Record entries for HH President of the UAE Polo Cup

A record number of eight teams from Saudi Arabia, Jordan and hosts UAE are preparing to fight for honours in Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club’s annual HH President of the UAE Polo Cup.

The showpiece event of the polo season, held under the patronage of Sheikh Falah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chairman of Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club, will be held at Abu Dhabi’s Royal club between March 18 and March 30.

ADCB, Abu Dhabi, Bin Drai Polo, Desert Palm, defending champions Ghantoot Land Rover and recent Gold Cup champions, Habtoor Polo are the UAE teams in the competition.
Sumaya Polo represents Jordan while Zedan Polo represents Saudi Arabia.

This year the event will feature two groups showcasing the talents of emerging Emirati players as well as medium-goal professionals from Argentina. Umpiring the match will be two officials who have presided over matches at the highest level of polo – the Argentine Open in Buenos Aires.

Hugo Barabucci, polo captain of Ghantoot Land Rover Polo team said he was looking forward to a high standard of polo at the season-closing event.

“It’s great to see so many teams entering the tournament, it really demonstrates how much the passion for polo in this country and around the Middle East is growing,” he said. “Now that we are approaching the end of the season, all the teams have had a few tournaments to practice and we are really looking forward to our biggest and toughest test so far this year.

“We have been practicing hard because we know the standard is going to be very high."

The teams were drawn into each of the two groups will face-off in the league. "The winning team will get two points and will play for a golden goal in case of a tie," said Oscar Colombres.

"Each team will have three professionals most of whom are coming from Argentina specially for this tournament," said Colombres.

"The pitches are in perfect condition and we can expect a high level of competition," he added.

The grand final will take place on March 30 with free family activities, picnic area and Carluccio’s corporate hospitality and restaurant. All games including the grand final are free to attend and open to the public.

Saeed Bin Houfan Al Mansoori, Vice-Chairman Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club said: “As always when His Highness Sheikh Falah hosts large tournaments we are throwing open our gates and inviting members of the public to come along and enjoy a high standard of polo and a great family day out.

“We believe that the great sport of polo should be accessible to anybody who is interested which is why we do not charge an entry fee. We are looking forward to an exciting two-weeks of top class polo.”

Dr  Majdi Abd El Muhdi, Corporate Communications, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank stated:  “This is the third year running that we have supported the Ghantoot’s HH President of the UAE Polo Cup and we are proud to continue our association with both the club and this tournament.

“We feel that Ghantoot’s brand of accessible, family-oriented polo sits very well with our commitment to promote both elite and grass-roots sport, ambition and team work to our community.

“Through the sponsorship of our team, ADCB Polo, we pay tribute to these great equestrian athletes and the brave men who ride them in the elegant, yet fast-paced game of polo."

The event is presented by Abu Dhabi Commercial bank and the Official Car is Land Rover and Premier Motors. It is supported by Bespoke Italia, Carluccio’s, Fiji Water and Prisa Polo.

Teams
 
No Name   Handicap

ADCB  (13)
1  Abdullah B. Desmal 1
2  Ramiro Cordero 2
3 Jorge Cernadas 5
4 Bruno Tassara 4

Abu Dhabi (11)
1 Faris Al Yabhouni  0
2 Alfredo Cappella   5
3 Patricio Neves  6
4  Ignacio Uriarte  0

Bin Drai (13)
1  Rashid Bin Drai   0
2  Nicolas Petracchi   4
3  Tomas Iriarte   4
4  Vieri Antinori   5

Desert Palm (12)
1 Tariq Albwardy  0
2 Ian Mathew Lodder 3
3 Matias Machado  4
4 Martin Valent   5
Sub Thomas Claesen  0

Ghantoot Land Rover (13)
1 Nasser Al Dhaheri 1
2  Rubin Reynal  0
3  Oscar Colombres  5
4  Hugo Barabucci  7

Habtoor (13)
1 Mohammed Al Habtoor 0
2 Matias Olano.   1
3 Guillermo Cutino  6
4 Fran Elizalde   6
Sub:  Ahmed Habtoor   0

Sumaya (13)
1  Faisal Yabroudi  0
2 Guy Gibarat   3
3 Augustin Canale  6
4 Pablo Vellila  4
Sub  Kareem Abughazaleh  0

Zedan (13
1 Amr Zedan    0
2 Manuel Elizalde   2
3 Matias "Bocha"   3
4 Ignacio "Nachi" Heguy 8

 
SCHEDULE 
Date Teams Field Time
18/03/2012 Ghantoot LR vs Abu Dhabi Sh Zayed field 4.30 pm
18/03/2012 Sumaya vs Habtoor Field 1 5.30 pm
 
20/03/2012 Zedan vs Desert Palm Field 2 4.30 pm
20/03/2012 Bin Drai vs ADCB Sh Zayed field 5.30 pm
 
22/03/2012 Sumaya vs Bin Drai Sh Zayed field 4.30 pm
22/03/2012 Ghantoot LR vs Zedan Field 2 5.30 pm
          
24/03/2012 Habtoor vs ADCB Field 2 4.30 pm
24/03/2012 Abu Dhabi vs Desert Palm Field 1 5.30 pm
          
26/03/2012 Ghantoot LR vs Desert Palm Field 2 4.30 pm
26/03/2012 Sumaya vs ADCB Sh Zayed field 5.30 pm
          
28/03/2012 Abu Dhabi vs Zedan Field 2 4.30 pm
28/03/2012 Habtoor vs Bin Drai Sh Zayed field 5.30 pm
          
30/03/2012 TBC vs TBC Field 1 4.00 pm
30/03/2012 TBC vs TBC Field 1 5.30 pm