Al Habtoor

Araya the star for the hosts in victory over Abu Dhabi.

Hosts Ghantoot Polo Team continued to display match-winning form as they defeated Abu Dhabi by 11 goals to 6 in the 20th HH President of the UAE Polo Cup on March 17.

It was the second successive win for Ghantoot after their thrilling victory over Bangash Polo Team. In the day’s second game of the day, Her Highness Sheikha Maitha Bint Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum led the UAE Polo Team to a convincing 11-7 victory over Desert Palm. It was the first win for UAE following their narrow defeat to Al Habtoor, while Desert Palm suffered their second loss having the first one to Abu Dhabi in their previous match. HH President of the UAE Cup is being played behind closed doors and without the presence of any spectators in accordance with the regulations and guidelines issued by the UAE Government following the Coronavirus outbreak.

Only players and officials are present at the venue while the matches are contested and regulated in standard fashion with official umpires, and the results are recorded officially. Mr Zayed Khalifa Al Aboudi Al Zaabi, Ghantoot’s dynamic Executive Director commented: “We genuinely appreciate the understanding of our regular fans who are unfortunately deprived of watching world-class polo in the prestigious and signature event, the HH President of the UAE Cup 2020. “However, we continue to abide by the advice of our Rulers, Government and health authorities as we continue to put the safety of our society at the forefront of all our endeavors.” The ‘President of the UAE Cup’ offers a lucrative purse of half million DHS. 

All games are being held at the state-of-the-art Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club in Abu Dhabi which was founded by HH Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and is run under the patronage and directives of his son, HH Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

AT A GLANCE
What: HH President of the UAE Polo Tournament
When: March 11-27
Where: Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club, Abu Dhabi
Teams: 6 Polo Teams
Tournament Handicap: 18 Handicap
Watch it Live: www.presidentpolocup.ae
Notes: Crowd Cancelled

EVENT SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
• Governing Partner: Abu Dhabi Sports Council
• In association with: Emirates Polo Association
• Event Sponsors:
• YAS Capital Investments
• YAS International Properties LLC
• YAS International Development
• YAS International Holding
• YAS International Investment
• La Roche Pharmacy

Official Car:
• Premier Motors – Maserati

Official website: www.presidentpolocup.ae
Official social media: www.instagram.com/ghantootpolo

© Thomas Wirth

Facunodo Sola hits match-winning hat-trick in 5^th chukker.

Al Habtoor’s leading player Facuno Solo could not have hit peak form at a better time as he scored a stunning hat-trick in a tense final chukker to help hs team defeat a gritty Bangash 12-9 in the 20^th HH President of the UAE Polo Cup at the Al Habtoor Polo Resort on March 16.

Both team were lock at 8-goal each at the end of the fourth chukker, but it was Al Habtoot who came out stronger in the decider to strike four goals without conceding any, for a resounding victory. It was their second of the six-team 18-goal handicap tournament, following their 14-12 victory over the UAE Polo Team in an earlier game. One of the UAE’s leading polo clubs and tournament organisers, Al Habtoot comprise a strong team lead by Mohammed Al Habtoor, Felix Esian, Martin Podesta and the mercurial nine-handicapper, Solo. “I am delighted with the way the team performed under pressure,” said Al Habtoor. “The whole performance was very good right from the start. “We also won a tense match against UAE Polo Team which shows that we can handle the pressure. By playing this way and staying positive will also help the team to perform better. Overall out performance was solid and we look forward to our next match against Abu Dhabi (March 21).

“A win there will put us in a strong position in the tournament,” Despite losing two games on the trot Haider Bangash remained up-beat and said: “Full marks to our players for putting up such a spirted performance for the second consecutive match. “We lost both matches narrowly, which means that we can still mix it with the top teams. Perhaps we need to look at some things in our strategy and hopefully raise our game in the coming matches. Bangash play Desert Palm Polo Team in their third league match on March 21.

The ‘President of the UAE Cup’ offers a lucrative purse of AED 500,000.

The final of the tournament scheduled for March 27.  All games are being held at the state-of-the-art Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club in Abu Dhabi which was founded by HH Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and is run under the patronage and directives of his son, The Chairman of Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club  HH Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

FORTHCOMING MATCHES

Tuesday, March 17

2.30pm Ghantoot vs Abu Dhabi

4.30 Desert Palm vs UAE

Friday, March 21

3.30pm Ghantoot vs UAE

Saturday, March 22

2.30pm Desert Palm vs Bangash

4.30pm Al Habtoor vs Abu Dhabi

Tuesday, March 24

Semifinals

Friday, March 27

Final

AT A GLANCE

What: HH President of the UAE Polo Tournament

When: March 11-27

Where: Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club, Abu Dhabi

Teams: 6 Polo Teams

Tournament Handicap: 18 Handicap

Watch it Live: www.presidentpolocup.ae

Notes: Crowd Cancelled 

EVENT SPONSORS AND PARTNERS

• Governing Partner: Abu Dhabi Sports Council
• In association with: Emirates Polo Association
• Event Sponsors:
• YAS Capital Investments
• YAS International Properties LLC
• YAS International Development
• YAS International Holding
• YAS International Investment
• La Roche Pharmacy
• Official Car:
• Premier Motors – Maserati

Official website: www.presidentpolocup.ae 
Official social media: www.instagram.com/ghantootpolo

© Thomas Wirth