Polo+in+Argentina

by Jared Martin =Brief History of Polo=

=
The introduction to Polo to the world is believed to have started in Persia during the 6th century. There was no official documentation of the event but it was known to be a training technique for the King's Calvary because when there are 100 people to a side it could very easily resemble battle. The game was spread throughout Asia and became known as "the game of kings". Which is probably why British Officers took up the game as well in 1862. However it was not until 1869 that the game actually reached England. It wasn't until the early 1900's that the British actually established rules for the game. It had always just been use the stick to hit the ball in the goal while on horseback. They added measurements, such as the length of the mallets (4 1/2 feet), the size of the field (300 x 160yrds), and the size of the goal (24 x 10 ft). Unlike original Polo which was meant for preparing for the chaos of battle, Polo today is typically only played with 4 players per team. Two attacking and two more defensive. The match is officiated by two referees on horseback. And all calls must be unanimously agreed upon. For any disputes there is a third referee on the sideline. In 1876 the sport was taken to America by James Bennett. From there international competitions began ten years later. Over the history of Polo, it has remained "the game of Kings". Only people who have enough money to fund a horse as well as transportation of the horse can even think about playing this game. This is a main reason why the sport has not become as world wide as a sport like soccer. At the same time, the people who do play take pride in the fact that it is not for everyone.===== =**Introduction of Polo to Argentina**=

=
Polo was brought to Argentina through American ranchers. Through a reasonable amount of time Argentina picked up the sport and held up the traditional value. It remained a sport for the wealthy. Something that has never changed, but it can be said that the popularity of the sport came from the fact that Argentina had not seen a sport like this before, which raised a lot of interest along with a feeling of superiority from playing. Almost like they felt they had a exciting sport that no one else in the country had. This pride most likely contributed to the success of Argentine Polo on a world scale.===== =**Growth of Polo In Argentina**= Argentina won the first world championship held in Argentina in 1987. The even is held ever 4 years and Argentina has managed to win the world championship a total of three times. This is tied for the most world championship wins with Brazil. With this Argentina has gotten second place once and third place twice. This means that all but twice Argentina was in the top three teams in the world. This is out of a total of 77 countries, such as Spain, France, United States of America and Chile, who try to qualify for the tournament. Argentina is also home of three of the largest polo tournaments in the world, Campeonato Argentino Abierto de Polo, Campeonato Abierto del Tortugas Country Club, Campeonato Abierto de Hurlingham. There are a large number of clubs in Argentina today, mainly around major cities.

=Adolfo Cambiaso Jr.media type="youtube" key="tY0xpG1TlOM" height="344" width="425" align="right"= Adolfo Cambiaso is known as one of the world's greatest Polo players. He was born in 1975 and raised in Argentina. He was the youngest player to become a 10 handicap at the age of 19. This was after winning 24 international tournaments between 1990 and 1994. He currently holds the record of most goals scored in the Argentine Open with 535. Due to the social separation between player's of polo and the lower classes Cambiaso has not managed to become a household name, but in the Polo world he is clearly one of the most famous and recognized players out there. Cambiaso is married and has two children.

=Gear= Polo has its own fashion. For the rider is requires very little. A common shirt that matches your team will suffice. However, it is more common now to have a specially designed polo shirt. Also a gloves and a helmet are required. This is for the protection of the rider from swinging mallets. Lastly, long boots and knee guards are worn to protect the leg from getting crushed between horses or from mallets. For the horse an English type saddle is used because there is an overgirth in addition to the regular girth to keep the saddle from slipping. Side reins, which are sometimes used, extended from the girth through the bridle rings to the rider's hands to give better control, which is an important safety precaution when the horses are travelling at high speed. Leg bandages are used to guard the legs of the horse, and tail is wrapped to keep it from tangling in mallet strokes. The last two pieces of equipment used are the mallet and the ball. = = = =

=Interview= =media type="youtube" key="YK3BqpIMt7Q" height="344" width="425" align="right"= Manuel Leguizamon is a native born Argentine. He is from the Patagonia, Santa Cruz area. This is a video of him talking about his feelings and impressions of the sport polo in Argentina. It is concluded that the sport is for a very particular group of people. Mainly those who can afford it, which is why Manuel Leguizamon stated that Soccer is much more popular. Being a sport that every type of person can play. However, not recorded Leguizamon made the statement that it is very typical to find famous soccer players playing polo. He compared the situation to Micheal Jordan playing golf.

= = = = =References= //"History of Polo." Argentina Polo//. N.P. N.P. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. 

"Historia del Deporte." //Asociaciòn Argentina de Polo//. N.P. N.P. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. 

"Polo Guide:Polo equipment." //Ascot Park Polo Club//. 2003. Web. 8 Dec 2009. .

"Polo." //World Book//. P. 15. Chicago, IL: Scott Fetzer Company, 2009. Print.

"Polo ." //Encyclopedia of World Sport//. 1996. 2. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO Inc, 1996. Print.