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reFRESH 59 – Gay League

The Game of Kings Simon Sylvester investigates the glamour, thrills and spills of life in the Gay Polo League.

First emerging from training exercises held by the Persian more than 2,000 years ago, the of polo carries with it a serious measure of history. Demanding a high degree of control from a rider over his mount, the sport became highly valued throughout middle and eastern as a way of improving close quarters riding. It became especially popular amongst the nobility, who held equestrianism in high regard as a measure of their status. As a result, polo is now known throughout Asia as the ‘Game of Kings’. Spreading east from Persia, there is early evidence of polo in the cultures of Tibet and Japan, in Constantinople, in China, Egypt and throughout India. It is from this latter country that the modern incarnation of the sport has its closest roots. Taking the name of the wooden bamboo ball, or ‘pulu’, governors and officers of the British colonial rule formalised the rules of the sport and introduced it to the West. While the original Persian cavalry manoeuvres might have featured opposing teams of around a hundred players, modern-day polo is a somewhat tighter affair of four-a-side. Mounted on specially-bred , each player uses a long mallet to knock the ball around a ground of 300 by 200 feet with the aim of scoring most goals. Given that the mallet is essentially a lethal weapon, the players must also wear helmets, shin protectors, kneepads, gloves and other safety gear. The horses, too, are protected from an errant swing by leather breastplates and lengths of cloth wrapped around their legs. As well as being frantically fast and dangerous, the sport is married to a money culture of off-pitch glamour, all those centuries of aristocracy honing a style and sense of pageantry specific to polo alone. It is frequently identified as an elitist game, but the barriers are coming down, thanks in the part to the Gay Polo League.

The Gay Polo League Chip McKenney fell in love with the sport the first time he played it. Although he was already a keen horseman before trying polo, it was after barely six months of learning and playing that he first conceived the Gay Polo League, initiating the group with the ambition of meeting and engaging with other gay men and women while enjoying the thrill of the sport he loved. Horses have always played a large part in Chip’s life. He was brought up in the but his mother was English, and so he spent a great deal of his childhood on both sides of the Atlantic. He first started riding during the family summers he spent in . It wasn’t long before this casual interest became a passion and at thirteen years old, his parents bought him his first horse. Chip’s skill developed to the point where he was competing in national and international show events, retiring at the age of fifty. With such an extensive horse-riding background, making the transition to polo was perhaps easier for Chip than most newcomers to the sport, but there’s a great deal more to it than skill in riding. As a frenetic and intensely physical team game played at high speed, polo demands a great deal of athleticism, coordination and courage. “For most,” says Chip, “polo is a unique adrenaline sport. The speed, the strategy, the power of the polo , the history, the beautiful destinations and many, many more things make the sport appealing. There are personal challenges on several levels – , coordination, learning the game and participating as a team to name a few.” In the years since taking up polo, he has not only become a passionate player of the game, but also a keen advocate of introducing newcomers to the sport. His ambition was twofold: to use the Gay Polo League as a way of meeting like-minded people, and also to

1 reFRESH 59 – Gay Polo League make the sport more accessible for members of the League. In both respects, he’s had spectacular success. Despite starting with only three members – the very first LGBT organisation to represent the sport – the League has spread worldwide by word-of-mouth and now consists of dozens of players. The current club roster boasts people of all ages and backgrounds, from artists and electricians to writers and sales directors, brokers and bankers, TV executives, chefs, therapists, students, doctors and designers. Despite these disparate backgrounds, all share their love of the excitement, glamour and rewards of playing polo. It says something about the success of the League that many of these new members had never even sat on a horse before attending a training session. For those nervous beginners, the GPL have a well-structured introduction to the sport. In the first instance, there isn’t actually a horse in sight – instructed by professional polo coaches, the new members will be shown how to hold and swing the mallets. These unmounted sessions are designed to teach the basics and, once mastered, the horses are factored into the lessons. Beginners will first learn about tack – , , martingales and so on – how best to hold the , the proper position in the , and the first rudiments of the uniquely awkward skill of hitting the ball while on horseback. The challenges increase drastically as the student improves, moving on to the ‘hooking’ of other player’s mallets, ‘bumping’ them out of the way – which is every as physical as the name suggests – and right up to striking the ball while galloping at full speed. Once all these skills have been mastered, then players can really start getting to grips with the strategies, teamwork and gamesmanship of this centuries-old sport. Over the last two years, the GPL has evolved into a highly competitive outfit, boasting several teams and bolstering the profile of polo in California and throughout the United States. It’s pleasing to see that for all the press of competition, the League remains characterised by a sense of camaraderie, mutual support and the nurturing of new players. Little wonder, then, that the group is now spreading so rapidly on a tide of positive press – achieving success beyond anything Chip had anticipated. “Originally, we started with three members, all based in Los Angeles. Today, we have four active chapters, based in LA, San Francisco, New York and Wellington in Florida. Membership continues to grow beyond the United States, and we have members in , , England, and . We see the Gay Polo League as a truly international organisation. Ultimately we hope to host gay polo teams from all across the globe.” To this aim, the GPL recently organised the first ever international gay polo tournament in Wellington, Florida, widely considered as the home of American equestrianism and a worldwide centre for polo. The tournament was a resounding success, earning the support of local businesses and recognition from international polo bodies. Many of the club’s international members flew in specifically to play at the tournament. “It was an unprecedented event. It was extraordinary. It brought significant awareness of the GPL from the polo world and beyond. I think atmosphere is key to our success. The tournaments are organised with the keen understanding that every aspect of the event must contribute to the experience. With that in mind, the atmosphere at all our events is inclusive, welcoming, fun, energised, competitive and forward-thinking.” This progressive attitude is winning the GPL plaudits from both within the sport and from gay organisations worldwide, and Chip now has even higher aims within his sights. “We have aspirations to expand the league in the US and around the world. We’ll continue to organise and host international polo matches for gay polo players. And eventually, we’d like to establish it as an event in the gay Olympics.”

2 reFRESH 59 – Gay Polo League

And one expects, of course, that the Gay Polo League are doing their share in maintaining the classic style and pageantry inherent to polo. “More so, in fact, because we’re there en masse. We have an even greater impact as a team. Yes, polo is a traditional and historic sport, and the GPL embraces those qualities. But our membership also includes many gay men and women from the fashion and design world – so you know we’re going to push up the fashion bar a notch or two!”

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Chip’s Top Tips “My top tips for becoming a polo player are, first of all, to locate the best polo school in your area and sign up for lessons. Take as many lessons as you can afford financially and time-wise, because the more time and effort you put into learning how to play, the quicker your polo skills will improve. Attending local matches to watch more advanced players is another piece of good advice, because you can see their skills and strategies in action. But the most important advice I can offer anyone interested in polo is simply to start. Because once you do, you’ll love it.”

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To find out more about the sport and the players of the Gay Polo League, go to www.gaypolo.com

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