10th Annual Polo Awards 2015
The 10th Annual Polo Awards was held at Guards Polo Club last night. Perrier-Jouët champagne and a three-course dinner delighted 300 guests and enabled them to celebrate the achievements of the 2014 season in fine style.
The night kicked off with Max Charlton being awarded The Tally Ho Farm Most Outstanding British Professional for the second year running. He later celebrated his win with a spectacular dance-off against Charlie Wooldridge.
An up and coming, Jack Hyde of Zacara, took home The Talacrest Young Player of the Year Award, a generous bursary of £15,000 to the winner. He thanked both John Collins, who has already donated over £50,000 to the youth programme, and also his father, Chris Hyde, whose arena handicap has recently been raised to 10 goals in the area.
The Most Outstanding High Goal Patron went to Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhahaprabha in the first season of his King Power Team, who reflected on their Gold Cup defeat with good grace, “We tried so hard to be in the final of The Gold Cup and we did that, and though we eventually lost I know we achieved something.”
Adolfo Cambiaso won three awards. As well as being presented with Awards for The Most Outstanding High Goal Team along with his Dubai teammates Rashid Albwardy, Diego Cavanagh and Ali Paterson, he also went home with the Most Outstanding High Handicap Player Award, and a spot on the Thai Polo Club World Dream Team alongside Augustin Merlos, Gonzalito Pieres and Pite Merlos.
Urs Schwarzenbach, patron of the Black Bears, received a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award. Described by Brig. John Wright as, “Bold, outspoken and generous to a fault,” Urs delighted the audience with a well-received speech, detailing the ins and outs of his time as an HPA Steward.
As always, the magnificent HPA Victor Ludorum Trophies were awarded for the previous season at 6, 8, 12, 15 and 18 goal levels, to the well deserving Rigby & Rigby, AFB, Black Eagles, Cadenza Juniors (who last year won the 12 goal accolade) and Dell Park, who’s Nikolai Bahlsen told us winning the award was “Very special.”
The auction of a Black Bears’ embryo raised £9,000 for Tusk, a charity who fund conservation, community development and environmental education across Africa, and also The Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund, who fight poverty in Uganda through Education. The embryo, by Schindler out of Alicia, one of the late Javier Novillo Astrada’s best mares.
The Awards Comprised:
The Guards Polo Club Most Outstanding High Handicap Player (8-10):
Adolfo Cambiaso
The Tiffany & Co. Most Outstanding High Goal Team: Dubai (Rashid Albwardy, Diego Cavanagh, Adolfo Cambiaso, Ali Paterson)
The Krusovice Most Outstanding High Goal Patron: Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhahaprabha
The Tally Ho Farm Most Outstanding British Professional: Max Charlton
The Polofix Most Outstanding High Goal Pony: Open Galactica
The La Martina HPA Lifetime Achievement Award: Urs Schwarzenbach
The Baku Guardians HPA Victor Ludorum Awards:
6 Goal: Rigby & Rigby (Jake Rigby, Jenny Rigby, Matias Amaya, Grant Collett)
8 Goal: AFB (Clive Reid, Henry Porter, Sebastian Dawnay, Peter Webb)
12 Goal: Black Eagles (Jonathan Munro Ford, Jack Hyde, Johnny Good/ Ollie Cudmore, Chris Hyde)
15 Goal: Cadenza Juniors (Charlie Pidgley, Zac Hagedoorn, Max Charlton, Richard Le Poer)
18 Goal: Dell Park (Nikolai Bahlsen, Richard Le Poer, Max Charlton, Malcolm Borwick)
The King Power Polo Recognition Award:
Gerry Gibb, Scorekeeper at Guards Polo Club for 30 years
The Talacrest Young Player of the Year Award: Jack Hyde
The Thai Polo Club World Dream Team:
1. Adolfo Cambiaso, 2. Augustin Merlos, 3. Gonzalito Pieres, 4. Pite Merlos
Photograph: Chris Adkins presents Max Charlton with The Tally Ho Farm Most Outstanding British Professional Award
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