diet of Red Bull and Mars Bars, giving an injection of quick release energy but without stamina and being rather unhealthy!

A fracture of a long pastern that was surgically fixed with screws – this polo pony returned to playing polo within 8 months of injury

In either case, long periods of box rest are typically required. Occasionally further immobilisation by cross-tying a horse to prevent it from lying down may be needed.

Casts, bandages and splints are sometimes used but can result in complications such

as rubs and pressure sores. Comminuted and open fractures or those involving a joint often carry such a poor prognosis in terms of survival or quality of life that euthanasia on humane grounds is sadly the only option.

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Knowledge

US Horse of the Year Gillian Johnston, patron of the Coca Cola high-goal team, tells Charley Larcombe about her thoroughbred mare Beckon, winner of the US Horse of the Year award at Palm Beach.

Beckon Full name: Protection Program Height: 15.1hh Age: 10 Colour: Black / dark brown Sex: Mare Breed: Thoroughbred Owner: Gillian Johnston How long have you had her and who did you buy her from?

I have had Beckon for seven years, having purchased her from Corky Linfoot as a three-year-old. He purchased her out of a thoroughbred sale in California.

What is her background?

She is by a stallion named Richwood who I have tracked down and is actually a 16.3hh hunter jumper stallion in California. Her dam was Shaktishire who was the first horse that the famous female jockey/trainer Kristin Mulhall ever owned.

My breeding organisation G String Polo Ponies LLC purchased Beckon and took her to our ranch in Big Horn, Wyoming and brought her through our green horse programme. She was made by our South African trainer Brendon Whittle and then spent a season under our other trainer Richard Dudman and Julio Arellano before being passed over to me. I played her in her first high-goal season as a six-year-old – the only people to play her in competition thus far are Julio Arellano and myself.

“She is priceless to me and will never be sold.”

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What are her strengths?

She is unlike any horse I have ever played.

She moves like no other horse. She will bank a turn so quick you feel your feet may hit the ground. She has everything you would ever want – speed, handling, looks and endurance. Until you have sat on her she is hard to describe.

Does she have any weaknesses or quirky character traits?

I would say the only weakness she has is she has a bit of an attitude and has occasionally taken a nip at another horse while riding them off. She seems to know she is the princess of the barn and has had a few victims while on sets. She can be a bit of a bitch with other horses. Otherwise she has a larger then life presence about her.

Very kind but always cheeky.

What have you played her in?

I have played Beckon in everything from 12 to 26-goal.

Has she won any best playing pony prizes?

She has won best playing pony prizes at Flying H Polo Club in Big Horn as well as in the 26-goal in Florida.

Why did she win pony of the year at IPC? I believe my game improves a lot when I’m on Beckon. I play her in the sixth chukka every game and she always gives me my best chukka. She has always stood out because of the athletic moves she makes on a polo field.

What are your plans for her for the future? Would you ever sell her?

I pulled embryos from Beckon last year and after a break this year she will head back to an embryo center. I have had many gracious offers on Beckon and plenty of players that have offered to take her to Argentina to play in the Open but she is priceless to me and will never be sold. www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

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27/05/2014 16:34

Get chukka fit

with Winston Squire

If you have been following my Chukka Fit high-intensity, 30-minute fitness programme, you should by now know your fitness level, and if you have been training three times a week for the last month you should be feeling fitter. This month we are including two additional exercises to add to your training regime, which will increase the intensity for some people and prove challenging for others.

We will also be giving you a full body Chukka Fit Warm-Up, which you can practise on your own or as a team prior to a match.

If you are currently experiencing any medical complaints or haven’t trained for a while please consult with your doctor before undertaking this programme.

Additional Exercises For Your Chukka Fit Circuit Each exercise should be performed for 30 seconds.

After each circuit rest for 1-2 minutes and then repeat the exercises. Don’t forget to follow the warm-up and cool-down exercises in last month’s feature.

Winston Squire in profile Winston Squire is a health and fitness consultant, personal trainer and lecturer with over twenty years experience in the industry. He develops bespoke training programmes, based on a thorough knowledge of anatomy, physiology and biomechanics, for a diverse range of private and corporate clients in sports, media and entertainment. He was the first trainer to deliver bespoke strength conditioning, dynamic and flexibility training for polo, improving his team’s fitness levels and reducing the risk of long-term injury. Winston holds a BSc in Sports Science and Psychology, is a Strength Conditioning Coach and an Athletes Performance Coach.

Winston is the fitness trainer for the England polo team and through his regular Polo Times columns he will get you chukka fit for this season.

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Standing lunge with a single arm follow through •

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Stand up straight with your feet hip width apart and your shoulders back.

Engage your abdominals.

Take hold of a small polo stick.

Step your right foot forward so that your left ankle comes off the ground, lowering your hips until both knees are bent at a 90 degree angle.

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•

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Make sure your right knee is directly above your ankle, in line with your toes.

Your left knee should not touch the floor.

Step through into a lunge position and follow through with your right arm as if you were hitting a ball.

Keep your weight on your heels as you push back up to the starting position and alternate sides for 30 seconds. www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

Get chukka fit with Winston

Knowledge

Side plank • Lie on your right side and prop up on your lower elbow keeping your palm down.

• Engage your core and hips to raise your body off the floor so only your elbow and lower foot are touching.

• Hold the position for 30 seconds.

• Repeat on the other side.

Pre-Match Warm-Up Exercises I can’t stress how important it is to warm up prior to a match. Even if you only have 10 minutes beforehand these mobility exercises will prepare you mentally and physically to move quickly and efficiently and will boost your competitive performance.

Each exercise in the Warm Up programme below should be repeated 10 times and you should aim to do 1 to 2 sets.

In the warm-up I refer to a neutral position. Please refer to the photos (right) to see what is meant by a neutral position.

Shoulder rotation and knee curls (Funky Chicken) • Stand with your feet hip width apart and your knees slightly bent.

• Maintain a neutral position with your hips facing forward and engage your abdominals.

• Raise your shoulders towards your ears and roll them backwards.

• At the same time raise your right knee up and down followed by your left knee.

• Repeat the above but roll your shoulders forwards and raise your leg to your left buttock and then your right buttock.

www.polotimes.co.uk

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Head Rotation • Stand with your feet hip width apart and your knees slightly bent.

• Maintain a neutral position with your hips facing forwards and engage your abdominals.

• Keep your shoulders relaxed and down and slowly turn your head to the right then back to the centre and to the left and back to the centre.

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Knowledge

Get chukka fit with Winston

Side twist (torso twist) with a knee touch • Stand with your feet hip width apart and your knees slightly bent.

• Maintain a neutral position with your hips facing forwards and engage your abdominals.

• Hold your arms out at shoulder level and keep your elbows slightly bent.

• Turn your torso to the right, lift your right knee up and touch your right knee with your left arm.

• Return to centre and repeat opposite arm to opposite leg.

Side bend • Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your knees slightly bent.

• Maintain a neutral position with your hips facing forward and engage your abdominals.

• Bend to the right reaching your right arm towards your right knee as far as is comfortable, ensuring that you don’t roll forward.

