Be Competitive in Polo
The progress of an athlete depends on his training, the competitions in which he participates, and the improvement of the materials.
Training is the amount of time that is dedicated to it, the physical condition and the technique that is practiced.
Competition is the guide that leads the athlete to improve his performance to overcome other competitors. The greater the number of competitors, the higher the level of demand. The greater the number of competitors, the more likely that extraordinary players will appear.
The improvement of materials that are used for the practice of sport favor the performance of the athlete. Eddie El Aguila Stewards, who had no aptitude to be an athlete, participated in 1988, representing the United Kingdom in the Olympic games in ski jumping. This discipline had no representative in the UK, so Eddie was the best in his country. Eddie got the last position, but his determination to want to participate caught the attention of the world (See the movie Eddie The Eagle) Something similar was happening and still happens in Polo. More than one polo player can affirm that he is the best player in his city, or in his region or in his country, even if he has a very bad level, since almost no one plays polo there. Over the years, polo becomes more competitive. More players, more training and more competition. Before, anyone of skill who knew how to ride a horse with little training excelled at polo. Compared to how it was before, it is now difficult to be competitive and stand out. To begin with, it is very necessary to have good horses, which are becoming more and more expensive, then you have to train for a long time, the physical part is very important and compete as much as possible. We have talked in another note about the difference in training between a professional and an amateur, and the result that it is increasingly difficult for an amateur to compete on an equal footing with a professional. Children start earlier and earlier, with good horses and many competitions. Children are playing better and better. If a player starts playing as an adult, he can never really compete, as in other sports. When it started, in Argentina, the Potrillos cup (up to 14 years old) brought together 4 teams, currently it is subdivided into 4 categories with the participation of 50 teams or more. (gather 200 players in the same place on the same day, it is something difficult to believe for the polo of the rest of the world) If we compare Polo with other sports, Polo allows, in relation to the percentage of what they practice, more professionals than most sports. It is unlikely that a tennis, soccer, golf, etc. player who is very good can be a professional. To be a professional you have to be excellent, despite this, it may not be enough either. In Polo there may be the exception that 4 brothers are in the top 10 of the ranking (they have 10 handicaps) at the same time, in any sport only one is in the top of the ranking and possibly the other 3 are little known. Yachting and polo are team sports where parents with children can participate, and in Polo we were able to see Father and son winning important tournaments. Polo will be more and more competitive, we must continue adding more players. Professionals, amateurs, women, children, field polo, sand polo, snow polo, it all adds up. Let's add so there is more polo!