Embassy of Argentina Polo Cup in Cairo
On the heels of unseasonal heat,a cooling break in the weatheropened for the inaugural Embassyof Argentina Polo Cuptournament inearly March at Farouk Younes’ lovelyAbu Seir Farm. The event, organizedby the Embassy of the ArgentineRepublic in Egypt in cooperation withthe Egyptian Polo Federation underthe auspices of the Federation ofInternational Polo, was an unqualifiedsuccess.
Itis always a great pleasure to walk into the grounds of the Abu Sir Farm througha cool lush arbor and see the stately palm trees and abundant colourful bougainvilleaswaying in the breeze and casting shadows on the bright green lawns and fields.Itfeels like entering another more serene and less complicated world.
Atthe top of the of the arbored walk we were warmly greeted by His ExcellencyEduardo Varela, Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to Egypt, and Dr. MohamedEl Shamy, the President of the Egyptian Polo Federation, who invited us to jointhe growing band of spectators for a pre-match reception hosted by the graciousFarouk Younes and his charming wife Jacqueline, who is also the veryentertaining resident polo commentator.
Thisevent was initiated by Ambassador Varela following other Argentine diplomaticmissions around the world. Embassy ofArgentina Polo Cup tournaments have been held at Cowdray Park Polo Club inEngland, Thai Polo Club in Pattaya, Ibiza Polo Club, Capital Polo Club in theWashington D.C. area, Magyar Polo Club in Budapest, Islamabad Polo Club inPakistan, and many other locales to promote friendship through Argentina’sbeloved sport, polo.
AsAmbassador Varela describes it: “Polocan be seen as means of bringing Egypt and Argentina closer, two countriesthat, in spite of physical distance and different historical experiences, aremuch more similar than it seems. In anycase, this polo match with the Argentine and Egyptian players and flags,beautiful Argentine ponies, and the Abu Seir Pyramids in the background whichare 4250 years old, seems to me to be a magnificent way of celebrating ourfriendship.”
Promptly at 3 o’clockwe were ushered to our places field-side and the match to determine the winnerof this 8-goal Embassy of Argentina Polo Cup was on. Before an enthusiastic crowd of family,friends, and esteemed members of the diplomatic and business worlds, twopowerhouse teams, Team Kings and OS Team, faced off. KingsTeam included local stars Mohamed Bassiouni,Mohamed El Sewedy, Marwan Mostafa, and Mohamed Salah, while OS Team carried theArgentine weight with Omar El Sewedy, Ibrahim Awadalla, “Segundo” CondeseStanga,and “Tete” Silvestre Fanelli.
The players came out battling with equal offensive and defensivestrength, each team keeping the other from putting much value on thescoreboard, leaving a halftime score of Team Kings 3 to OS Team 2. However, in the third and fourth chukkas OSTeam put the steam on and could not be stopped! Final score: 10 to 4 in favour of OS Team. Well done!
On Friday, as part of thiswonderful polo weekend the treasured Abu Sir Cup was played and won by TeamEgypt 8 to 7 against Team Abu Sir. TeamEgypt included players and alternates: Margret Badr, Tete, Sherif Shalaby,Mohamed Wahid, Karim Loza, Mohamed Rashad, Ahmed AbouZeid, and Moemen Mannaa. For Team Abu Sir there was: Segundo, Ali Hesham, Mohamed Khalil, MohannadMostafa, Hana Badr, Mostafa Idris, Hussein AbouZeid, and Adel Mohamadein.Congratulations on your win, Team Egypt!
Aswe watched the match, I had a growing awareness that the caliber of play,finesse, tactics, confidence, teamwork, strength, and speed – of both theplayers and horses – far out-performed matches I’d watched here in otheryears. I was very impressed. The difference was remarkable. Was I just imagining things?
“No,you’re not”, according to Farouk Younes, the revered former 12 year Presidentof the Egyptian Polo Federation, “This is the result of a long-term developmentprogramme based on three pillars: developing horses, training players, and building polo fields tointernational level.” I have endeavouredto pass on all my experience of more than 50 years of playing at the highestlevel as well as having been the tournament director of two World Cups inFrance and Mexico, and playoffs in Europe, Pakistan, India and Spain. I havebeen strongly assisted by excellent board members who were selfishly dedicatedto polo as well as experience players and horsemen. I have also passed on all my internationalpolo connections to the Egyptian PoloFederation, having been for many years member of the board and the Executivecommittee of the FIP, I have also succeeded to have Mr. Karim Loza replacing meat FIP in order to continue our presence since my retirement. I am also pleased that the new generationunder the presidency of Dr. Mohamed El Shamy who is assisted by a new generation of polo players will be taking it toanother level.
Moreimportantly the game was stagnating at a low goal level, therefore, it wasessential to start from scratch and to encourage our players through a seriesof professional coaching as well as polo clinics locally and internationally. It is unfortunate, that to this date none ofour players have participated in high goal polo tournaments. However, we are getting there as the localtalent is improving and their skill and riding abilities are continuously rising.
First,as to the horses, 20 years ago polo was played in Egypt on local horses untilAbu Seir Farm initiated a breeding and acquisition program specifically to produce polo ponies ofinternational standard using the best Argentine stock. Karim Loza, Board Memberof the Egyptian Polo Federation and Region Ambassador of the Federation ofInternational Polo, adds: “Farouk’sArgentinean breeding programme has been instrumental in improving the localhorse power and its positive impact on the game.”
Forthe players, the program involves intensive expert training both inside Egyptand abroad, offering possibilities to play polo in international settings, andtesting serious commitment to the sport at the highest level. The players are not only trained how to ridepolo, but they are taught the rules, regulations, and tactics of the game. As Mr. Younes says, “These young people arethe future”. As to the playing field,much time and investment has been put into the development and maintenance of aproper safe playing surface as close to international grade as possible. “It’s good for the horses, the players, andthe speed and safety of the game”, says Mr. Younes.
Andthis dedication to the improvement of the horses, players, and playing fieldsand the success of this on-going programme were clearly on display during thistournament. It’s the type of sharp, fearless,powerful play I love to watch.
After the final bell, as the grooms led their charges off the field and as the prize-giving and post-match celebrations began, I looked around at the beaming players, shining trophies, happy friends and families on this sunlit day at the warm and welcoming Abu Sir Farm and thought “this game has it all”. Dr. El Shamy probably summed up this feeling best: “An event like this really shows everything about the sport. The social scene, the setting, the horses, the players, the spectators, the food and drink…all of it. Really, polo is not only a game, it’s also a way of life. It’s a festival!”
Or in our case, a fiesta!