• Return to the centre and repeat on the left hand side.

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Ski squat with raised arms • Stand with your feet hip width apart and your knees slightly bent with your hands by your side.

• Squat and bend forwards as if you are skiing and extend your arms behind you.

• Return to a standing position and swing your arms forwards and above your head.

• Keep your abdominals engaged and your head in a neutral position.

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

Get chukka fit with Winston

Knowledge

Cat and Cow Pose • Start on your hands and knees with your wrists directly under your shoulder and knees hip width apart. Keep your head in a neutral position.

• Pull your chin in towards your chest (don’t force it), pull in your abdominals and round your back like a cat.

• Return to your starting position and push your stomach towards the floor, raise your buttocks and raise your head. Repeat.

If you are struggling to get motivated why not try my programme with your team, friends or family?

Hip circles • Stand with your feet hip width apart, hips forward, abdominals engaged and your knees slightly bent.

Don’t let your knees roll in.

• Make circles with your hips in a clockwise direction and repeat in the opposite direction.

Double Leg Bounce • Lean forward putting your hands against a wall, raise your heels off the floor and place your weight on the balls of your feet.

• Raise and lower both heels rapidly (bounce) lifting your heels one to two inches off the ground whilst keeping the balls of your feet on the ground.

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Knowledge

Equine legal advice

Make selling your horse a smoother ride Equine and estate law specialist Lottie Goldstone (née Prentice) highlights some important legal points to consider when selling a horse Rearing and/or bucking however, are classed as vices. If you fail to mention any behavioural issue or defect that the horse may have or has demonstrated, this could potentially prevent the horse being used for B’s purpose and B will have a cause of action. It is very difficult for B to follow a claim against you if you have warned him/ her in advance of any vices that the horse may have.

Finally, a receipt of sale should be drafted which will include: a) b) c) d) e)

Assuming that you are a private seller and not a dealer, the rule of “Caveat Emptor” applies, which means “let the buyers beware”. This means that you as the seller (S) are protected, to a certain extent. It is up to the buyer (B) to satisfy him/herself that the horse is of satisfactory quality and fit for the purpose that they are buying him/her for.

However that said, it is critical that your description of the horse in the advertisement or anything you have said relevant to the horse that you are selling is clear and 100 per cent accurate as far as you are aware.

If you misrepresent the horse to B, then B will then be entitled to claim damages or repudiate the contract and reject the horse with full refund.

It is B’s responsibility to carry out a physical examination of the horse. There is no comeback on you for any physical defect that could potentially have been revealed at 78

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an examination. If the defect is overlooked at an examination then B’s claim would be against the vet, not against you.

Please be mindful that all vices and behavioural issues need to be disclosed to B. This is a common area for dispute.

Aside from the vices that we are all familiar with such as weaving, windsucking and so on, you need to bring to B’s attention any particular behaviour that your horse displays that may have an impact on preventing B fulfilling their intended purpose for the horse. What we, as riders, constitute as normal behaviour for a fit, quality animal is not necessarily what an inexperienced rider would consider as “normal”. An example is rearing and bucking – those of you who ride for a living know that this tends to be classed as “ordinary behaviour” for fit, quality animals and a simple expression of their sense of humour (at least it was with mine!).

Price paid Whether VAT was charged Date of sale Description of the horse Any representations made regarding the horse prior to point of sale, (note that this includes all oral representations) f) Disclosure regarding any vices or unsuitability for any particular job (include any “hang-ups” here, for example a fear of tractors which leads to rearing and bucking) g) Time limit in which the animal may be returned or any complaint made h) If the transaction occurs abroad then the jurisdiction in which any claim should be dealt with should be stated on the receipt The receipt should be aduplicated and both copies signed and dated by both parties, who should then retain a copy each.

Lottie is an equine and estate law specialist working for, and on behalf of, Harrison Clark Rickerbys Ltd, and as the official legal partner of the HPA. To receive 15 minutes free legal advice about these issues, or any others, please contact Lottie Goldstone on 01242 246432 or lgoldstone@hcrlaw.com

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

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27/05/2014 16:34

Knowledge

Retraining of Racehorses

From racetrack to polo ground Ex-racehorses are now commonplace in polo players’ strings. With Retraining of Racehorses introducing more prizes to be awarded in 2014, as well as its annual Racing to Polo Challenge, Tilda Woodd takes a closer look at why ex-racehorses are often so popular in polo LOOK AT ANY polo match, or at any of the top British players’ strings, and it has become almost a 100 per cent certainty that in both situations, there will be a thoroughbred standing in front of you. David Morley remembers, “it was the Baldings, and a few others, who started to bring racehorses back into polo, and by the ‘80s, many of us were doing the same, some lucky enough to find a champion.”

Since that time, we have seen an increasing number of thoroughbreds taking to the sport, and consequently an increase

in the number of ex-racehorses too. Captain E.D. Miller, author of Modern Polo, was one of the first to notice the benefits of using racehorses in polo: “In my last edition of this book I wrote that there were two types of polo ponies of the highest class – the “hunter” and the “racehorse”; but I have come to the conclusion that the best of them approximate in type so much that there is really only one perfect stamp for the very fast game in vogue, and that type is the miniature racehorse with substance.”

With the ponies considered to be 80 per

cent of any polo player’s game, a constant concern for any professional is the quality of their string, and how it compares to their opposition. We have seen a significant increase in the interest in ex-racehorses from young professionals. With less funds than their higher-handicapped colleagues, the younger players have turned to the cheaper options available. With ex-racehorses attainable off the track for as little as £500, players have had to rely on their own natural talent and good horsemanship to bring them, and their horses, up to level with their opposition. Five-goaler Max Routledge, a young British professional who has done just this explains, “I went down the route of buying racehorses because to buy a top polo pony is so expensive now, therefore as a young pro, the only way I could get a really top horse is to make one myself.”

Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) has been heavily involved with polo since it launched in 2000. As one of the nine major equine disciplines that ROR works with, polo has been viewed by the charity as one of the most successful career pathways for an exracehorse to take.

Fourteen years on and the British horseracing’s official charity for the welfare of horses who have retired from racing is continuing to increase its involvement in polo and seems to be making a stronger imprint on

FLY THE WORLD

Owned by Roddy Matthews

Photographs by Tony Ramirez, www.imagesofpolo.com, and Polly Bryan

Age: 11 Height: 15.2 hh Breeding: English TB How much did you buy her for?

Around £1,000 Where did you buy her? She was bred in Wales by Debbie Hughes and was in training with Alan Jarvis in Bicester

George Meyrick in action on Roddy Matthews’ retrained racehorse Fly the World, in the morning game of the Guards Polo Club Audi International Day 2013

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Roddy explains,“She was very easy to train and is extremely laid back, almost to the point of being lazy! She is loved by the grooms as she has such a kind nature and I can put novice riders on her as she is so easy. She also won the best Retrained Racehorse of the morning match on Audi International Day 2013 with George Meyrick riding her, so she is very versatile.”

