In the sport of polo, horses are said to be responsible for up to 75% of a player’s handicap.
One What and Why RI reader wanted to know, “How do international team polo horses get to Newport?”
The short answer: They don’t.
Overseas teams borrow horses from Newport Polo, “since traveling with horses is impractical,” according to the club’s website.
After each international match, the visiting team selects a horse that is honored as the “Best Playing Pony.”
Newport Polo plays against both domestic polo clubs and international teams over the course of the season, which lasts from June to September. This summer, overseas competitors include Morocco, Scotland, Singapore, Jamaica, England, Italy, Australia and Ireland.https://31a7ffaa0a98ac6d56027e11089f5470.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-45/html/container.html
Where polo ponies come from
As Newport Polo’s spectator guide explains, the term “polo ponies” is a holdover from the days when there were height restrictions on the horses that players could use. Today, they can use any horses that they want, but thoroughbreds are “favored for their speed, agility, and endurance.”
Many of the horses at Newport Polo are former race horses, now on their second careers. Several had previously raced at the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston, and one had a prestigious polo career in England, according to the horses’ online biographies.
“It takes several years to train a horse for competitive polo, requiring almost daily exercise and drills, often with training periods lasting several months before a month or two break,” Newport Polo’s website states.
Horses need specialized stalls on planes
Although the horses that you see playing at Newport Polo every Saturday haven’t traveled far, there’s a nice industry dedicated to horse air transportation.
No, your eyes are not deceiving you! This is a whole plane load of polo ponies flying to a competition in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
Pic courtesy of International Horse Transporters Lazcar International
The Dutta Corp., based in the equestrian haven of Wellington, Florida, offers expert grooms who travel on all flights and state-of-the-art jet stalls for horses. Their slogan is “We Give Horses Wings.”
And a Miami-based company, Lazcar International, specializes in flying not only horses but other livestock, such as cattle.