Sunday, 20 September 2026
Cool weather, perfect conditions for these extraordinary horses to perform at their very best, a large crowd and, on the field, five chukkers played almost without pausing for breath. The 2026 Open de France BARNES final will go down as one of the finest, and certainly one of the fastest, in the tournament’s 26 editions: very few stoppages, few penalties, long runs, spectacular golazos and a bunch of youngsters who set the game alight, impressing even those discovering polo for the first time at Chantilly on Sunday. Kazak eventually took their revenge over Akasha, 10-9, after a breathtaking final chukker. A few hours earlier, the SkinCeuticals Women’s Open de France had crowned Why Not and a regal Hazel Jackson after an emphatic 8-1 victory over Augustinus Baden.
Kazak: Aguettant’s revenge, breathtaking youngsters
Sébastien Aguettant had been waiting five years for this revenge. Beaten 12-5 by La Magdeleine, now Akasha, in the 2021 Open de France final, the Kazak captain had chosen to put his faith in youth this year. Extreme youth, in fact… and on Sunday at Chantilly, it simply took over.
The oldest of Kazak’s three professionals, Teodoro Lacau, has only just turned 24. Alongside him, Pedro Chavanne and Leon Donoso – 33 years old between them – produced a dazzling final. Golazos, long runs, improbable plays, very few fouls and, above all, all ten of Kazak’s goals scored by the three of them: four for Chavanne, four for Donoso and two for Lacau.
On the other side, another youngster was determined to make life difficult for them. Ciro Urturi, 20, scored four of Akasha’s nine goals, including their first two, getting his team going and keeping them in touch in a game Kazak nevertheless seemed to have under control. 2-1, 4-3, 6-5 and then 8-6: Kazak led at the end of every chukker. But never by enough to breathe easily.
And certainly not in the closing minutes. Trailing 10-6 in the final period, Akasha stormed back to 10-9 within a matter of minutes. On the last play, the equaliser even seemed to be there at the end of a mallet. It took a miraculous save by the Kazak defence right in front of their goal line to deny Akasha a tenth goal and send the match into overtime. This was not one for the faint-hearted.
At 24, Teodoro Lacau therefore almost qualified as the patriarch of this young bunch, something that amused him after the match: “I felt a bit like a dad. I didn’t have much to do, really – just make sure I didn’t disrupt the team, and they did everything!”
But “Dad” had made a prediction. Kazak had lost 11-6 to Akasha when the teams first met earlier in the tournament: “I told them on the very first day that when we played them again, we were going to beat them. And that’s what happened.”
Then came the difficult task of choosing the best player of the final. Pedro Chavanne and Leon Donoso had both made such an impact on the game that there was very little to separate them. But a choice had to be made: Chilean Leon Donoso was named MVP and, at just 16, became the youngest MVP in Open de France history.
And perhaps that is ultimately the image to remember from this final. Of the 19 goals scored, 14 came from Teodoro Lacau, Pedro Chavanne, Leon Donoso and Ciro Urturi – four players, the oldest of whom has only just turned 24. On Sunday we watched them contest an Open de France final; it would hardly be surprising to see them, a few years from now, playing another final on Palermo’s cancha 1.
Results
KAZAK 10 – 9 AKASHA
Kazak (17): Sébastien Aguettant 0; Pedro Chavanne 5 (4 goals); Leon Donoso 5 (4 goals); Teodoro Lacau 7 (2 goals).
Akasha (17): Alexandre Garese 0; Ciro Urturi 3 (4 goals); Facundo Fernández Llorente 7 (2 goals); Tommy Beresford 7 (3 goals).
Score progression: 2-1 / 4-3 / 6-5 / 8-6 / 10-9.
BPP (Best Playing Pony): Irenita Risa, played by Facundo F. Llorente.
AACCP BPP (Best Argentine Stud Book-registered horse): Flojura Pulpera, played by Leon Donoso.
MVP by Drimmer: Leon Donoso (Kazak).
Amateur MVP by SoftShield: Sébastien Aguettant (Kazak).
Standing Rock Fair Play Award: Eternal J.
SkinCeuticals Women’s Open de France
WHY NOT AND HAZEL JACKSON REIGN SUPREME
The afternoon of celebration had begun with the final of the SkinCeuticals Women’s Open de France. It promised a great contest between the only two unbeaten teams from the qualifying stage: Lia Salvo’s Augustinus Bader and Hazel Jackson’s Why Not. But the expected duel quickly turned into a one-sided affair: 8-1 to Why Not.
Augustinus Bader never rediscovered the organisation and control they had shown in their first three matches. Too many fouls proved particularly costly against a player such as Hazel Jackson, who rarely turns down such gifts: Why Not led 5-1 at half-time, with Jackson converting four penalties.
Behind on the scoreboard, Lia Salvo’s team then had little choice but to loosen their defensive structure in an attempt to get back into the game. But the bleeding continued. Why Not added three unanswered goals in the second half, while Salvo, usually so reliable from the penalty line, let several opportunities slip away.
Jackson, however, refused to put such a convincing victory down to her opponents having a bad day: “I don’t think they played badly. I think we just had our best game of the tournament. The girls played with so much discipline and our defence was phenomenal. I think the score showed that. We were so strict defensively that I don’t think we really allowed them to play.”
The British player certainly left her mark on this year’s Open: seven of Why Not’s eight goals in the final, 22 throughout the tournament and the SoftShield Best Professional Player award. Her teammate Lorena Renggli received the Drimmer Best Amateur Player award.
And, as always in polo, the story also ends with a horse. The Best Playing Pony of the final was El Overo Z7 Michinga, played by Hazel Jackson. The mare now belongs to Jackson but was given to her by Sheikha Maitha Al Maktoum, patron of UAE Polo Team, and Lucas Monteverde. “She’s incredible – she has an amazing heart,” said Jackson. Another lovely chapter in the shared story linking Hazel Jackson, Lia Salvo and the El Overo Z7 breeding programme.
Hazel ultimately summed up these three weeks in one simple sentence: “It’s been the best month in Chantilly that I can remember.”
So did we!
Results
WHY NOT 8 – 1 AUGUSTINUS BADER
Augustinus Bader (16): Alicia Gariador 3 (1 goal); Mendoza Houben 1; Paloma Lauro 4; Lia Salvo 8.
Why Not (16): Allegra Barnaba 1; Lorena Renggli 2; Hana Grill 3 (1 goal); Hazel Jackson 10 (7 goals).
Score progression: 1-2 / 1-5 / 1-6 / 1-8.
BPP (Best Playing Pony): El Overo Z7 Michinga, played by Hazel Jackson (Why Not).
Best Amateur Player by Drimmer: Lorena Renggli.
Best Professional Player by SoftShield: Hazel Jackson.