ZHEJIANG: The game of polo was played in China centuries ago as a royal pastime, and the sport is experiencing a revival in the 21st century.

About a 90-minute drive from Shanghai is a scene that most Chinese do not see often – a team of elegantly dressed horsemen playing polo.

Although the game has a history in China, with the English name 'polo' coming from the Tibetan word 'pulu', Chinese today have seen very little of this sport.

Brian Xu, a polo player, said: "There are less than a hundred people in China who play polo now."

China's only official polo club, the Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club, opened in 2007. A joint venture between Shanghai Matsuoka and Australian Meadow Brook Polo Lodge, the polo club hopes to revive the regal sport.

Steve Wyatt, chairman of Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club, said: "We're not here to put on a demonstration. We're here to build the local community and the way you do that is to give them opportunities, both for learning in a structured environment as well as opportunities to see the standard they should achieve.

"We're nurturing workers to become professional players as a way for them to earn real money, change their status in China and maybe go international. We're focusing on developing the gentlemen players, the patron of the sports."

Although polo is still a novelty in China, it is slowly gaining a following, especially among the well-heeled segment of the population.

Rachel Wyatt, deputy secretary-general of the China Horse Industry Association, said: "We have recently voted and passed a proposal to set up the China National Polo Association, which will really help us to have the visibility in the international polo circle."

The Nine Dragon Hills Polo Club said a lot of foreigners are interested in the sport as well.

Gerry Gan, a polo player, said: "I came to China four years ago and heard about this club. I thought this is the perfect sport for me because it involves horses which I love, it involves speed, thrill, excitement and team work."

The club's membership fees start from 100,000 yuan or about US$15,000, but the club has already registered a 40 per cent take-up rate.

This is no surprise, considering the fact that China – with double-digit economic growth yearly – has the world's fifth largest population of millionaires.


- CNA/so