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

Retraining of Racehorses

•

•

Three of the judges watch a player perform his display at last year’s Racing to Polo Challenge

the sport than ever. Morley goes on to explain: “The value of thoroughbreds in polo is already well-established. The importance of ROR to polo is illustrated through their support, and the fact that they are prepared to finance and encourage the education and awareness for our younger players, who need to learn how to train a thoroughbred for polo, and are encouraged by the competition and good prizes.”

This year ROR is introducing the chance for a polo player to win a total of £2,500, which will be presented in November at the ROR Awards Evening in Newmarket. A highgoal pony will be awarded £1,000 at the HPA dinner in July and the champion pony at the Racing to Polo Challenge in September will also receive £1,000. These two ponies will then go head-to-head for a bonus prize of £1,500.

ROR will host the well-established ROR Series, sponsored by Lycetts, and the ROR Racing to Polo Challenge at the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club, giving all those players with an ex-racehorse the chance to win substantial cash prizes.

If you’ve got an ex-racehorse in your string, then why not register it with ROR (www.ror.org.uk) and give yourself the chance to win up to £2,500?

ROR POLO SERIES ROR and Lycetts will be presenting prizes to the best ex-racehorse at high, medium, and low goal tournaments, as well as at the Junior HPA Finals. For your pony to be considered,

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they must have raced in GB and be registered with ROR. Prizes will be awarded at the following events: • 1 June – Gerald Balding Cup, Cirencester • 11 June – Cartier Queen’s Cup Semi Final, Guards • 21 June – Audi International, Beaufort • 22 June – Warwickshire Cup Final, Cirencester • 28 June – Prince of Wales, Beaufort • 5 July – Indian Empire Shield, Guards • 16 July – Veuve Clicquot Gold Cup Semi Finals, Cowdray • 10 August – PC/Junior HPA, Cowdray RACING TO POLO CHALLENGE Hosted by ROR, the Racing to Polo Challenge at Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club will take place on 1 September.

There will be four classes: • 3 year olds • 4 year olds • 5 year olds • 6 year old and upwards.

In all classes ponies will be judged on conformation, movement and responsiveness/willingness. Each rider will give 1½ minutes of freestyle display.

• 3 year olds: judges will look for balanced transitions through steady pacing showing lateral movements and early stages of polo moves, checking and turning. Optional: change of lead canter and introduction of mallet (foot mallet acceptable). Marking: Performance = 75%;

•

Knowledge

Conformation = 20%; Turnout = 5% 4 and 5 year olds; judges will look for ponies to be smooth, to be moving laterally at canter, check and turn, and to be accepting of the mallet. Marking: Performance = 80%; Conformation: 15%; Turnout = 5% 6 year olds and upwards: judges will mark on freestyle display of rider’s choice, expecting to see complete polo moves with mallet, with higher marks for more comprehensive moves. Marking: Performance = 85%; Conformation = 10%; Turnout = 5% The judging panel will consist of leading polo players, polo pony producers and representatives from ROR/HPA. Judges may ask to ride ponies in the 6 year old and upwards section. Prize money will be awarded to 6th place.

PRIZES FOR RACING TO POLO CHALLENGE 1st - £1,000 2nd - £500 3rd - £300 4th - £200 5th - £100 6th - £100 Grooms’ prizes will be given to the Best Turned Out in each section, will a special prize to the Best Turned Out Overall.

• •

•

• •

QUALIFICATION All horses must have raced in GB and be registered with ROR. Passports must accompany ponies to the competition for inspection and verification by microchip scanning.

Riders must be 2 goals and above.

(However, players rated less than 2 goals may able to ride if they are the owner or ride for the yard. The application will be subject to the approval of the panel).

Dress: polo kit.

On arrival, a vet will check ponies for soundness with a trot-up, any pony that fails this trot-up will be unable to compete.

Polo Times, June 2014

81

27/05/2014 16:34

Youth

Eton triumph in Copenhagen Cup Photographs by Sam Owen and Tony Ramirez, www.imagesofpolo.com

Wellington’s Sascha Bahlsen makes a rare break away from Eton during the Copenhagen Cup at Guards

Title defenders Eton College proved their superiority over rival schools with a convincing 7-3.5 victory in the Copenhagen Cup final against hosts Wellington College, writes Martha Terry. Wellington had the more impressive route to the final, beating Millfield 11-1.5, while Harrow made Eton fight for the win. But Eton were imperious when it really counted, with 1-goalers Seb Hancock and George Pearson interlinking superbly to give Wellington no space to attack.

“We played a much better game than in the semi-final,” said captain George Pearson, who took a nasty fall in the second chukka.

“We were more open and faster. We were much more of a team this time.”

Eton were on fire from the throw-in and took a half-goal lead within the first chukka.

Wellington regrouped in the second chukka, recovering some momentum while George Pearson was catching his breath after his fall.

While Wellington’s captain, zero-goaler Karim Sheikh was masterful in defence, saving several Eton shots off the goal-line, their feisty star female player Izzy McGregor was trying to turn the game around. She forced a 60-yard penalty, which she followed up with a tap-in to get Wellington off the mark, and within half a goal at half-time.

But Eton rapidly squashed any Wellington hopes of regaining the trophy they last won in 2011 with a brilliant third chukka. Pearson and Hancock punished any mistake by the Wellington side with superb counter-attacks.

Eton numbers one and two, Jack Weatherby and Henry Letts, were solid partners, contributing to Pearson’s three goals.

The winning Eton team lift the Copenhagen Cup

As the final chukka started, with the score standing at 7-3.5 to Eton, a Wellington victory was but a forlorn hope. But the hosts showed tenacity in playing their best chukka of the match and preventing Eton from increasing their advantage.

“They shut us down in the first and third chukkas so we had no space,” said Wellington captain Sheikh. “They had more composure on the ball, whereas we were always chasing.”

Bristol do battle in varsity match Photo by Gordon Lindsay

The UWE team defeated Bristol to win the polo varsity

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This year’s University of Bristol vs University of the West of England varsity series came to a close with the annual battle of the polo clubs at Beaufort Polo Club on 11 May, writes Sophie Turner. Both sides fielded strong 4-goal teams for the deciding match of the multi-sport series.

Bristol was represented by Sophie Turner, Archie Smyth-Osbourne, Izzy Parsons and Jack Taylor, with Maimie Powell, Toby Smith, Elliot Sands and Freddie Pendarves lining up for UWE. From the first chukka, UWE went hard on the attack with early goals from Smith and alumni player Sands. A half-time score of 4-1 to UWE meant that Bristol had to work hard to pick up their game in the second half. Bristol captain Parsons was able to rally her team together towards a tense last chukka in which Smyth-Osbourne and Taylor scored two goals in quick succession. However, it was not enough to make up the difference with the final score standing at 5-4 to UWE and therefore making them varsity champions for the first time in 20 years. Both polo teams will meet again at the SUPA Summer National Championships in June, where Bristol will be keen for revenge.

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:34

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PT June14 66-98.indd 83

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27/05/2014 16:34

Sidelines

Gossip

Clinton McCarthy on the mend Following a horrific fall, in which he broke 10 ribs and punctured a lung, Clinton has thankfully been moved out of the Intensive Care Unit. Although he won’t be returning to the polo field this season – his daughter Laura has happily agreed to fill in for him in his Emlor C team for the rest of the year, playing the low and medium goal – we hope he continues to improve and look forward to welcoming him back to the pitch next year.

