Feb 06, 2018
The USPA encourages military participation at all Member Clubs. Please see below for a list of tournaments and awards available to all active members and clubs.
USPA Military Tournaments
The USPA has developed two national events and four military circuit events to support the military polo community and help in the development of partnerships to increase military participation in the sport of polo:
(1) 0-12 Outdoor - Commander-in-Chief Cup
(2) 0-12 Arena - Commander-in-Chief Cup
(3) 4-6 Outdoor – General S. Brown
(4) 0-4 Outdoor – General George S. Patton, Jr.
(5) 3-6 Arena – General Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller
(6) 0-3 Arena – Admiral Chester W. Nimitz
USPA Armed Forces Committee Trophies and Awards
Commander-in-Chief Cup: Perpetual trophy awarded to winners of the Outdoor and Arena Commander-in-Chief Cup and maintained at the Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame in Lake Worth, Florida. The Commander-in-Chief Cup was the brainchild of the USPA Armed Forces Committee which envisioned the trophy as a means to create an annual series of polo games in the USPA similar to the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy which is played for by the three U.S. military service colleges. The trophy is named for the U.S. President who is the Commander-in-Chief of all U.S. military services under the U.S. Constitution. The Commander-in-Chief Cup was established in 2018.
Sgt Reckless Best Playing Pony Award: Sgt Reckless, a Mongolian pony, joined the Marines in Korea to carry ammunition to the front lines for the 75mm Recoilless Rifle Platoon of the 5th Marines - and she quickly earned the love and respect of all of the Marines that served with her. One of Reckless’ finest hours came during the Battle of Outpost Vegas in March of 1953 and Reckless was in the middle of it all. Enemy soldiers could see her as she made her way across the deadly “no man’s land” rice paddies and up the steep 45-degree mountain trails that led to the firing sites. During this five-day battle, on one day alone she made 51 trips from the Ammunition Supply Point to the firing sites, 95% of the time by herself. And as she so often did, she would carry wounded soldiers down the mountain to safety, unload them, get reloaded with ammo, and off she would go back up to the guns. What she did in this battle not only earned her the respect of all that served with her, but it got her promoted to Sergeant.
USPA Armed Forces Committee Military Polo Development Initiatives (MPDI): The Armed Forces Committee (AFC) annually allows clubs to submit requests to the AFC for reimbursement for two MPDI awards, $1,250 each, to support marketing circuit military events and $2,500 to help market the outdoor Commander-in-Chief Cup.
For additional information, please contact military@uspolo.org
Effective Date: Saturday, May 16, 2020
The suspension of USPA Tournaments and Events will be lifted for USPA Member Clubs in locales where hosting polo matches and tournaments is permitted under applicable state and local laws, executive orders and similar decrees. The USPA Member Clubs in these locales are encouraged to follow all such requirements of their state and local authorities with respect to polo operations. In addition, we also encourage all USPA Member Clubs to take the precautions recommended by the CDC. We are preparing a detailed list of best practices for USPA Member Clubs as they return to hosting USPA Tournaments and Events and plan to circulate these guidelines within the next week. We will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation closely and will notify you if we determine a different course of action is necessary.
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