Horses share a long history of association with human beings from the medieval era of human civilization. Just go back a few hundred years and you would come across countless stories of great warriors waging bloody battles on horse-backs to spread their empire on the landscapes of many continents around the world. The evolving modern times have seen horses being used more for fun related activities and many popular horse riding games that have become hugely popular throughout the world. Among the most commonly played horse games around, polo is one game that is the most preferred one, enjoying great following the world over.
Polo’s history as a fun horse game goes back nearly 2 thousand years when it was first brought into existence by the Chinese and Persian people. Even the name of the game ‘Polo’ was actually taken from a word of Tibetan language called ‘Pholo’, which actually meant a ball. Later on in the 19th century, the game saw its first modern invention in the form of a polo-club, which was actually the handiwork of Britishers during the decade of 1850. Though surprisingly, the historical records show the stats of the first Polo Game to have taken place in 600 BC. At present, this game is played in a majority of countries around the world, and there has been an increasing demand from increasing quarters to include this horse game in the summer edition of Olympic Games.
For those who are interested to play horse games like polo, it will be advisable to first understand the basic requirements of this game and also develop an understanding about the types of polo games being played and the rules that govern the game of polo. To begin with, the game of Polo is basically played in 2 forms; Arena-Polo & Outdoor- Polo. In Arena-Polo, both the teams consist of 3 players on each side. Every side consists of a Pivotal player who is the key behind changing the game into aggressive mode and striking goals for his or her team. This aggressive player is actually the 3rd player of the team, while the 1st player takes the role of guarding the team’s goal post from the opponent’s strike. The 2nd player in polo keeps changing his or her role according to the state of the match and the running team strategy at that moment. In the outdoor version of polo, there are 4 players instead of 3 on each side. Here the role of the pivotal player is actually taken by the 4th player. The 1st player as usual takes the role of guarding the goal post from opponent team’s strikes, while the 2nd & 3rd players keep changing their roles according to the state of the play that the game is currently running in. Outdoor-Polo games are mostly played in open arenas or generally stadiums due to the large area of pitch covering the play.
The game of polo is run under the watchful eyes of 3 umpires, who have the power to penalize teams for fouling with either a free hit or even a freebie goal based on the type of foul committed by the penalized team. The time duration for a polo game is even lesser than a game of football. Consisting of eight time-periods with each lasting just 7 minutes with extended 30 seconds, an entire polo match generally lasts an hour.
For those willing to join this game, it will be a smart idea to take membership of a Polo Club in your area. Since polo requires good horse-riding skills, getting skilled at a horse’s back won’t be a bad idea before joining. It is a great game that can give you the ultimate thrill of striking a harmony between raw power, balance and precision.