NEWS

Louis Devaleix, fresh off his victory in the San Jorge Open, has made a strong entrance into Argentina’s 2024 high-goal polo season. The triumph marks a significant milestone for his organization, La Fe, in the first major tournament of the spring season. Adding to the occasion, Devaleix had the opportunity to play alongside one of the sport's biggest names, Camilo "Jeta" Castagnola, the reigning Argentine Open champion. Their opponents? None other than the legendary Adolfo Cambiaso and his son Poroto, both celebrated champions of Palermo, with Poroto considered one of the top players in the world today.

Devaleix, who started his polo journey just four years ago, has quickly risen through the ranks, largely thanks to his partnership with Roberto “Robi” Bilbao, a seasoned player from Trenque Lauquen, Argentina. Together, they have built La Fe into a competitive organization and Bilbao has become much more than a teammate—he’s Devaleix’s business partner in their growing venture. The San Jorge victory is a testament to the hard work and determination, culminating in a significant win.

Before this, Devaleix had won the East Coast Open in 2021 at Greenwich Polo Club in Greenwich, Connecticut. While that victory was monumental for the team, the San Jorge Open has taken the organization to a new level. With his wife, Pamela, by his side and the continued growth of La Fe, Devaleix has his sights set on even greater achievements.

How does it feel to win the San Jorge Open?
“This is, without a doubt, the most important tournament I’ve ever won. For our organization, it means everything. If you think about it, it’s hard to say if we’ll ever get to play against Adolfo Cambiaso again in Argentina, especially at the Argentine Polo field. In Palermo, we likely won’t get that opportunity again. Just playing against him was a victory for us. I think we would have been happy even if we lost by a couple of goals. To add to it, he played with his children, Mia and Poroto.”

How was the experience of playing on the iconic Argentine polo field?
“It’s been a dream since I started playing with Robi four years ago. Every time we watched matches live, I would tell him that my dream was to play there someday. I didn’t expect it to happen so soon! We still have a chance to play there again in December if we do well in the República Cup, possibly even on Field 1. But it won’t be the same. Playing against the Cambiasos and alongside Jeta Castagnola was a dream come true.”

How did the opportunity to play with Jeta Castagnola come about?
“Robi arranged everything with him. A few weeks ago, Robi texted me on WhatsApp asking if I wanted to play in Palermo. Then he followed up, asking if I wanted to play against Cambiaso. At first, I thought it was a joke—I couldn’t believe it was serious. Initially, we called Hilario [Ulloa], with whom we won the East Coast Open a few years ago, but he couldn’t organize his horses. In the end, Robi spoke with Jeta, who was able to join us, and we started our season with a win.”

As a back, how was it to play and defend against the Cambiasos?
“Beyond Poroto and Adolfito, I’d like to highlight Mia, whom I had never faced before, and she played really well. Add to that their horses, which are exceptional. We played good mares, about five or six years old and Jeta brought his own, so it wasn’t just me defending—it was all four of us on the field.”

You started the season early this year; what’s next for your season in Argentina?
“I’ll be flying back and forth to the United States every week. Pamela will come with our daughter, Alina Kelley, once she can travel and they’ll stay until mid-December. As for the team, we’ll be playing the Metro Alto starting next week and several 14-goal tournaments that Robi wants me to participate to improve my game. We’re a big organization, with [Agustin] Baldo Palomeque, Lucas Diaz Alberdi and Julián Taurino helping us a lot and I’ll be playing with them. It’s important to encourage and motivate the team that works so hard to make everything run smoothly.”

We recently spoke with Pamela about her new baby colt, Midas. How is the breeding program going?
“Pamela is a huge advocate for breeding and the rescue work she does. We’re starting slowly, but Robi is fully invested in it. He already has mares that are 5 or 6 years old and are very good. He’s putting all his resources into improving the bloodlines and Pamela and I want to help him go as far as possible.”

You and Pamela are fully dedicated to polo; how do you balance parenthood with your commitments?
“Pamela is the key to it all. She stayed with our daughter so I could come here to play. The doctor already told her that in a few weeks, she’ll be able to play polo again, so the plan is for her to play a bit there and then come to Argentina to join some matches and tournaments as well.”

After three consecutive years playing the Gauntlet of Polo, are you planning to compete in the American high-goal circuit next year?
“Next year, we won’t be playing in the Gauntlet of Polo. Our main focus will be to continue investing in horses to build a team with a real chance of winning. We put together a 20-goal team in our first year and did better than in the last two years. This year, we didn’t have good results. Not reaching the finals is not acceptable for us. We’ll focus on breeding and playing the Autumn season in Argentina, which runs until June. This year, I played quite a bit, in Trenque Lauquen and Rosario, which helped me improve my game.”

All photos courtesy of ©Fernando Santamarina.