Prince William a remarkable player given he is left-handed’
Prince William is a remarkable polo player given that he is left-handed, according to the president of world polo. For the uninitiated, polo is only permitted right-handed, and the Duke of Cambridge, a left-handed sportsman, has nonetheless learnt to play with his right hand.
Nicholas Colquhoun-Denvers, two years into his four-year term as President of FIP, the world governing body for the sport, told The Telegraph: “William is left handed. But he was determined enough to learn.
“I think that was a brotherly thing. William didn’t want to be outdone by his brother, Prince Harry.”
“Harry will always be better because he’s right handed. Polo has given them an awful lot by allowing them to mix with the crowd that put the money into their charities. Here’s this great British success story.”
Both William and Harry play off low-goal handicaps but take part in several matches each year, mostly for charitable causes. “I think he (William) plays off one,” said the FIP President.
“They will have the best of ponies and the best of support to do it, but then they don’t play it all the time. I don’t know how much they do play outside of the charity matches or how much time they have to play, but, yes, they are something that we need.”
“It’s good for William to have it recognised that he overcame a handicap like that to be able to play up to the same standard as his brother.”
Colquhoun-Denver’s insisted that the royal connection to polo brings genuine prestige to the English polo season from March to September. “We’ve discovered that having the event attached to the royals brings in a lot of interest,” he said.