Facundo and Agustina

Polo’s most eligible Bachelor off the market Facundo Pieres, Zacara’s superstar of 2013 has married his long-term girlfriend, Agustina Wernicke. After four years together, the couple actually married in a civil ceremony back in December but it wasn’t until April that they celebrated their commitment to one another with a church service. Congratulations to you both.

Tell us yours at gossip@polotimes.co.uk Anonymity guaranteed if you want it...

Henry Brett wins Starlight Charity Race

Luke Tomlinson Junior

As revealed in last month’s issue, England’s Captain welcomed his first child into the world in April. Lucas Rufino Tomlinson is making his first trip abroad, flying from Argentina to England – no doubt a trip he will become familiar with very quickly – to come and watch his daddy play in the UK high goal.

Polo players after the race

Henry Brett on the winning line

Cowdray Live Launches

This year’s Starlight Charity Race Day at The Newbury Racecourse was a huge success.

Organised by Starlight’s Racing Committee, which is co-chaired by leading trainer Nicky Henderson and Major Christopher Hanbury, the event raised £154,000 for Starlight Children’s Foundation. The funds raised will enable Starlight, which is a national charity that grants wishes for seriously and terminally ill children and provides entertainment in hospitals and hospices across the UK, to bring smiles to lots of very sick children.

During the day, guests enjoyed a wonderful lunch and a charity auction, which was conducted by Clare Balding, in the Fred Winter Suite, before an afternoon of thrilling racing. The last race of the day was the Starlight Polo Race, which saw ten polo players and ponies battle it out for the glory of 1st place and a special engraved Pimm’s jug. The race was won by Henry Brett on Dashfa Baileys with George Pearson on High Trail in second place and Aurora Eastwood on Blue in third.

Led by Emily Pearson, the introduction of Cowdray Live coincides with the start of the UK polo season. The fresh, cold pressed, raw juices are made from only the freshest organic fruits and vegetables. One bottle of Cowdray Live 550ml juice contains: 3-6 pounds of fresh, raw, organic produce.

Available at the Cowdray Farm Shop, Cowdray Live also offer, one, three or five day juice cleanse programmes to help kickstart a fresh and healthier lifestyle. To sign up for a cleanse please call 01730 815152 or email info@cowdraylive.co.uk

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www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:35

CHAPALEUFU MEDITERRANEO COLOUR: CHESTNUT – AGE: 8 YEARS OLD – HEIGHT: 15.1hh

CHAPALEUFU MEDITERRANEO imported to the UK by Matias Ballesteros and Federico Pasquini to play high and medium goal this coming season with Pepe Heguy.

He is at Emsworth Polo Grounds, Simon and Romilla Arber’s private Club in the Windsor Area. Natural covering and frozen semen available. *STUD FEE £1,500*

Polo playing stallion for High Goal & Medium Goal polo, registered with the Argentine Polo Association. RP 184. 2012: Played by Pepe Heguy in qualifying games of The Argentine Open. 2013: Played

by Pepe Heguy and Francisco Elizalde (7 goals) in The Tortugas, Hurlingham and Argentine Opens. Also played in The San Jorge Open 25 goal and Copa Republica 28 goal. He is full brother of Chapaleufu Lunatico who played high goal and was sold to Brazil.

He has two full sisters that played the Argentine Open 2013 with Pepe Heguy - Chapaleufu Meduza and Chapaleufu Medalla (also best playing pony in The 2013 Copa Republica Final).

For more details about the stallion contact: Matias Ballesteros Mobile: 07890812409 Email: hnosballesteros@ hotmail.com or Amber Clutton Brock (Veterinary) Mobile: 07917865768 Email: ambercluttonbrock@ hotmail.com

FATHER: POLO NEVADITO (POLO PURIPAYO-VIOLETA) Winner in the A.A.C.C.P Polo Stallions Ranking from 2003-2011. Played all the Opens from 1997 to 2004 with Pepe and Nachi Heguy and Milo Fernandez Araujo. Full brother of POLO NEVIZCA – Fourth-generation high goal polo pony (Nevadito, Violeta, Paya Voy and Purita-Paya MarÌa) who played all the Opens from 2001-2008 with Nachi and Pepe Heguy. His mother Violeta played 10 Argentine Opens with Alberto P. Heguy and Eduardo Heguy (Coronel Suarez and Chapaleufu II). 15 sons and daughters played The 2004 Argentine Open, 11 in 2005, 27 in 2006, 20 in 2007 and 18 in 2008.

MOTHER: POLO MEDIA LUNA (EL SOL-GUERRERA) She played high goal polo in Argentina from 2002-2006 with Pepe Heguy. She played The 2001 Hurlingham Open, The 2000 Tortugas Open, and two chukkas in The 2002 Argentine Open with Pepe Heguy and won Best Playing Mare.

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ĂŶĞ ŵĂůůĞƚƐ ĂůƐŽ ŵĂĚĞ ƚŽ ŽƌĚĞƌ 'ƌĞĂƚ ƐŚŝƉƉŝŶŐ ƌĂƚĞƐ ĚŽŽƌ ƚŽ ĚŽŽƌ

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RRG 0DOOHWV TXDUWHU SDJH SRUWUDLW FRORXU LQGG

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27/05/2014 16:35

Test Match commentator Karl Ude Martinez

Sidelines

Peter Wright relaxes before umpiring the Test Match

Max Charlton prepares to play

Simon Tomlinson and Chris Bethell

A groom waits patiently on the sidelines

Enjoying lunch in the Members’ Enclosure

David Woodd with Christiane Drewes-Wright and John Wright

Preparation before the game

Olly Hughes, Aurora Eastwood, Nicholas Colquhoun-Denvers and Karl Ude Martinez

St. Regis International Cup; Cowdray Park Polo Club; Saturday 17 May 2014

Test Match triumph

Kenney and Jayne Jones with Chris Davies

England beat South America 11.5-8 to lift the St. Regis International Cup on Saturday 17 May at Cowdray Park.

It proved to be a great start to the summer for England, and for the members, guests and picnickers who were treated to a day of nail-biting international polo in the sunshine. The international was followed by a “family traditions” father and sons match.

