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| Polo is the world's oldest equestrian sport. It is played on
horseback between two teams of four players who use sticks (called
mallets) with long, flexible handles to drive a wooden ball down a grass
field and between two goal posts. |
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| Facts |
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* Not everybody loves Polo. In China, the death of a
favourite relative in a game prompted Emperor A-Pao-Chi to order the
beheading of all surviving polo players in the country in 910 AD.
* Polo World championships are held every three years. Of the
five world championships held so far, three have been won by
Argentina (1987, 1992 and 1998).
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* The only time the Indian team won the Polo World Cup was in France in
1957. The team comprised Major Kishen Singh, Kr. Bijay Singh, Rao Raja
Hanut Singh and Maharaja Sawai Mansingh of Jaipur.
* The Jaipur Polo Ground in Delhi is India's largest polo ground.
It can seat over 1,500 people and an additional 10,000 people can watch
the game from the enclosures. |
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The Indian
army's 61st Cavalry has the unique distinction of being the only
unmechanized (no use of modern machines) mounted cavalry regiment in
the world. In view of the regiment's unique association with the
horse, it is perhaps not surprising that it has a proud polo playing
tradition - its personnel have won the Arjuna award four times for
polo and five times for equestrian events.
* Polo would have been forgotten by the world but for the
lovers of this game in places like Gilgit, Chitral, Baltistan,
Ladakh and Manipur, where polo continued to be played during the
middle ages and was later re-discovered by the
Britishers.
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| Court and Equipment |
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Polo is played on a grass field 274.3 meters long and 146 meters
wide by two teams of 4 riders each.
At each end of the field, two
goalposts are placed. Each goalpost is formed by two 10 feet high poles
placed 24 feet apart. A point is scored by hitting the ball between the
goalposts. |
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The ball used in polo is made of bamboo or willow root about
8.3 cm in diameter and weighs 113.4 g. |
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A mallet or long stick (around 51 inches and
weighing roughly 200 grams) is used to hit the ball. The ball is
struck with the side of the mallet, not the
ends. | |
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To begin with, the two teams line up facing each other in the
center of the field. One of the two mounted umpires bowls the ball between
the teams to begin the play.
Each team tries to score by hitting the ball in the other team's
goalpost. The players are numbered 1 to 4. Number 1 and 2 concentrate on
attacking the other team' s goal and Number 4 on defending the teams own
goalpost. Number 3 plays a middle role. A game consists of four to six
periods of 7 1/2 minutes each, called chukkars, or
chukkas. |
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The rich
man's game |
| Top Indian polo players can make anywhere between five
to ten lakh rupees in a year. But not all the money goes in
their pockets. A serious professional needs to keep at least 8
horses which can cost anywhere between a couple of thousands
to a couple of lakhs. Maintenance costs alone are at least Rs
25,000 per month! Then, to stay in form, a player also needs
to go abroad for practice during off season (there is no polo
in India from April to September). No wonder there are a few
takers for the sport outside the army and the royalty!
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| Ponies |
| Although polo mounts are called ponies, they are actually
full-sized horses! Speed, obedience and intelligence are important
features that a polo horse should have. Since they have a crucial
role to play in any match, polo ponies only enter the field after
special training, which stretches up to 2 years. While playing a
match, the pony's front legs are bandaged from below the knee to
prevent injury. The pony's mane is clipped and tail braided to
ensure they don't get in the way of the polo-stick. Ponies reach
their peak at about age 9 or 10 but can go on playing till they are
around 20 years old. Some of the best ponies are bred in Argentina
or in the Rocky Mountain regions of the United States, where they
are broken early and worked as cow ponies.
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| Elephant Polo |
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Elephant Polo is much like regular polo except for one major
difference - its played on elephant back. The most famous elephant polo event is 'The
World Elephant Polo Association Championship'. This is held every
year in Chitwan, Nepal and amateurs and professionals both get a
chance to compete.
If you're wondering whether elephants are allowed
to lift the ball with their trunks, the answer is - no, the rulebook
says that's a foul!
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| Cycle Polo |
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Cycle polo is referred to as the game of horseless
kings and queens. This is to reflect the fact that cycle polo is
almost like regular polo except that inexpensive bicycles take the
place of horses.
The general idea is the same - players hit a ball with
mallets,attempting to
score in the opposition goal.
Cycle polo helps develop excellent bike handling and
control and also is a great way to have fun playing a team sport.
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| Arena Polo |
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| This is an indoor version of Polo, which is played in cold
countries where outdoor polo may not be possible (due to the snow etc.).
The equipment for arena polo is slightly different. The field is smaller
at 91 x 45 meters. Wooden boards around 4 and ½ feet high are used instead
of mallets. The teams also have 3 players instead of the usual four. But
besides these small changes, the indoor game is basically the same as
regular Polo. |
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| Water Polo |
| Water Polo sounds like another sister game of Polo, but
in fact, the two have no connection besides the name. Water
Polo is played in a swimming pool by two teams of seven
players. The aim is to throw the ball in the goalpost of the
opposing team. There are no horses or any other mount involved
in this game, which can be compared to playing football in
water ! | |
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Chukker or Chukka: Name given to a period of play in a Polo match. Usually a
match has 4 or 6 chukkers with each chukker lasting for 7 and a 1/2
minutes.
Handicap:
Polo players are given a handicap rating from 0 to 10 according to
their performance in competitions ( a handicap of 10 being the best).
Rating is based on horsemanship, hitting ability, knowledge of the
game, quality of horses, and sportsmanship. Minus ratings such as -1 and
-2 are also used.
Helmet: A
protective cap with a chin strap worn by Polo players.
Hook: To tangle an opponent's stick (quite like a
hook) when he is striking the ball.
Hooks are only allowed from the same side of the horse as the
striker, this means you cannot hook with your stick across a pony.
Ride off:
To force an opponent off the line of the ball when galloping along
with him. |
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An Asiatic game, polo was probably first played on a barren camp
ground by warriors over two thousand years ago. Since playing the game was
a great way of training cavalry (or horse riding soldiers), polo was soon
picked up in regions as far flung as Constantinople and Japan.
It was Muslim invaders who first introduced the game in India. With
the decline of the Mughal Empire, polo also suffered, but there were a few
remote areas like Manipur and Gilgit where it survived. |
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| It was in Assam that Joseph Sherer, a British
army man, first came across the game in 1857 and was fascinated with
this ancient sport. Two years later Sherer - dubbed, the father of
English Polo - set up the first club of the modern game, the Silchar
Polo Club. It was Sherer again who played a major part in setting up
the Calcutta Polo Club in
1863, which is today the world's oldest functional Polo club. |
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| By 1870, the game had spread throughout British India
and soon reports of the 'new' game began to appear in the British press.
It was not long before the game spread in Britain and elsewhere. In 1876,
the sportsman and newspaper publisher James Gordon Bennett saw his first
polo game and introduced it in the United States. |
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The first international competition took place in 1886 when
the United States challenged the English, for the Westchester Cup.
England defeated US that year but lost in 1909. From 1909 to 1950
the United States was supreme in polo.
Through the 1920s and '30s, polo became increasingly
popular in Argentina, and today this South American country is the
master of international polo. | |
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