NEWS

Story Courtesy of Aspen Valley Polo Club/Sharon Robb.

In an emotionally-charged final, Richard Mille defended its title in the St. Regis World Snow Polo Championship on Friday, December 27 at Rio Grande Park in Aspen, Colorado, in front of a live crowd and worldwide ChukkerTV audience.

Defending champion Richard Mille, comprised of Louis Jarrige (3), Edouard Pan (4) and Pablo MacDonough (10) held off two-time champion U.S. Polo Assn. in the final seconds for a thrilling 7-6 victory. U.S. Polo Assn.’s U.S. licensing partner provided custom jerseys for all the teams competing.

Frenchman Louis Jarrige, turning in one of his finest career performances, was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) after scoring a game-high four goals and playing well defensively.

Delicioso, a 15-year-old bay gelding played by MacDonough, was the Polo Today’s Best Playing Pony. Barata, played by Grant Ganzi, was the American Polo Horse Association’s (APHA) Best Playing Pony and Ganzi was also awarded the Play of the Game. The APHA was created in 2006 by legendary Hall of Famer Sunny Hale to recognize polo ponies in America and encourage events that showcase them and the hardworking dedication of grooms.

For MacDonough, it was his second tournament victory in seven days. Last Saturday, December 21, he won a record seventh Argentine Open with La Dolfina and was the Most Valuable Player. MacDonough won his second snow polo title with two new teammates, Jarrige and Pan, who played well above their handicaps in a physical and hotly-contested four-chukker game.

"It feels great to win it two years in a row," MacDonough said. "We are so happy to win again. It was a tough game and the field of teams this year was better than last year. I can't say enough about this great event."

"This was really amazing," Pan said. "This is my first time playing in Aspen. The field was amazing. It was a really good game and it feels good to leave here with a win."

In the fourth and final chukker with the game tied at 5-5, Jarrige scored back-to-back goals within two minutes to give Richard Mille a 7-5 lead. The first goal he scored was on a great neckshot off a backshot pass from MacDonough and his second goal was on a breakaway after he picked up a loose ball.

Ganzi converted his third 15-yard penalty of the game to cut the lead to 7-6. Against a strong man defense by Richard Mille, U.S. Polo Assn. tried to mount an offensive attack. With about a minute left, Jarrige saved a potential Nic Roldan goal.

Roldan looked to be on his way to scoring the tying goal when Jarrige stopped his shot in the final seconds. Ganzi quickly backed the loose ball into the goal but the bell signifying the end of the game had rung one second earlier. No goal was made.

"It was tough, it could have gone either way in the end," Ganzi said. "The ball didn't really bounce our way. It is what it is, that's polo."

In addition to Jarrige's four goals, MacDonough scored two goals and Pan added one. For U.S. Polo Assn., Ganzi led with three goals, all on 15-yard penalty conversions and Roldan had two goals. The 15-goal rated team also received two goals on handicap but it didn't take Richard Mille long to erase the two-goal deficit by winning the first three throw-ins. Back-to-back goals by Jarrige tied the game at 2-2. Ganzi's first penalty conversion gave U.S. Polo Assn. back the lead (3-2) going into the second chukker.

After a mostly defensive second chukker, both teams came out more offensively in the third chukker but missed scoring opportunities. With two minutes left, MacDonough stole the ball from Roldan and scored to tie the game again 4-4. MacDonough scored the goal of the game hitting the ball out of the air and into the net to give Richard Mille its first lead of the game 5-4. Ganzi scored another penalty shot with 45 seconds left to tie the game, 5-5, and set up the thrilling final chukker.

One of Aspen's biggest international sporting events attracted some of the world's top players for the final stop on the 2019 World Polo Tour.

For the seventh consecutive year, Aspen Valley Polo Club owners Melissa and Marc Ganz hosted the star-studded event along with Nacho Figueras, the sport's ambassador and St. Regis Connoisseur, and his wife Delfina Blaquier.

"We could not get this done without the city of Aspen," said Marc Ganzi."It has the best parks and recreation department in the world. It's a privilege to play here. "

Melissa Ganzi stated, "Aspen, I think is the most special place, but it's nice for others to see it and it brings attention to the area. Having the best players in the world is unique and special. It's great for America. It's great for Aspen. It just helps generate more attention with these top players."

Past St. Regis World Snow Polo Championship Winners include:

2018 Richard Mille (Marc Ganzi, Martin Pepa, Pablo MacDonough)
2017 U.S. Polo Assn. (Grant Ganzi, Juancito Bollini, Nic Roldan)
2016 Flexjet (Melissa Ganzi, Alejandro Novillo Astrada, Juan Bollini)
2015 U.S. Polo Assn. (Grant Ganzi, Nic Roldan, Juancito Bollini)
2014 Piaget (Marc Ganzi, Jeff Hall, Nic Roldan)
2013 St. Regis (Nacho Figueras, Nic Roldan, Brandon Phillips)

The sport was first played on a frozen lake in St. Moritz, Switzerland, created by Swiss hotelier and polo visionary Reto Gaudenzi, in 1985 and has been growing in popularity ever since, attracting thousands of spectators and top players from around the world. In addition to St. Moritz, snow polo is played in other winter sports communities, such as Cortina d’Ampezzo (Italy), Kitzbuhel (Austria), Courchevel (France) and Tianjin (China). In the United States, snow polo is held exclusively in Aspen, Colorado.

Photo courtesy of ©Aspen Valley Polo Club.