Turn to page 38 for the full report Photos by Polly Bryan

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New Cowdray Park chairman Peter Barfoot with partner Angela Cooper and HPA chairman John Wright with wife Christiane Drewes-Wright Spectators treading in at half-time

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:35

Dates for your diary

What’s on in June Test Matches Beaufort – Audi International (England vs Hong Kong): 21 June High-goal Cowdray Park – Duke of Sutherland’s Cup (15-18): 13 May – 1 June Guards – Cartier Queen’s Cup (17-22): 20 May – 15 June Cirencester – Apsley Cup (15-18): 2–8 June RCBPC – Prince of Wales Trophy (17-22): 7–14 June Coworth – Indian Empire Shield (15-18): 16 June – 4 July Cirencester Park – Warwickshire Cup (17-22): 17–22 June Cowdray Park – Veuve Clicquot Gold Cup – British Open (22): 24 June – 20 July Medium-goal Beaufort – Arthur Lucas Cup (12-15): 13 – 31 May RCBPC – John Prestwich Trophy (8-12): 27 May – 8 June Guards – Royal Windsor Cup (12-15): 1– 22 June Guards – Mountbatten Cup (12-15): 1 – 22 June Beaufort – Prince of Wales Cup (8-12): 9 – 28 June RCBPC – 7–10-Goal Open Tournament (7-10): 17 – 22 June Guards – Phoenician Cup (6-12): 22 June – 12 July RCBPC – Eduardo Moore Tournament (12-15): 24 June – 6 July Ranelagh – LifeBook 12 Goal Trophy (10 -12): 30 June – 6 July Cirencester – The Queen Mother Trophy (8-12): 30 June – 13 July Low-goal Guards – 4–8 Tournament (4-8): 10 May – 1 June Cirencester – Gerald Balding Cup (4-8): 13 May – 1 June Beaufort – Eduardo Rojas Lanusse Cup (2-6): 24 May – 7 June Cambridge – Cambridge Polo Club League (0-4): 24 May – 24 August Hurtwood – Brokers Tribute Cup (0-6): 26 May – 1 June RCBPC – Polo Managers Trophy (0-4): 29 May – 1 June Epsom – Red Cross Trophy (0-4): 31 May – 1 June Lacey Green – Chilterns Cup (0-4): 31 May – 1 June Cambridge County – Hyde Pacific Tournament (2-6): 31 May – 1 June Rugby – Spring Hill Bronze (2-6): 31 May – 1 June Binfield Heath – Margaret Duvall 8 Goal (4-8): 31 May – 1 June Guards – Archie David Cup (4-8): 3-29 June Guards – Caterham Cup (4-8): 6-29 June

www.polotimes.co.uk

PT June14 66-98.indd 87

Polo directory

UK and Ireland tournament highlights Edgeworth – Isa Trophy (4-8): 7 – 8 June RCBPC – 4–8-Goal Open Tournament (4-8): 10 –15 June Burningfold – Burningfold 8 Goal (4-8): 19 – 22 June Kirtlington – Secretary’s Cup (4-8): 21 June Beaufort – The Badminton Cup (4-8): 29 June – 12 July Open Kirtlington – Rupert Thorneloe Memorial Trophy; 14 June Druids Lodge – Spring Trophy (Spring League Finals): 28 – 29 June Suffolk – Newmarket Festival Polo Match: 28 June Lacey Green – London Business Championship: 28 June Youth Beaufort – Prep Schools and Colts Tournament (Open): 1 June Guards – Jack Wills Varsity Day (Open): 7 June TBA – National Girls’ Schools Tournament (Open): 8 June Offchurch Bury – National Universities Tournament (Open): 13 –15 June Kirlington – KPPC vs SUPA Britain (Open): 14 June Beaufort – England 21 vs England Ladies (Open): 21 June

South East

TBA – SUPA National Senior Schools Championship: 22 June RCBPC – Dawnay Trophy: RCBPC vs SUPA Britain: 29 June Suffolk – Suffolk Young England Test Match (Open): 29 June Ladies Fifield – Mann Financial Ladies’ Tournament (-4-0): 31 May – 1 June Ranksboro – 1st Annual Midlands Ladies Polo Championship (-8-2): 14 –15 June Vaux Park – Ladies Tournament (Open): 14-15 June Blueys – Ladies Sugar Bowl Tournament (-4-0): 21 – 22 June Combined Services Tidworth – Royal Navy Weekend (RN vs Taunton Kemble Salver) (Open): 31 May – 1 June Tidworth – Duke of York Cup (RN vs RAF) (Open): 1 June RMAS – RMAS Heritage Open Day (Open): 15 June Special Events Hurlingham Park, London – Chesterton Humberts Polo in the Park (12): 6 – 8 June Black Bears, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire – British Polo Day Charity Cup (Open): 28 June

Club contacts – UK and Ireland

AEPC, Hickstead – 01273 834315 * Ascot Park – 01276 858545 * Ash Farm – 01932 872521 * Belmont, Mill Hill – 020 7318 4490 * Blueys Polo Club – 07930 323263 Binfield Heath – 01491 411969 Barcombe – 07533 213160 Burningfold – 01483 200722 Cowdray Park – 01730 813257 Coworth Park – 01784 470009 Epsom – 07961 232106 * FHM – 07778 436468 * Fifield – 01628 620061 * Guards – 01784 434212 Ham – 020 8334 0000 Hurtwood Park – 01483 272828 Kirtlington Park – 01869 350138 Knepp Castle – 07957 468220 Lacey Green – 07956 525222 Park Lane – 07976 242877* Ranelagh Farm – 01344 885697 RMAS – 07973 174542 Royal County of Berkshire – 01344 890060 * Sussex Polo – 01342 714920 * West Wycombe – 07841 597045 * White Waltham – 07748 670587

East

Apsley End – 01462 712444 * Carlton House – 01986 892231 Cambridge County – 01223 812922 Cambridge – 01223 460353 * Hertfordshire – 01707 256023 Little Bentley – 01206 250435 Luton Hoo – 07934 882713 Norfolk – 01508 480400 * Silver Leys – 07535 697854 St Albans – 07438 076644 Suffolk Polo – 07990 576974

South West Asthall Farm – 01367 860207 Beaufort – 01666 880510 Cirencester Park – 01285 653225 Druids Lodge – 01722 782597 * Edgeworth – 01285 821695 Ladyswood – 01666 840880 Longdole – 01452 864544 * Lytchett Heath – 01202 623985 Maywood – 01962 885500 * New Forest – 02380 811818 Taunton Vale – 01823 480460 Tidworth – 01980 846705 * Vaux Park – 07703 524613 * West Somerset – 01884 251632

Midlands Dallas Burston – 01926 812409 Offchurch Bury – 07816 830887 Leadenham – 01400 272980 Ranksboro – 01572 720046*

Rugby – 01788 817724 * Rutland – 07973 395460

North Beverley – 01964 544455 * Toulston – 01422 372529 Vale of York – 07788 426968 * White Rose – 01430 875767 * Cheshire – 01270 611100 Chester Racecourse – 01244 304602

Scotland Borders Reivers – 01890 840777 Dundee & Perth – 07879 895780 Edinburgh – 0131 449 6696 * Kinross – 07831 365194 *

Ireland All Ireland – +353 (0) 1 6896732 Bunclody – +353 87 6605917 Curraghmore – +353 51 387102 Limerick – +353 (0) 87 2231690 Moyne – +353 85 1313224 Northern Ireland – 02890 727905 Wicklow – +353 (0) 404 67164 * Waterford – +353 51 595280 * denotes winter arena polo venue

hTo contact the HPA, tel: 01367 242828

Polo Times, June 2014

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Sidelines Herve De Coatgoureden, Daniel Riedo, Claire Milford Haven, Marina De Coatgoureden and Laurent Vinay

British Polo Day Abu Dhabi; Saturday 22nd March 2014; Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club

Guests of British Polo Day and Mrs Dieter Franke

The private royal club of His Highness Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan was the venue for an exciting evening of fast-paced polo, fine dining and philanthropy. His Highness Sheikh Shakhboot bin Nahyan al Nahyan presented the Land Rover Thesiger Trophy to the winning Ghantoot Polo team. Guests were treated to Taittinger champagne, a delicious Argentine-style dinner prepared by Gaucho, Justerini & Brooks fine wines and Nespresso coffee.

