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place in July. A leading player herself,
her team Cowdray Vikings has won the
championship at Cowdray Park three times
in the past four years. On the subject of
women’s polo, Pearson is effusive. ‘I think
the UK has done as much as any other
country to encourage women to take up
polo, especially through The Pony Club,
where there is a level playing field for girls
and boys,’ she says. ‘Most clubs now have
a ladies tournament on their fixture list and
I’m pleased to say that Cowdray Park Polo
Club was at the forefront with the British
Ladies Polo Championship, which is going
from strength to strength.’
But why are we seeing such an increase
in interest now? Maureen Brennan, founder
of Virginia International Polo Club, puts it
down to one woman. ‘In my opinion, the
primary reason women’s polo has taken off
in the past 10 to 12 years is Sunny Hale’s
formation of the WCT. [It] began in the
US, but is now found in several countries
around the world.
‘The WCT provided a path where
women could be involved in a year-long
series of qualifying matches that made them
eligible for the finals in Wellington during
the US Open. […] It raised the level of the
quality of women’s polo games and, in turn,
the level of female players has improved
across the board. Over the past few years,
the WCT Finals (as well as qualifiers around
the country) has had a junior invitational
and now many of those juniors are playing
in the regular WCT Finals. We are still
waiting for our next Sunny, but I see a few
prospects in our midst.’
Brennan goes on to cite other trends,
such as individual players and women’s
teams working with coaches, which indicates
a higher level of organisation. ‘The UK
and Argentina, over the past few years,
have been developing genuine women’s
seasons,’ she adds. ‘A season being a
contiguous series of tournaments in
a centralised location, allowing teams to stay
together and practise together, which all leads
towards improved teamwork, individual skills
and higher quality strings, as well as a sense of
working towards something.
‘And finally, there is real potential for
women to have a professional career in
Right:
Milagros
Fernández Araujo won
the first Women’s Open
Polo Championship last
December.
Below:
Hazel
Jackson playing for the
USA at Guards Polo
Club in 2017
