Aug 22, 2023
The USPA is proud to support the polo division of the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, which returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, this fall.
Presented by Thoroughbred Charities, the 2023 symposium begins Wednesday, October 11 and runs through Saturday, October 14. This year’s polo division will be judged by Chris Stratemann and Robin Sanchez. Preliminary rounds will take place on Wednesday, October 11 and Thursday, October 12 on an outdoor polo field, with riders performing a short working session followed by a stick-and-ball session. Saturday’s finale on October 14 will take place in a covered arena and feature short work, a stick-and-ball session and a chukker.
The Retired Racehorse Project’s mission is to facilitate placement of Thoroughbred ex-racehorses in second careers by increasing demand for them in equestrian sports and serving the farms, trainers and organizations that transition them. To that end, the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium is a training competition designed to showcase the trainability and talent of off-track Thoroughbreds and inspire equestrians across a variety of disciplines to consider the Thoroughbred as a competitive or recreational partner.
The highly successful symposium features top professional and amateur equestrian trainers competing hundreds of off-track Thoroughbreds in 10 different disciplines for $100,000 in prize money. At the end, one overall winner is crowned America’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred. Polo has seen great success at the Makeover, with Old Tavern, trained by Charlie Caldwell, winning America’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred in 2017 as selected by audience vote. In 2018, the addition of a seven-minute chukker in the Finale was immensely popular with competitors and spectators alike and added to the buzz that the polo division created.
For those unable to attend the event in person, The Thoroughbred Makeover will once again be providing a livestream of the Makeover Finale, where viewers can cast their vote via text for who among the 10 division champions should be named America's Most Wanted Thoroughbred! To learn more about the livestream and see the order of discipline schedule, click here.
For more information on the event, please visit www.therrp.org.
Please join the USPA in congratulating all the 2023 polo entries below:
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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