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TONY RAMIREZ/IMAGESOFPOLO.COM
A L F R E D O L A L O R D E P I L A R H E A D Q U A R T E R S , P A L E R M O , A R G E N T I N A , N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 7
A C T I O N
W O M E N ’ S O P E N
The best female players from around the world flocked to Argentina to take
part in the first women’s competition of its kind, writes Carolina Beresford
Last year saw the rise of women across all
spheres of the professional and sporting
world, and polo was not exempt from this
revolution. Our sport finally gave women
a place in the Cathedral of Polo: Palermo.
The first Women’s Open Championship saw
six teams from 23–30 goals (women’s
handicaps) compete for the most prestigious
title in female polo.
With the Ellerstina organisation backing
one team, and La Dolfina supporting three
others, the championship promised to show
a side of women’s polo few had seen before.
After several intense matches, La Dolfina
Brava and Ellerstina qualified for the final. On
Lía Salvo (in black) on the ball
pursued by Nina Clarkin (right)
paper, Ellerstina were the favourites, with
a team handicap of 30 over Brava’s 27. But
La Dolfina Brava, captained by the only
10-goal female player in history, Nina Clarkin,
fought tooth and nail to dominate the game.
After two tight chukkas, La Dolfina Brava
pulled away, going one-up in the third (4–3).
Mía Cambiaso, and sisters Milagros and
Candelaria Fernández Araujo, kept their
momentum over the next two chukkas (5–3,
6–3), but it came crashing down in the sixth.
Ellerstina’s Hazel Jackson and Sarah
Wiseman managed to control their opponents
and win back possession.Three quick goals
by Lía Salvo gave Ellerstina the tie just as the
final bell rang. Extra chukka: no one could
quite believe the comeback Jackson, Salvo,
Wiseman and Clara Cassino had pulled off.
The stands roared as the players came
back out onto the field for the last. The
chukka gained intensity by the minute, until
Clarkin won a foul to get a 30-yard penalty.
As cool as ever, the British player scored
to give La Dolfina Brava the first Women’s
Open Championship title.
