Polo Renaissance

15 years have passed since polo has been re-introduced as a sport to modern Mongolia. The Mongols with their once mighty cavalry have a great history connected with this equestrian game. They used to play it in the middle ages then polo was forgotten…

Besides the recent renaissance of polo in Mongolia the sport is now spreading rapidly in Asia – especially in China to the south of Mongolia. Ten new Polo Clubs have sprung up of which the Metropolitan Polo Club in Tianjin and the Tang Polo Club new Beijing are now the new stars.

Kazakhstan will introduce polo this season and Korea has recently restarted as well and has created a magnificent JB polo club. In all those areas polo was once practiced during the middle ages as a Martial Art on horseback.

• In January 2012 and 2014, a national team of young Mongol polo players took part in the All Asia Polo Cup in Bangkok and finished third and forth place respectively among 8 Asian nations. We had the youngest players in the tournament and also was the first country to mount the only female player (Doda) in the history of the All Asia Cup. Doda was only 15 when she played in 2014.
• In September 2012, a team of Mongol polo players participated in the 4th Beijing International Polo Open Tournament hosted by the Beijing Sunny Times Polo Club.
• During the winter of 2012-2013, 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, a group of 8 young Mongol polo players were invited to the Opianga Polo farm run by Harriet Kuru and Hamish McLean. Some players were also trained at the Roddy Wood Polo school and by Garth Mckenzie in New Zealand for a 3 month training session.
• In Summer 2012, Harrow school visited and spent time at the Genghis Khan Polo Club playing different polo tournaments.
• In December 2012, the team from the Genghis Khan Polo Club won the WEPA World Elephant Polo Championship in Bardiya, Nepal hosted by Tiger Tops.
• In Summer 2013, the Genghis Khan Polo Club invited the Harvard Polo team to play the Genghis Khan Polo Cup in the summer grounds of GKPC in Orkhon valley, Mongolia.
• In September 2014, the Mongolian team was invited by Harvard University to play an exhibition match commemorating the opening of their new Harvard Equestrian Center.
• In December 2014, the National Mongol team played at the 150th Anniversary of Modern Day Polo in Manipur, India. This was a high goal tournament with countries participating from England, U.S.A, South Africa and Asia.
• In May 2015, the Mongolian cavalry team, trained by the Genghis Khan Polo Club, played an exhibition match against the British Ministry of Defense polo players in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. In the same summer, the Mongolian Cavalry Polo team was invited by the British Army Polo team to play in England at the Royal Military Academy Sandhust and at the Guards Polo Club
• In summer 2015, Eton Polo Society made two week trip to the Genghis Khan Polo Club and played an exhibition match against the Mongol team at the Naadam festival in Karakorum.
• In January 2016, our young Mongolian Polo team played at the 3rd All Asia Polo Cup. The team was the favorite of the tournament.
• Recently, a Mongolian Polo Federation was formed to help bring Polo back to the country.