NEWS

On Monday, September 11, the polo community lost one of the sport’s greats: Juan Carlos Harriott Jr. passed away at the age of 86 in his hometown of Coronel Suarez, Argentina. Known by many as “Juancarlitos,” he won the Argentine Open 20 times and is considered one of the greatest players in polo history.

Born on October 28, 1936, the son of Juan Carlos Harriott Sr. and Elvira de Lusarreta grew up surrounded by horses. He obtained his first polo handicap in 1953 before moving up to 3 goals that same year. Juancarlitos quickly climbed the Argentine ranks and became known as a master of the backhand, renowned for his powerful backshot.

In 1957, he began playing polo alongside his father at the Coronel Suarez Polo Club in Coronel Suarez, Argentina. Founded in 1929, the club dominated Argentine polo from the late 1950s until the early 1980s. In 1961, Juancarlitos superseded his father’s 9-goal handicap and became the first 10-goal player in Argentina in seven years. Invited to the United States to play in the ‘60s and ’70s, Harriot’s style of play influenced and inspired many American Hall of Famers.

In 1974, Juancarlitos and the rest of the Coronel Suarez team (Alfredo Harriott, Horacio Heguy, Alberto Pedro) became the first team in history to reach a perfect 40-goal handicap. The all-star lineup maintained the impressive ranking for five years and later became the Argentina national team, playing against the U.S. in the Americas Cup, a tournament that Juancarlitos claimed four times (1966, 1969, 1979, 1980). His most notable accomplishments include winning the Argentine Open (20 times out of 26 consecutive appearances including 10 victories in a row), Tortugas Open eight times, the Hurlingham Open fifteen times, and the Triple Crown on four separate occasions (1972, 1974, 1975,1977). His polo ponies Burra, Cocotero and Pampeana won the Lady Susan Townley Cup awarded to the Best Playing Pony of the Argentine Open.

In 1976, Juancarlitos was the first polo player to be honored with the Golden Olimpia Award for the Most Outstanding Sportsman in Argentina. Other twentieth century recipients of the award included Diego Maradonna (soccer), Juan Manuel Fangio (Formula One driver) and tennis stars Gabriele Sabatini and Guillermo Villas. Harriott retired in 1981, and at his own request, his handicap was lowered to 9-goals after maintaining a 10-goal handicap for nearly 20 years. Following an illustrious career, Juancarlitos was inducted into the American Polo Hall of Fame in 2015.

A statue has been constructed to commemorate Juancarlitos’ legacy in his hometown of Coronel Suarez, Argentina, and his home club has renamed the main polo field in his honor. The late legend will forever be remembered for more than his historic record of wins, but for shaping the trajectory of high-goal players globally and setting a new standard of excellence in the sport.

All photos courtesy of ©Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame.