Polo and More, Barbados 2014 Issue 9 | Page 22

& More 2015 Lisa McDonald Photography “Beach polo is a moveable feast. We bring polo to the people so they don’t have to drive 20 miles out of town to see it. We also make people feel comfortable so they want to go on and support the sport. Quality of play is integral in entertaining these newcomers to polo too; the IBPA promotes beach polo of 12 goals and above though they support the lower levels. Watching beach polo with teams handicapped below that level is the difference between watching backyard football and premier league. A better standard of beach polo helps to sell the whole sport. Some of the world’s best players now play beach polo, including Matias Magrini, who plays off 9 goals on grass and is now the world’s first and only 10 goal beach polo player!” The majority of international beach polo events now come under the IBPA umbrella, according to Webbe, who is now Chairman of the organisation. The IBPA has also just appointed a new President, Joy Ford, Countess du Lau d’Allemans, a former model and polo player, who has already spent two years coordinating charitable efforts for global beach polo events. She will now concentrate on supporting emerging beach polo ventures internationally and the introduction of polo to a wider audience. New beach polo venues in 2014 included Mexico, Austria, Poland, Italy and China. The China event being a slight departure, as it encompassed other aspects of luxury living. Attracting 7,500 guests, “SO! DALIAN” was a boutique yachting, networking and 20 lifestyle event, dedicated to promoting Dalian as a major tourist destination for boating, and luxury living in Northern China, part of this offering was China’s first beach polo event, the ‘Beach Polo World Cup’ as a key attraction. For the organisers, it was a monumental task, but worth the effort; horses had to be transported some 800km, the same went for sand for the playing field. As for the players, they managed to gather teams and players from the USA, UK, Kazakhstan, Thailand and of course, China. This adaptation of polo seems to have gained some traction, as new beach polo events are popping up every year. Most recently, New Zealand held their first beach polo event in the scenic Hawkes Bay area, with the Porangahau Beach Polo event and both Nigeria and Ghana are currently in the planning stages for events there. From the looks of it seems as though beach polo is definitely here to stay Above: Porangahau Beach Polo event during the last game of the day between Ngatarawa and Central fm showing the playing corral on Te Paerahi Beach with the majestic sweep around to Blackhead in the distance Inset: Winners of the High Goal Cup Marquee Game, L-R, Aaron Vowles, Simon McDonald and Lochie Hunter at the Porangahau Beach Polo event, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand