Polo has been called ‘The Sport of Kings’ and has become a spectator sport for equestrians and high society across the world, but a new polo academy in Mallorca is about to break down the barriers and change all that. The Granja Can Cavall Blau vineyard and organic farm has also boasted an equestrian centre for the past seven years, but this year it has embarked on a new venture by opening the island’s first polo academy.
Professional Argentine polo player, coach and consultant, Leonardo Rossolini, and British polo instructor and professional referee, Octavia Campbell-Davys, have been placed in charge of managing and running the new polo academy and Leo told the Bulletin this week that the feedback has already been extremely positive. He has already got a number of seven-year-olds learning how to play polo on the estate in Sencelles, just half an hour from Palma. Leo, who has played polo for the past 25 years, hails from the famous Palo Alto Polo Club in Buenos Aires where he spearheads the breeding programme. However, this summer his goal is to promote polo - sand polo - in Mallorca.
Across the world
“I’ve been involved as a consultant in helping other clubs grow across the world from Argentina to the United States and Ireland, for example, and now my attention is focused on helping expand Can Cavall Blau’s polo academy . It’s extremely exciting for a number of reasons. Firstly, we are teaching and playing sand polo which, apart from being more controlled in a smaller closed-off arena, is far more sustainable than playing on grass. We don’t need to water the pitch, as it’s an all-weather surface, and with the great climate in Mallorca that means we can operate all year round.
“But probably the most important factor is the philosophy of the polo academy. It is going to be open to the public and aimed at local residents on the island. It’s not an elitist club like polo is quite often considered to be. We want to attract residents to come and learn how to play and progress to owning their own horse and perhaps then going out to my Palo Alto Polo Club in Argentina to turn professional.
Huge industry
“Polo is a huge industry in Argentina. We breed the best polo horses and we produce the best players, and the largest number with the highest handicap, or goal as we call it, which is ten.
“In the handicap scheme of things there are three levels, low, medium and then high. And when I say high, I’m talking Formula One polo with serious sponsors and a global field to compete in.
“Here, our aim is to produce low handicap players who can then go to Argentina to improve their handicap and their sporting opportunities,” Leo explained. “Plus, polo can be played at any age. We start children off at the age of seven and I still know people playing top-level polo at the age of 80.
“While the first generation of polo horses here in Mallorca were from Argentina, the second generation are Mallorcan. Yes, the stallion is from Argentina, but the new generation are Mallorcan polo horses with Argentine blood and that’s a key part of the polo lifestyle and experience because it’s about passion and connection with the sport and the horse. The very best Argentine horses are now being cloned because of their DNA and qualities and many of the best clubs are reluctant to sell.
It’s like Formula One
“When it comes to playing polo, the player has the brain, but the horses have the legs and the heart. It’s like Formula One, you may have the best driver but if he hasn’t got the best car, he’s going to struggle and that’s the same with polo horses. They are bred to play and they enjoy the adrenaline rush as much, if not more, than the players. And the horses know when to switch on and off. They are wonderful athletes and, for example, they don’t get as nervous as Arabian horses do. They know how to relax and connect with their riders and owners.
“That said, being an owner of a polo horse for a player is a totally different mindset and that is why we have the breeding programme here in Mallorca. We provide horses and all the equipment for people starting out but eventually they go on to buy their own gear and horse,” Leo explained.
“The trick? No, there’s no magic word when it comes to learning to play polo. Well ok, there are three - practice, practice and practice - and in a perfect world one needs to train at least three times per week because that way you don’t get bored and lose interest. On the contrary, you progress, improve and develop a closer bond with your horse,” he explained.
“So, we’re more of an academy than a competitive club. We also provide boarding and stabling for horses which are fully taken care of and the horses all roam together in paddocks. Horses are very social animals, they like to be together and out in the open air, and that is how we care for them and that is how the public, when they visit the estate, can see them.
Open to the public
“And every Sunday evening from 5pm onwards, depending on the heat, we hold free polo exhibition games for the public with optional wine tastings, although people need to book due to space,” he said.
“The Sunday afternoons are a great way of enjoying the polo lifestyle as a player or as a spectator.
“Like I said, the academy, which also caters for dressage riders, is recreational, it’s fun, it’s about sowing the seed for young people who are interested in polo and those who have ambitions to making it to the top.
“We therefore want to promote our polo more to local residents on the island, attract more members and introduce people to the polo lifestyle, which could eventually be sponsors, or patrons, owners of clubs and teams,” Leo said. “We coach from Wednesdays to Sundays, we’re multi-lingual and host a series of regular events,” Leo said.
For more information: www.cancavallblau.com and www.paloaltopolo.com.