The finals of the third ‘Asian Beach Polo Championship InterContinental-B.Grimm’, Asia’s only beach polo tournament, took place April 7 at the beachfront of the InterContinental Resort Hua Hin.
The event, co-organized by Suwat Liptapanlop and Harald Link, chairman of the B.Grimm Group, was held to promote tourism in Hua Hin and also to raise funds for the ‘Kamlangjai Project’ or Inspire by Princess PA, initiated by HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha.
Players from all four teams pose for a group photo at the conclusion of the event. (Photo/www.florsilvestrini.com)
As usual the tournament drew a relative who’s who of local socialites, luminaries and VIP’s to attend, including the guest of honour, H.E. Rolf Schulze, the German Ambassador to Thailand.
A parade of horses, marching bands and a fashion show by models on horseback by Burberry and La Perla preceded the polo matches, which had to be played early in the day to avoid the afternoon high tide.
The third place play-off match was between the Macau team (Rodrigo, Goncalo and Santi) and the India team (Claudia, Bhawani and It), with the latter going on to record a comfortable 6-3½ victory.
Action from the final between Thai Polo and China. (Photo/www.florsilvestrini.com)
The climax of the competition saw Thai Polo, based here in Pattaya and comprising Harald Link, Caroline Link and Nu, take on a strong representative team from China of Claude, William and Juan. The China team got off to a good start and were the first to put a goal on the scoreboard in the opening chukka, but Thai Polo used their experience to drag themselves back into it and eventually outlasted their opponents to record a hard fought 4-2 win and collect the Princess PA’s Cup.
The day ended with cocktails, and sumptuous dinner along the beach, all served under a picturesque setting sun.