The evening’s auction raised over AED 100,000 for WAHA and Help for Heroes.

Diana Bednarz

Emma Parry, Emma Loveday and Bryn Parry

Violet Manners, John Stevenson and Rose Farquhar

Photographs by Sam Churchill Sheikh Shakhboot, Dominic Jermey and Ed Olver

Sarah Johnson and Sarah Falling

Charlie and Katie Rotheram

Claire Milford Haven, Louisa Wentworth Stanley and Archie Standing

Jessica Ashooh and David Lappan

Mark and Rosie Vestey

British Polo Day Morocco; Saturday 19th April 2014; Jnan Amar Polo Club, Morocco British Polo Day held their first event on African soil in aid of The Eve Branson Foundation, a charity set up by entrepreneur Richard Branson’s mother to help women and girls in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. British Polo Day hosted a great event alongside some of their partners, Land Rover, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Taittinger, Holland and Holland, Hackett and Royal Salute with a mixture of fun polo featuring players such as Guy Schwarzenbach and Rosie Mann and Anthony Hood

Jessica Ashooh

John Paul Clarkin, and fashion shows by Philip Treacy and Zaeem Jamal.

Richard Branson and Col. Simon Ledger

Philip Treacy and Stefan Bartlett

Photographs by Sam Churchill Per Wimmer, Eve Branson and Richard Branson

Model wears Zaeem Jamal dress and Philip Treacy hat

PT June14 66-98.indd 88

Chloe and Sophie Vestey

Olivia Cristau and Ryan Carter

27/05/2014 16:36

Ambulance & Specialist

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PT June14 66-98.indd 89

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27/05/2014 16:36

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27/05/2014 16:36

Polo directory

Club Directory

Beaufort Polo Club The Polo Office Down Farm, Westonbirt, Tetbury Gloucestershire GL8 8QW Tel: Fax: Email:

01666 880510 01666 880266 enquiries@beaufortpoloclub.co.uk

President: Chairman: Polo Manager: Chief Umpire: Welfare Officer:

His Grace The Duke of Beaufort Claire Tomlinson Caspar West Olly Tuthill Jane Meade

www.beaufortpoloclub.co.uk 2014 Key Dates May

Sun 11th Sat 24th Sun 31st

June

Sun 7th Sat 21st Sun 22nd Sat 28th Sun 29th

Correct at time of going to press

July

UWE vs Bristol University Varsity Match Cocktail Party at 6.00pm The Arthur Lucas Cup Final

Sat 19th

August Sun 3rd

The Eduardo Rojas Lanusse Final Audi International Test Match Goldin Group Charity Day The Prince of Wales Cup Final Hope For Tomorrow Charity Day (sponsored by ARI UK) The Argentine Club Cup

Mon 25th

The Duke of Beaufort Cup Final Beaufort Polo Club’s 25th Anniversary Ball The Costco Ladies Tournament Final The Wichenford Bowl Final

September Sun 7th Sun 14th

Hospitality Action Charity Day End of Season Party

Chester Racecourse Polo Club Chester Racecourse Watergate Square, Chester, CH1 2LY Tel 1: Tel 2: Email:

01244 304 610 07766 351110 enquires@chester-races.com

Chairman: Polo Manager: Treasurer: Chief Umpire: Welfare officer:

Richard Thomas Melanie Simm Jonathon Gray Ben Malasomma Mark Lyon

www.chester-races.com 2014 Key Dates May

23 - 24 LDF International

June

6 - 8 Chester Rocks

July

19 - 20 Stella Artois City Walls Plate

August

9 - 10 (TBC)

September

5 - 6 Roodee Challenge Cup 6 Audi International Polo Series Test Match

Correct at time of going to press

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www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:36

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Polo directory

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Polo directory

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For our current stock please visit Contact us T: 01488 670 404 / 07917 007 440 our new & updated website E: templetonhouse@gmail.com

www.tristarhorsesboxes.co.uk www.polotackshop.co.uk

BAY ROAN YEARLING FILLY Athletic and bold. By the Criollo stallion Arrayan Numa, out of a speedy playing TB mare. £2,500.

Dumfriesshire. www.chamfronstud.com for more details or call 07717146337 (Mark)

www.polotimes.co.uk

WEIGHT BEARING SCHOOLMASTER WANTED 15.3HH and bomb proof. Age 7 - 12 years ideally and under £5k. Pony will be vetted. 5 star home awaits. Please PT June14 66-98.indd 93 contact 01342 714920

YEARING GELDING Red Roan yearling, by the Criollo stallion Arrayan Numa. Sire and dam both good playing ponies. £3,000. Dumfriesshire.

Please see www.chamfronstud. com for more details or call Mark on 07717146337

Tel: 01570 422250 Email: sales@tristarhorseboxes.co.uk

7 YEAR OLD TB GELDING 15.3HH Clean limbed, fast responsive, played by 4 goaler last summer. Very easy to have around. No pony club or beginners. £4,950. Oxfordshire. Tel: 07800517869

TRUCK WORLD TRADE Polo Times, June 2014

93

READY TO GO 2004 VOLVO FM9 300 11 Horse, Day Cab

27/05/2014 16:37

Polo directory

Classifieds

STOCK TO CLEAR DUE TO SEMI RETIREMENT

AND RE-LOCATION - PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE

Marketplace Ponies

2004 MERCEDES ATEGO 182311 2005 MAN 340 2001 SCHMITZ SK020LRamp 2006 MAN 12.183 FRC/C Horse, Day Cab, Hydraulic 9 Horse With Drawbar Trailer to 4.5 Carry 40ft Artic Trailer, 17 Horses, New conLarge Tack Lockers, 12 Months MOT To carrySleeper 8 LargeCab, Horses, ton, 7 Horses, New12Alloy (Choice of DAF/Volvo Horse) Body, Tilt Cab, On le Tyres, version fitted with fans,9/10/11 water tanks Automatic, NewLow AlloyProfi Body, with Air Suspension Split), Full Test Passed with DEFRA to carry horses Water Tanks,(Will Fans.

Certificate to

over 8 hours. Full Test.

With or without Unit

2006 MAN 12.183 FRC/C 4.5 To carry 8 Large Horses, 12 ton, Automatic, New Alloy Body, with 2004 VOLVO FM9 300 Water Tanks, Fans. Certificate to 11 Horse, Day Cab, 26 Ton Axle Lift Carry Horses over 12 hours Hydraulic Ramp, Body all alloy 74000km warranted. Full Test.

On Air, Full Test (Choice DAF)

Carry Horses over 12 hours 74000km warranted. Full Test.

