DESERT POLO
Amr Zedan with Nacho Figueras
lads’ trip, complete with camel rides, a concert in the futuristic, giant mirror cube Maraya and a photoshoot in front of the most iconic rock of all, the Lyihyan Bin Kuza (AlFarid) The venue for the polo had to be seen to be believed. Set against a dramatic rock formation, a vast deck was laid out, complete with luxury lounge seating and arena-length buffet. Floodlit and timed to sunset-perfection, the optics where overwhelming. Horses from Sotogrande and Dubai had arrived weeks before, with Rodolfo Ducos and Adam Snowdon amongst those lending their expertise to this phenomenal venue, while 10-goal superstar Juan-Martin Nero, who weeks earlier had broken his leg in the Argentine Open, generously manned the scoreboard!
F
our teams took part in this inaugural tournament. Polo icon, Nacho Figueras captained the Amaala team, named after a new, upmarket tourist destination just a few hours away from AlUla, on the north-east coast of the Red Sea. This impressive resort will feature three separate polo locations, including one field located on a private island. The Richard Mille squad was represented by its long- time ambassador Pablo MacDonough, the AlUla team was captained by Adolfo himself while the fourth team, Al Nahla, supported by Bentley, was based around Pelon Sterling. Also along for the ride was a heady mix of Middle-Eastern and Euro blue-bloods: young Sheikha Alia Al Maktoum from Dubai, HRH Prince Abbas bin Ali Bin Nayef of Jordan, senior Saudi royal HRH Prince Sultan Al Faisal, the Marquess of Blandford, aka George Spencer-Churchill of Blenheim splendour, and HSH Prince Carl Oettingen-Wallerstein With such a mélange of top-flight pros and a cohort of amateurs with a strong passion for polo but juggling busy lives and little time to relax, this could have developed into a polo snooze-fest. However it was a terrifically competitive tournament – with the game’s greatest athletes quickly adapting to the frantic pace
“THE ALULA VALLEY IS ONE OF THE
MOST FASCINATING PLACES ON EARTH. A VAST EXPANSE OF EXTRAORDINARY
TOPOGRAPHY THAT CONJURES UP A
LUNAR LANDSCAPE” EBE SIEVWRIGHT
of the sand format. The games culminated in a showdown between Adolfo Cambiaso’s AlUla team and Nacho Figueras’s Amaala squad. No-one could have predicted the result, but few were surprised that it ended in Nacho’s favour. One would have expected Cambiaso to have won if that had been a conventional setting, but this was anything but. Navigating the complex art of entertainment and competition, the world’s number one player gave plenty of room to his team-mates but had three experienced players to deal with - Prince Carl himself who owns a polo club in Germany, turned out to be a rigorous lieutenant for Figueras. Nacho too had some magic moments and to the delight of the Amaala design team, put their name on the map by winning the trophy. Post-match the La Dolfina team announced a partnership with
the Saudi Polo Federation, a million photographs were taken before Nacho hitch-hiked his way on to the La Dolfina team jet heading back to Riyadh. Winter at Tantora has many music, art, archaeology, literary and sports events on its calendar, and all the luxury tent camps and restaurants will be buzzing throughout the season. However, what better way to grab the attention of the skeptical outsiders than this gloriously imagined creation of polo... in the desert!
110
conversation with Adolfo Cambiaso
Our author Ebe Sievwright in
The AlUla Valley was a breathtaking location for this new desert polo tournament
GUARDS POLO CLUB OFFICIAL YEARBOOK 2020
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