POLO

Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Riders score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts.

A modern variant is called arena polo which is played indoors or more commonly outdoors on an enclosed all-weather surface (the field of play is much smaller, rarely exceeding 100 yards in length).

Another modern variant is snow polo, which is played on compacted snow on flat ground or a frozen lake. The format of snow polo varies depending on the space available. Each team generally consists of three players and a bright colored light plastic ball is preferred. Other variants include camel polo, elephant polo, bike polo, Segway polo and beach polo.

History:


A game first played in Persia/Iran at dates given from the 6th century BC, or much earlier,to the 1st century AD and originated there.Polo was at first a training game for cavalry units, usually the king's guard or other elite troops. To the warlike tribesmen, who played it with as many as 100 to a side, it was a miniature battle. In time polo became an Iranian national sport played extensively by the nobility. Women as well as men played the game, as indicated by references to the queen and her ladies engaging King Khosrow II Parviz and his courtiers in the 6th century AD. Certainly Persian literature and art give us the richest accounts of polo in antiquity. Ferdowsi, the famed Iranian poet-historian, gives a number of accounts of royal polo tournaments in his 9th century epic, Shahnameh (the Epic of Kings). In the earliest account, Ferdowsi romanticizes an international match between Turanian force and the followers of Siyâvash, a legendary Iranian prince from the earliest centuries of the Empire; the poet is eloquent in his praise of Siyâvash's skills on the polo field. Ferdowsi also tells of Emperor Shapur II of the Sassanid dynasty of the 4th century who learned to play polo when he was only seven years old.

In Manipur, the game was not merely a "rich" game but was played even by commoners who owned a pony.[8] The kings of Manipur had a royal polo ground within the ramparts of their Kangla Fort. Here they played Manung Kangjei Bung (literally, "Inner Polo Ground”). Public games were held, as they are still today, at the Mapan Kangjei Bung (literally "Outer Polo Ground”), a polo ground just outside the Kangla. Weekly games called Hapta Kangjei (Weekly Polo) were also played in a polo ground outside the current Palace.

In 1862 the first polo club, Calcutta Polo Club was established by two British soldiers, Captain Robert Stewart and Major General Joe Shearer.[12] Later they spread the game to their peers in England. The British are credited with spreading polo worldwide in the late 19th century and the early 20th century. Military officers imported the game to Britain in the 1860s. The establishment of polo clubs throughout England and western Europe followed after the formal codification of rules.[11] The 10th Hussars at Aldershot, Hants, introduced polo to England in 1869. The game's governing body in the United Kingdom is the Hurlingham Polo Association, which drew up the first set of formal British rules in 1874, many of which are still in existence.

This version of polo played in the 19th century was different from the faster form that was played in Manipur. The game was slow and methodical, with little passing between players and few set plays that required specific movements by participants without the ball. Neither players nor horses were trained to play a fast, nonstop game. This form of polo lacked the aggressive methods and equestrian skills to play. From the 1800s to the 1910s, a host of teams representing Indian principalities dominated the international polo scene.[11]

Polo found popularity in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Pakistan and the United States of America.

The game:

Field polo requires two teams of 4 players. A full-size field is 300 yards long, and either 200 yards or 160 yards wide if there are side boards—these are generally 6" high. There are tall collapsable goalposts at each end of the field spread 8 yards apart. The object of the game is to score the most goals by hitting the ball through the goal. Ends are changed after a goal is scored.

In arena polo, which is popular in the United States and England, the size of the field is ideally 100 yards long by 50 yards wide. The size of arena fields in the United States, where arena polo was first played, is often more variable where indoor armories and riding academies are still occasionally used. The playing boundary is marked by high wooden walls (usually at least 6 feet high). Arena polo requires teams of three riders, and goals are scored by passing the ball into a 10-foot-wide by 12-foot-high goal recessed into the end walls. In arena polo ends are changed at the end of each 6-minute period (chukka or chukker) and not after a goal is scored. Arena polo uses a small leather ball between 12.5 and 15 inches in circumference and looks like a miniature soccer ball.