2005 DAF TRUCKS To carry 6 large horses New 18ft Alloy Body 2004 MERCEDES ATEGO 1823 On Air. Water Tank. Fans.

11 Horse, Day Cab, Hydraulic Ramp Certificate from DEFRA to Large Tack Lockers, 12 Months MOT Carry horses over 12 hours. n int ho Full to Test. int ott r n

To view our stock visit our website www.tandsharkerhorseboxes.co.uk Email: enquires@tandsharkerhorseboxes.co.uk Tel: 01325 332 649 Mobile: 07901 857960 Fax: 01325 333554 Eddlethorpe Farm, Stockton Road, Sadberge, Darlington, Co Durham DL2 1TB ALL VEHICLES ARE PLUS VAT FINANCE AVAILABLE

Advertising

TNS Quarter page portrait.indd 1

Polo directory 18/09/2013

15.2HH BAY MARE 5 YEARS OLD English TB, playing chukkas and low goal tournaments with 2 goaler.

Straight forward plenty of ability. £4,500 ono.Hertfordshire.

Tel: 07785465885

8 YEAR OLD TB GELDING 15.3hh solid, clean legs, crack in hoof due to abscess, healing well, completely sound, fit. More he plays the better he goes, so suit competent player 18:46 wanting cheap double chukka 4 times a week! Oxfordshire. £3,750.

Tel: 07800 517869

3 YEAR OLD TB MARE Broken for polo, S & B perfectly, played slow farm arena and outdoor chukkas, ready now to be taken further. Great investment. Hard work is all done!

Oxfordshire. £2950 no offers.

07800 517869,

as s

MEDIUM GOAL PONIES Selection of medium goal ponies between 7-10 years playing up to 15 goal this season at Guards and Cowdray. Sound, easy and uncomplicated. Suitable for 0 to 2 goal players prices from £7-£14k. Can be tried at Sussex 01342 714920

labs

01483 892 497 94

Polo Times, June 2014

New Pope. New Hope.

PT June14 66-98.indd 94

BOMPROOF PONY- 15.1H gentleman 7rs criollo/tb geldingperfect first pony or pony club. Very easy-comfortable canter & uncomplicated. Plays arena or grass- fit to try - great character loves TLC. West Sussex. £7.5K 01342 714920

QUECKO 15hh TB gelding. Fast reliable and very strong in the ride off.

Played by -2 Patron and 2 goal Pro. Guildford, £5,500. Contact Ryan on 07752402662 or ryanamconroy@ hotmail.com

JAZZ Stunning 15:1 TB mare.

Forward going, fast, talented and very powerful with loads of handle.

Would suit an up and coming player.

Guildford. £10,000. Contact Ryan on 07752402662 or ryanamconroy@hotmail.com

SELECTION OF PONIES FOR SALE Ponies for sale of all shapes, sizes, ages and standard. Check out shop.polowicklow.com for further details JORROCKS PONY WANTED Jorrocks Pony wanted for caring and knowledgeable family in Gloucestershire. Please call Rob (07813 029728)

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:37

Classifieds

Polo directory

POLOTACKSHOP Lowest prices guaranteed!

Marketplace ARGENTINE 15.1HH FIT AND READY TO PLAY Plays 6 goal with pro and sensible enough to be used for lessons, has played Pony Club from Surtees to Rendell. 14yrs, always sound, travels in horsebox or trailer. Fantastic uncomplicated pony.

Berkshire/Surrey Border. £6500.

07799 812739

15.3HH ARGENTINE THOROUGHBRED Very easy, yet strong and powerful Argentine Thoroughbred.

Has played up to 8 goal practices.

10 years old. Turns on spot. Quiet toSpecial hack andoccasion jumps. Norfolk. £6,500. polo cards for Tel: 01953 452688 or 07454141133

or email: enquiries@Katesart.com image copyright protected by Katesart.com 2007

15.1HH 11 YEAR OLD PRETTY CHESTNUT ARGENTINE MARE Played by 2 goal pro and 0 goal lady.

Easy and fun to play. Good home priority hence price £3,000. Hertfordshire. 07825 170313.

Advertising

ARGENTINE MARE 15.1 Argentine mare, has played all levels of polo and would suit patron or pro, quick, handy and powerful. 14 years old, fit and ready to play. £2,500. Please call 07710 483225

Transport

Executive helicopter charter service Heli Air Head Office • Warwick • CV35 9EU Also at: Wycombe, Silverstone, London/Denham, London/Fairoaks, Thruxton and Gloucestershire Airport

01789 470476 • HeliAir.com • Charter@HeliAir.com

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www.polotimes.co.uk

PT June14 66-98.indd 95

Polo directory

Special occasion polo cards for birthdays, anniversaries, get well soon, weddings, & baby congratulations; from £2.99 plus p&p

IFOR WILLIAMS HB610 2012, 15.1HH ARGENTINE BAY MARE Silver, Ifor Williams HB610. Four 13 YEARS OLD Straight forward partitions, numerous internal tie genuine pony. Played Gannon and rings plus two external. Immaculate up to 10 goal by 1 goaler, Suitable for ‘As New’ Condition. First to see pony club or low goal. Private home.

Heli makePark. your£3,250. day at a polo match even more memorable will buy.anLeicestershire. £8,000.

Can be Air triedcan at Vaux 07795273042 experience.

Fly by helicopter to the events of your choice, from wherever Somerset.

01823 461315, 07786 235289 you live or are staying, on the day with speed and comfort.

CHOICE OF POLO PONIES FOR SALE Selection of beautiful, disciplined Ponies from 4 - 10 years.

Playing from 2 - 15 goal polo. For further details call 01488 670484 / 07917007440 or templetonhouse@ gmail.com

Contact us T: 01488 670 484 / 07917 007 440 E: templetonhouse@gmail.com

15.2HH 8 YEAR OLD YB MARE Played 3 seasons grass & arena.

Quick to turn. Super fast. Currently being played by confident -1 but more suited to professional player as can be bouncy when checked. Fit & playing.

Double chukkas. Open to vet. £4,000.

Somerset. Tel: 07843 614534

birthdays, anniversaries, get well soon, weddings, & baby congratulations; from £2.99PONIES plus p&p TWO LOVELY 15hh 16yo NZ TB Mare (ex BB), super handy, clean legs! 10yo TB Mare, 15.2hh, Visit www.Katesart.com very pretty/very fast, any level of polo. £3,500 07887 up. Winchester or txt/tel 678421 07970 697593

Argentine and English stock

4 HORSE NON-HGV HORSEBOX Iveco (2003), ML75E18, sleeper cab, 6 cylinder engine, comfortable to drive and professionally maintained.

Converted by East Anglian Horseboxes (2008). Partitioned for 4 with separate tack room. Suffolk. £8,900.

