The Barbados Polo Club (BPC) will officially kick off their 2016 International Polo season with the staging of the highly popular Diamonds International Battle of the Sexes four-day tournament which begins this Sunday January 31 at the Holders grounds in St James beginning at 3-15 p.m. This much anticipated tournament will once again be co-sponsored by Diamonds International and Virgin Atlantic. It will see a mixture of professional female English players and some of our emerging young upcoming local amateur ladies team up to take on the mighty men’s team in a four-match battle for the top prize. The men’s team will be sponsored by Diamonds while the ladies will be sponsored by Virgin Atlantic.
Sponsorship & Marketing Manager for the BPC Ina Nokaj said that all systems are in place for Sunday’s start. “We are expecting a very competitive tournament this year! The men usually get the better of the ladies but with the return of the top players such as the Sarah Wiseman, Hazel Jackson, Claire Brougham who will team up with Linda Williams, Christansia Evelyn, Ashleigh Deane and Vicky Gonzalez of Barbados, the men can expect some fierce competition this time around.
This exciting tournament will climax on Sunday February 07 with the grand finale at the same venue where all four matches will be contested. Prior to that they will be matches on Tuesday February 02 at Apes Hill and Thursday February 04.
In last year’s final the Diamonds Men’s team defeated the Virgin Atlantic ladies 5 – 3 to clinch the coveted trophy but the ladies will no doubt out for revenge. The battle of the sexes will be the first of the four International tournaments this year which is being held by the BPC.
Following closely on the heels of that grand final will be the UNNA/ICBL sponsored Cheshire Tour which is arguably the biggest annual tournament of the season. The Cheshire team usually have tremendous support from scores of their supporters who fly all the way from the UK to attend the Sandy Lane Gold Cup race followed by the grand polo finale at Holders the following day. They are always a huge crowd puller and therefore one can expect to see a sea of red and green outfitted supporters converging on the picturesque Holders Grounds as always.
Next on the Calendar will be the popular Barbados Open which will be contested in a knockout format. The International season will climax with the staging of the Realtors sponsored Canadian Open.
According to Nokaj Quality is the watch word this season. “This year the BPC is focusing on hosting quality sporting events with an effort to develop the sport of polo and raise awareness for the sport. We will be collaborating with our partners and sponsors to develop interactive activities to highlight their products and services while at the same time enhancing the polo experience for the spectators. Our focus is to develop polo as a viable tourism product.
Matches are weather permitting. Please visit the Barbados Polo Club Facebook page for updates or call the club at 432 - 1802
The Barbados Polo Club’s Principal Tour and Season Sponsors for 2016 are Diamonds International, Virgin Atlantic Airways, UNNA Resorts & Residences, ICBL, Realtors supported by Banks Beer, Piper Heidsieck, Cockspur, Courtesy Garage, and Y103.
