Polo plans in disarray
THE Covid-19 pandemic has all but written off potentially defining 2020 local polo season, in which India was supposed to tour the country for the first time, while Zimbabwe was also scheduled to defend its Africa Cup title.
India was supposed to compete at one of the top local events, the Titan Law International Polo Tournament, but the outbreak of the novel virus affected all competitions, including the big Land Rovers Ambassadors Cup.
e Polo Association of Zimbabwe (PAZ) expected the sport to make great strides this year, but the season suffered a stillbirth.
“e season was all set for an amazing growth year. A number of younger players had returned to the country from overseas and new players were set to start playing tournaments. India was due to tour for the first time to play in the Titan Law International Polo Tournament and we were planning on defending our Africa Cup title in Johannesburg,” PAZ chairperson Jonathan Passaportis said.
With the season now a write-off and with the rainy season having already begun, Passaportis reflected on some of the challenges faced as a result of the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
“Unfortunately, as with all sports in 2020, polo experienced difficulties due to the coronavirus epidemic. But unlike a lot of sports that when you aren’t playing your equipment remains in a cupboard, polo ponies require feeding, whether you are playing or not.
“As such, people who were considering taking up the sport have postponed. Current players have reduced their ponies in their strings (number of horses) and most players didn’t buy beginner horses this year.
“With that being said — e SRC and Ministry of Sport were appreciative of these issues and after laying down strict guidelines, the three clubs in Zimbabwe were given conditional approval to conduct ‘closed door practices’ with no spectators and socially-distanced support staff. ese allowances ensured that the sport remains in a healthy position, with players very excited for the 2021 season,” he said.
e PAZ chairperson, who is also the managing director for Bushman Rock Safaris, gave a brief background of the sport in the country.
“e sport of polo in Zimbabwe has been slowly growing over the past few years. Young players have been joining our sport from previous existing polo families and we are delighted that a number of new players with no previous ties to the sport have joined and are doing well.
“We have three registered clubs under PAZ. ere are a few private exhibition grounds in the country where practices and exhibition tournaments are held occasionally too. Of the three clubs, Harare and Umzari (Chinhoyi) clubs historically supplied the backbone of the national side, with Bushman Rock the newest club beginning to challenge in the A Division.
“e level of interclub polo has been improving with club teams forming the basis of the major tournaments each year. Unfortunately, we lost the entire season.
“All major tournaments were lost due to the virus and now that the rains have started, there is no way we can hold tournaments during 2020. e 2021 season promises to be actionpacked, with players desperate to make up for an entire lost season,” Passaportis said.
In spite of the setbacks suffered this year, PAZ remains ambitious in growing polo in the country going forward. And the immediate task is to go on a recruitment drive to increase the number of people playing the sport.
“At the start of 2020, the PAZ elected and appointed a development committee who had planned various activities to grow the sport. We have also appointed Bushman Rock Polo Club as the development club and encourage any people keen on the sport to get in touch at