Polo Players' Edition is the official publication of the U.S. Polo Association. Dedicated to the sport of polo, it features player profiles, game strategy, horse care, playing tips, polo club news and tournament results.
Issue link: https://polo.epubxp.com/i/31965
BATTLE in the Military players promote polo at Washington International Horse Show By Mark Gillespie This year’s Washington International Horse Show at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington, DC featured military polo players from four countries in an arena polo demonstration on the evening of October 27. The International team had Colonel Esteban Sigon, who is currently attending the American military’s National War College, representing Argentina; Major Cameron Humphries from the Highlander Regiment representing the United Kingdom; and Major Faiz Siddiqui from India’s Army Service Corps. The opposing American team consisted of an all-Army squad that included Colonel Marisa Tanner, who is currently stationed at Ft. Bliss, Texas; Second Lieutenant Terrance Donahue, who is preparing to attend the Armor Basic Course at Ft. Knox, Kentucky; Major John Kiyonaga, who is a JAG officer in the Army Reserve; Major (Ret.) Mark Gillespie, who leads the Army Polo Club when not “down range” as a defense consultant; and Allen Hoe, who was a decorated Army medic in Vietnam and is president of the Honolulu Polo Club. The event provided an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the inherent excitement of polo as well as embodied the international camaraderie that distinguishes the sport. Daniel and Ilene Tognini’s Middleburg Polo Academy supplied the umpires as well as the majority of the horses used in the event. During the short break between the two periods of polo, Daniel and his assistant, Jonathan, demonstrated the various maneuvers and skills that polo players need to master, such as ride-offs and hooking. The Verizon Center’s location in the 30 POLO PLAYERS EDITION SADDLE Former U.S. Army Sergeant Allen Hoe leads the pack, followed by teammate retired Major Mark Gillespie. middle of the city always requires plenty of thoughtful planning. Show horses, stabled outside the city, are trailered in and out of the city at specific scheduled times. The day of the polo exhibition, President Obama’s visit to a nearby building caused traffic backups, slowing the movement of horses in and out of the Verizon Center. And with no stalls to tack up in, Tognini had to maneuver his rig to a location behind the Verizon Center. Horses were tacked up on the sidewalk in the dark for the 8:10 p.m. scrimmage. It was an amazing example of how calm polo horses can be. The Washington International Horse Show’s Kids Day took place on the street outside the Verizon Center on October 30, offering a chance for youngsters to get a PETER DYRHOLM
