Harilela Win Princess Cup
polo event

Prince Abdullah of Pahang,Malaysia  presented the princess's cup to the winner Harilela the next level team. 

The winner team Harilela the next level.

Aron Harilela's birthday is the same day that their team win the princess's cup.

Harilela won the 7th Mercedes Benz-B Grimm Thai Polo Open in style by thrashing Jogo Elevation 8 - 1 in the final.

Led by Birthday boy Aron Harilela, Harilela claimed the coveted HRH Princess Maha Chakri SirindhornCup.

This was the most successful Thai Polo Open to date with close to two thousand in attendance. The event utilised over 200 horses, 7 teams and 15 professional polo players to mark the event.

Seven teams entered this time round, Harilela, Royal Pahang, RMPA, Bunga Raya, Jogo Elevation, B Grimm Insead including the home squad, Thai Polo Club, led by Dato’ Harald Link himself – he recently received this title from Crown Prince Abdullah of Pahang, president of the Royal Malaysian Polo Association. The Thai line-up included former England national captain Andrew Hine, while Royal Pahang had enlisted 7-goaler Gaston Moore, nephew of the late, great, Eduardo Moore, in whose sporting footsteps he is certainly following with aplomb.

The coveted prize for the Open is the HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Cup, played to raise funds for the Chitralada Vocational School and the Princess Mother Charity Foundation. The tournament is played as part of the Asia League, which was formed by Crown Prince Abdullah in 2004.

Mr.Harald Link from Thai Polo team.

Throughout the tournament play was close, with all squads acquitting themselves well. Thai Polo Club gained an honourable third place, having defeated Royal Pahang 7-5 in the play-off; and at the end of the day the finalists were Harilela The Next Level, formed by Hong Kong businessman Aron Harilela, and Sattinder Garcha’s Jogo Elevation. Garcha’s supporters were hoping for a personal Open hat-trick.

The teams were led onto the field by young players of the future – six to eleven-year-olds from Nunthinee Tanner’s flourishing junior polo programme; and by the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, who also played during the course of the tournament.

Harilela had enlisted two well-known British players, 6-goal Nacho Gonzalez and 3-goal Matt Lodder, as well as the familiar Hissam Ali Hyder, recently raised to 5-goals. For Jogo Elevation, Garcha had brought in as strong man 7-goal Argentine professional Gerardo Manzini, Quizer Ambak and a leading Indian player, Simiram Sergil.

In the first thirty seconds of the final, Garcha opened the account for Jogo with an excellent field goal, but before the end of the first chukka Harilela were ahead 2-1 and continued to lead for the rest of the four-chukka game. Thanks to Gonzalez, Harilela The Next Level had a 4-1 advantage by treading-in time. Gonzalez and Aron Harilela increased the difference to 7-1 in the penultimate chukka, and Jogo Elevation never really got back into the running. A superb field goal from Lodder gave Harilela victory, 8-1.

The cup was presented by Crown Prince Abdullah.

Around two thousand guests attended the final, among them Privy Councillor Air Chief Marshall Kamthon Sindhvananda. Following the presentation, cocktails were enjoyed in the renowned Chukka Bar, followed, as the sun went down, by a magnificent display of fireworks.

 
Luxury open air maquee.Only at Thai Polo Open competition.

The audiences sit in the free style  to see the game.

Chukka Bar at Thai Polo Club.

La Martina the world class polo shirt, accessory & equipment

The Club house of Thai Polo

Luncheon

La Martina shop

Mini Game from sponsor booth

Stomping divots.

Kid polo leading the teams in the final match

Polo Action

Very beautiful atmosphere of Thai Polo Club.

THAI POLO OPEN

PRINCESS CUP

Coveted Prize Winners

(for photographer please contact : www.nicolegrunwell.com)