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MONARCH EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY
C O L O R A D O O P E N , V A L I E N T E P O L O C L U B , L I T T L E T O N , C O L O R A D O , U S A , A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
A C T I O N
The debut of the 20-goal Colorado Open Polo
Championship at the Valiente Polo Club in
Littleton, Colorado, attracted four teams
and ended in a Saturday extravaganza – the
Rocky Mountain Polo Festival, featuring six
bands, family activities and refreshments.
Bob Jornayvaz’s Valiente team was
headlined by the number-one rated player
in the world, Adolfo Cambiaso. Jornayvaz
and Cambiaso were coming off a US Open
Championship win in Florida and looked
to be the pre-tournament favourite, but
anything can happen in polo and there
were many talented players on hand.
Cambiaso’s presence was historic,
marking the first time a 10-goal player
has appeared on Colorado polo fields
since Foxhall Keene competed in Colorado
Springs in 1896.
Victories over Colorado and Kentucky
left Valiente undefeated at 3-0 and facing
Colorado (2-1) in the tournament final.
In a replay of their earlier meeting
in the tournament, Valiente took an early
lead and coasted to an 8-7 win.
Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper
presented the MVP award to Diego
Cavanagh while congratulating the
Jornayvaz family for bringing world-class
polo to Colorado.
The festival was a fundraiser for the
Equine Partnership Program, a local
nonprofit organization that provides
therapy to at-risk children and adults.
‘We want to increase opportunities
for up-and-coming players to compete in
a tournament that will give them exposure
and the chance to improve their skills,’ said
tournament organizer, Rob Jornayvaz, who
anticipated making the Colorado Open
an annual event.
The main rule change in the 2017
Colorado Open allowed teams to bring the
ball into play immediately following a score,
as opposed to switching sides and returning
to the centre of the field for a throw-in. The
idea was to keep the game flowing and
easier to understand from the vantage point
of a spectator. Most of the players enjoyed
the rule because it made the ‘set plays’ much
more important and kept the game rolling.
C O L O R A D O O P E N
The inaugural tournament was a big success for Valiente, reports Alex Webbe
Pablo Spinacci in yellow,
followed by Bob Jornayvaz
and Kian Hall in blue and Rob
Jornayvaz (in yellow, far right)