Contact: sja@brownmay.com Tel:07887 777001 HGV WANTED HGV wanted, to take 6 minimum, on a 1999 or younger chassis. Preferably tristar body. Herringbone, not forward facing. In good mechanical order. Within 100 miles of Beaufort. £10,000. Tel: 01454 238 971

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Visit www.Katesart.com or txt/tel 07887 678421 or email: enquiries@Katesart.com image copyright protected by Katesart.com 2007

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For the Pessimist: Rain Sheets, Non-Slip Gloves and Whips For the Optimist: Summer Sheets, Tinted Goggles and Electrolyte

ATS

Polo Times, June 2014

95

We’ve got everything for polo Look on our website:

27/05/2014 16:37

Polo directory

Classifieds

Stunning Black Mare Salta. 9 years old 15.1hh. NZ x TB. Played 2-15 goal, lovely smooth comfortable ride, soft light mouth, stops and turns well. Won numerous pony prizes last season. No vices, fit, sound and ready to go. £15,000 ono. willhine@tiscali. co.uk or 07778 917209.

Experienced and kind gelding.

Cleveland. 12 yrs, NZ x TB Bay gelding 15.3hh, kind, easy and comfortable to ride and has played all levels from 2 goal to 15 goal. Would suit amateur or professional player, £6k ono. willhine@ tiscali.co.uk or 07778 917209.

Schoolmaster with go. Summer. 12 yrs, bright bay gelding NZ x TB. 15.2hh, gentle, easy ride with a very light mouth. Played all levels from 2 goal to 15 goal, fit and ready to play and a pleasure to have in the yard. Would suit amateur or professional player. £8k ono. willhine@tiscali.co.uk or 07778 917209.

SUBSCRIPTION PRICES Print and digital subscription (inc App & Website access) UK One year £65 Two years £110 EU One year £80 Two years £140 WW One year £90 Two years £160 SUPA/SAPA One year £55 Two years £99 Digital Only subscription (App & website access) 6 months £30 One year £55 Two year £99 SUPA/SAPA rate one year £45 All subscribers receive an exclusive weekly newsletter and competition offers

Call Sarah Foster on +44 (0)1993 886885 Subscribe online: www.polotimes.co.uk 96

Polo Times, June 2014

PT June14 66-98.indd 96

Marketplace Transport

HORSE TRUCK FOR SALE Volvo FL618, HGV 18 tonne, 9 horse box.

Year: 1998, Mileage: 272431 miles, MOT valid to October 2014. Easy to drive, well looked after. GL12, Gloucestershire. £12,000. Contact Stuart 07817645279

FABULOUS GOOSE NECK 5 HORSE TRAILER AND PICK UP It’s aluminium, no ramp, better for horses on and off, big tack locker and 6 litre cummings dodge pick up, auto, air con, cruise control, leather.

The whole lot £10k with mot.

0777 033 7851

Situations CAPABLE GROOM REQUIRED for friendly family polo yard in Gloucestershire. Experience preferred but not essential. Good accommodation provided. To start immediately please call Rob (07813 029728) for more details.

GROOM WANTED Groom needed to assist yard manager for the summer season, until early September 2014. Accommodation provided.

Salary details on application. Please contact Kelly on 07774072932. Binfield Heath nr Henley-on-Thames

FULL TIME GROOM Polo ponies / hunters / youngstock. Competent riding, handling and schooling. High standard of horse care and management. Small team or individual work depending on season. LGV license beneficial. Accommodation available.

Permanent Position. Tetbury. Apply to info@beaufortembryotransfer.com

Equipment

SCOREBOARDS AND CLOCKS ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR POLO Outdoor and arena sizes.

Fully electronic, displaying the time counting down, both scores and chukka number. Automatic bell/horn.

Controlled wirelessly by a remote control you can even wear on your arm. Visit www.SportingDesigns. co.uk or call +44 (0)7860 303217

Miscellaneous

POLO VEHICLE REGISTRATION FOR SALE – ANGELA Registration Number PO10 ANG for sale. Upon the agreed sale the registration will be placed on retention with the new owners details being issued as the nominee to allow transfer to their desired vehicle. London. £1,995.

Tel: 0743 680 6786

POLO SIMULATOR Purchased 2005, hardly used New one cost £40k Reasonable offer will be considered. Berkshire. Contact: robertthame@hotmail.com

POLO RAT Registration plate on retention and ready for immediate transfer Offers Invited Tel: 07860 906032

Printed by: The Manson Group Contact details Holbrook Farm, East End, North Leigh, Oxfordshire OX29 6PX Tel: 01993 886 885. Fax: 01993 882 660 email: admin@polotimes.co.uk

www.polotimes.co.uk

© Polo Times Limited 2014 and Database Right 2014

Polo Times Limited holds the copyright & database right to the information it publishes in Polo Times and on the Polo Times website. No content may be reproduced or distributed without the consent of the Editor. ‘Polo Times’ is the trade mark of Polo Times Limited. ISSN 1461-4685

www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:37

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Final bell

In association with Aprés Polo

Glen Gilmore’s

The Guards polo manager tells us about his thoughts on the season ahead, one of his favourite ponies and his love for skiing, rugby league and Vegemite What is your favourite polo memory?

I have a few. Dad bred a pony called Pebbles and she used to be played by my son in the morning and me in the high-goal in the afternoon. She is now playing with the Novillo Astradas and will play the Argentine Open.

If you could change one thing about polo, what would it be and why?

I would make it easier to umpire. I also wish the lower rated pros could make a living more easily from polo.

What are your thoughts on the season ahead at Guards?

I hope the weather is as good as last year’s.

The Queen’s Cup looks very even and the medium-goal trophies appear to be very sought-after.

Best teammate?

Dad. Absolutely loved playing and winning with him.

Hardest opponent?

Obviously all the tengoalers I have played against, but in medium and lower-goal polo it would probably be Howard Hipwood when I first arrived in the UK – he was just impossible to beat in a ride-off.

Favourite polo venue?

Ellerston, Australia – best fields in the world, no question. Also the Queen’s Ground at Guards on International Day. Favourite holiday destination?

Anywhere with snow – my kids saw snow for the first time last December and we loved skiing. We’re hoping to make it an annual event.

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What would you do if you did not work in polo?

Golf, Skiing, Motorbikes – I would try not to work at all!

Favourite sport/pastime outside polo?

Golf and now skiing. And of course anything with family.

What other sporting teams do you support?

The Broncos and Queensland Maroons rugby league teams in Australia, Manchester United and any Australian team.

Who was your biggest crush growing up?

Shania Twain.

Person you would most like to meet?

Will Smith.

Favourite book?

Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition – does that count?

What was your first car?

Mitsubishi Colt.

Favourite films?

Dumb and Dumber and Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

When was the last time you got really angry?

When my kids wouldn’t do their homework and get to bed!

Who has had the biggest influence on your life?

Mum, Dad, Corky Linfoot and Memo Gracida.

What is the most important life lesson you have learned?

Treat others the way you want to be treated.

Bottle of wine or bottle of beer?

Beer first, then wine.

Food you couldn’t live without?

Vegemite.

Most annoying habit?

OCD issues and crying at sad movies.

Describe yourself in three words.

Trustworthy, Loving, Family-man. www.polotimes.co.uk

27/05/2014 16:37

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The private bank for polo Proud sponsors of leading polo teams and events worldwide

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