CAIRO: To most people around the world, polo is a glamorous, classic sport, a rare commodity that has a car and a Ralph Lauren brand named after it. What people may not be aware of is that the sport has a strong international presence, with Egypt being no exception.
Last weekend, Abu Seir in Sakara witnessed the annual polo match sponsored by Credit Suisse. Established by Farouk Younis in the 1990s, this field is the first private polo field since the 1940s and is one of two in Cairo. The other, located in Basateen, is owned by the Egyptian Mounted Police.
Polo first came to Egypt in the 12th century with the Mamluks, who introduced polo as a form of military exercise and sport. By the 1700s, polo had waned in Egypt until the British re-introduced it in the 1890s.
Younis has been a polo fanatic for 40 years. He started playing in the 1960s at the Gezira Sporting Club, before they turned the polo fields into sandy football pitches.
“Polo was played in the spirit of good sportsmanship, on and off the field, purely for fun, says his son Omar, who has been playing polo since he was 14. Along with his father, Omar has been organizing the annual event since 2002.
Every year a different international team is invited, and the theme is chosen according to the visiting country. The first year featured France, followed by India, Mexico, Switzerland and finally Brazil.
During the two-day event, the first is dedicated to the Credit Suisse Cup and the second to the Abu Seir Cup. About 300 guests, who are always excited to take part in the elegant proceedings, are invited each day.
The social side of the game is just as important as the sport itself; society’s cream de la cream spends the day in the beautiful garden chatting, drinking and eating before the match begins.
Once the game starts, the crowd takes their seats on the sidelines, enjoying the graceful sport. The sound of the hooves as the horses run is almost musical. Meanwhile, Jacqueline Younis, who annually provides the voice over, knows how to entertain guests with her always entertaining comments.
The game is divided into four chuckers, with four players on each team. The horses are changed after each chucker, which means each game requires more than 30 horses.
“The horses have to be well trained for polo: athletic, very responsive, very quick, high endurance . [the] same needs [of] a football player but for the horse, explains Omar. “They have to have stamina.
Omar is passionate about polo. “It is the same thrill you get out of a sport when you are 12 years old. My father and I get the same feeling although he is in his late 50s and I’m in my early 30s.
Winston Churchill once said the best passport in the world is a polo handicap. With polo not only does one travel, but also gets to meet interesting, like-minded people from Latin America to Australia.
Now as Farouk Younis plays less he is concentrating more on promoting the sport internationally. He is on the board and on the executive committee of the Federation of International Polo (FIP), which operates under the auspices of the International Olympic committee (IOC).
The sport has recently been accepted as an Olympic game. Its enthusiasts hope it will be part of the 2012 Olympics.
As for local awareness, the National Polo Federation plans to commercialize the sport by building more fields, as well as sending national teams around the world. Morocco and Spain are the next stops.
There are now about 30 active polo players in Egypt from Cairo and Alexandria. Most local players’ handicap is between 0-2, exceeding the world average of 0-1 handicap.
