Bo Derek to open the 2013 IPC Season

Bo
Derek, America’s most famous “10” will open the 2013 season at the
International Polo Club

By Alex Webbe

 

Bo
Derek – still gorgeously recognizable since her 1980s smash hit 10 – will throw out the season’s first
polo ball for the opening cup matches and to launch a new season at the IPC.

 

And
not just any season – but the Club’s highly anticipated 10th Anniversary Season.
Perfect.

 

Ms.
Derek will do the opening day honors with the coin toss at the International
Polo Club on Sunday, January 6. The match begins at 3 p.m.

 

Opening
day competition will feature the finals of the season-opening, 20-goal Herbie
Pennell Cup.  To the delight of polo
fans, two high-goal polo teams will take the field in the sport’s most
beautiful polo stadium.

 

IPC
club president, John Wash, expects the 2013 polo tournament season will be the
best the Club has ever hosted.

 

During
the upcoming season, all eight of the world’s 10-goal polo players will compete
in IPC tournaments. With 10 goals being the highest handicap that can be
attained in polo, local fans are guaranteed to see the game’s most elite
players.

 

Along
with the top seven players from Argentina, including Adolfo
Cambiaso,
and David “Pelon” Stirling from Uruguay, the highest rated American player,
Julio Arellano, with 9 goals, will also bring his talents to IPC.

 

Some
of polo’s most prestigious tournaments are scheduled at IPC this season as
well.

 

“It
has taken a great deal of dedication and hard work to get to where we are
today,” said Wash. “We continue to attract not only the top players and
teams from around the globe,
but we have managed to attract and keep the top polo tournaments in North
America with the C.V. Whitney Cup, the USPA PIAGET Gold Cup, and the
prestigious USPA Maserati 109th U.S. Open Championship.”

 

On
opening day, additional horsepower will be on display as IPC also hosts a
preview
of SuperCar week, featuring dozens of high-end, high-performance Maseratis,
Ferraris,
and Lamborghinis.

 

 

“This 10th season, the Club is offering more
than just polo,” Wash added.
“We
feel that as the Club has developed and matured, it’s become a Sunday afternoon
destination for anyone looking for excitement and social interaction, along
with some of the best polo in the world.”

 

Count
Ms. Derek as one of those fans of ponies and polo.

 

A
consummate rider and breeder of horses, Ms. Derek has been known to visit the
Santa Barbara Polo Club from her neighboring Santa Ynez ranch.

 

As a
published author, Ms. Derek also wrote Riding
Lessons: Everything That Matters in Life I Learned from Horses
, a candid
look at the life of a California beach girl, who at a young age was thrown into
fame by becoming the epitome of California’s desirable “It Girl.”

 

“We’re
thrilled to have Bo on hand to help us celebrate the start of our 10th
anniversary season,” Wash says. “Being someone who loves horses and appreciates
polo at a world-class level, she’s a perfect choice.”