Thailand Ladies International 2016
By Alice Gipps
Once again players from all over the world gathered for the Ladies International at the idyllic Polo Escape resort, in Thailand. With competitive 3-4 goal teams taking part with two professionals per team, including one man, the polo was fast and exciting for both the players and spectators.
The players arrived a few days prior to the tournament to acclimatise and choose their mounts from the 80 impeccably looked-after horses at the club. The first game to take place was a battle of the sexes. The men’s team totalled 6 goals while the women’s team came to 3 goals. Making use of the goal advantage with tight marking and tough play lead the women to an impressive 7-4 goal win over the men.
The following day the main Ladies International games were incredibly close with only one goal difference between all the results on the first day. British powerhouse Sarah Wiseman was on fire for the Frangipani team. Having played with both Abigail Slater and Daryl Yeap previously in Malaysia they knew what to expect from each other while the Wild Rose team was driven by the talented no.4 player Diego Gomez, helped immensely by up and coming Argentine star Camila Rossi at no. 3. Georgina Brittain from the UK who had showed off her strong 0 goal skills during the battle of the sexes also contributed greatly to this teams success on the first day. White Orchid were trailing slightly after their first games but retained their momentum by the final day and this team with Robin Lourvanij and Alice Gipps who have played together many times before came back with a vengeance with the help of Fernando Rivera and Fiola Rose Labron Johnso to win overall by two goals. Franipani and Wild Rose drew in equal second place.
A truly enjoyable, well-run event as always, Polo Escape’s hostess Robin Lourvanij also organised spectacular evening events with incredible food, cocktails and live music. The main event included the launch of the Fiola Rose Swim wear collection in which two of the players, Camila Rossi and Caroina Brown Zavaleta helped Fiola Rose Labron Johnson model in the fashion show on the catwalk especially erected around the infinity pool.
Teams:
White Orchid:
Robin Lourvanij (0), Fiola Rose Labron Johnson (0), Alice Gipps (0), Fernando Rivera (3)
Frangipani:
Daryl Yeap (0), Abigail Slater (0), Sarah Wiseman (2), Brian Orosco (2)
Wild Rose:
Crolina Brown Zavaleta (-1), Georgina Brittain (0), Camila Rossi (1), Diego Gomez Echavarri (3)