A polo game has periods of play, known as chukkas (also chukkers). This term originated in 1898 and is derived from Hindi chakkar from Sanskrit chakra "circle, wheel" (compare chakka). Depending on the rules of the particular tournament or league, a game may have 4, 6 or 8 chukkas; 6 chukkas are most common.[2] Usually, each chukka is 7 minutes long, but some games are played in shorter chukkas. Between chukkas, the players switch to fresh ponies. In less competitive polo leagues, players may play only two ponies, alternating between them. For more competitive leagues, and in United States intercollegiate polo, each pony is played in at most two chukkas.

Polo ponies:

The mounts used are called 'polo ponies', although the term pony is purely traditional and the mount is actually a full-sized horse. They range from 14.2 to 16 hands high at the withers (one hand equals four inches or 10.16cm), and weigh between 900-1100 lbs. The polo pony is selected carefully for quick bursts of speed, stamina, agility and maneuverability. Temperament is critical; the horse must remain responsive under pressure and not become excited or difficult to control. Many are Thoroughbreds or Thoroughbred crosses. They are trained to be handled with one hand on the reins, and to be responsive to the rider's leg and weight cues for moving forward, turning and stopping. A well trained horse will carry his rider smoothly and swiftly to the ball and can account for 60 to 75 percent of the player's skill and net worth to his team.

Players:

Each position assigned to a player has certain responsibilities:

* Number One is the most offensive position on the field. The number one position generally covers the opposing team's number four.

* Number Two has an important offensive role of either running through and scoring themself, or passing to the number one and getting in behind them. Defensively they will cover the opposing team's number three--generally the other team's best player. Given the difficulty of this position, it is not uncommon for the best player on the team to play number two so long as another strong player is available to play three.

* Number Three is the tactical leader and must be a long powerful hitter to feed balls to Number Two and Number One as well as maintaining a solid defense. The best player on the team is usually the Number Three player (Usually wielding the highest handicap).

* Number Four is the primary defense player and though they can move anywhere on the field, they often try to prevent scoring. The excessive defense of the number four allows the number three to commit to more offensive plays knowing they will be covered if they lose the ball.

Polo must be played right-handed. Left-handed play was ruled out in 1975 for safety reasons. To date, only 3 players on the world circuit are left-handed.


Equipment:

The basic dress of a player is a protective helmet (usually of a distinctive color, to be distinguished at the considerable distance from which onlookers are watching the game), riding boots to just below the knees, white trousers (often ordinary denim jeans), and a colored shirt bearing the number of the player's position. Optional equipment includes one or two gloves, wristbands, kneepads (mandatory in some clubs), spurs, face mask, and a whip.
Polo player wearing kneepads, "riding off" an opponent

The outdoor polo ball is made of a high-impact plastic, but was formerly made of either bamboo or willow root. The indoor polo ball is leather-covered and inflated, and is about 4½ inches (11.4 cm) in diameter. The outdoor ball is about 3¼ inches (8.3 cm) in diameter and weighs about four ounces (113.4 g).

The field:

The playing field is 300 yards long by 160 yards wide, the approximate area of nine American football fields. The playing field is carefully maintained with closely mowed turf providing a safe, fast playing surface. Goals are posts which are set eight yards apart, centered at each end of the field. The surface of a polo field requires careful and constant grounds maintenance to keep the surface in good playing condition. During half-time of a match, spectators are invited to go onto the field to participate in a polo tradition called "divot stamping", which has developed to not only help replace the mounds of earth (divots) that are torn up by the horses' hooves, but to afford spectators the opportunity to walk about and socialize.

Outdoor Polo:

The game consists of six 7 minute chukkas, between or during which players change mounts. At the end of each 7 minute chukka, play continues for an additional 30 seconds or until a stoppage in play, whichever comes first. There is a four minute interval between chukkas and a ten minute halftime. Play is continuous and is only stopped for penalties, broken tack (equipment) or injury to horse or player.

Polo variants:

Polo is not played exclusively on horseback. Such polo variants are mostly played for recreational or touristic purposes; they include canoe polo, cycle polo, camel polo, elephant polo, golfcart polo, Segway polo, BMX polo, yak polo, water polo, and spongee polo. A recent variant is beach polo, played on sand in Dubai and Miami and most recently in the UK.