Polo and a party

Polo and a party

The beautiful Hua Hin beach plays host to a charitable sporting match and art auction

SOCIAL & LIFESTYLE
Polo and a party

The fifth “Asian Beach Polo Championship InterContinental-B.Grimm”, an annual charity sporting event organised by the B. Grimm Group and InterContinental Hua Hin Resort, once again raised a huge sum for Kamlangjai Project, or Inspire by Princess Pa, initiated by HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha to prepare female inmates to re-enter society after their discharge from the prison.

Proudputh Liptapanlop, an honorable auctioneer during the charity auction.

Held in front of the resort on the beach’s white sands in Hua Hin on an sunny April day, the event started with a beautiful horse parade and followed with a kids’ polo match on horseback.

Then it was a time for the real matches. This year, there were four professional polo teams, from France, Macau, Hong Kong and Thailand. The teams had met earlier in a round robin tournament to determine match-ups for the championship.

HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha On Horse Riding At Hua Hin, the highlighted oil painting which was won by Harald Link for 400,000 baht.

Beach polo is a modification of arena polo, created in 2004 by Dubai’s Rashid Al Habtoor and Sam Katiela, and first played in the United Arab Emirates. A game of beach polo consists of two three-player teams as opposed to the usual four, to account for the smaller playing area. The game consists of four seven-minute periods of play, called chukkas.

The afternoon excitement started with a match for the third place title, in which France overtook Thailand 3-1. The final saw Macau facing Hong Kong. After a hard-fought match, the Macau team topped Hong Kong 7-3 and was awarded the Princess Pa’s Cup and the title of “Asian Beach Polo Champion”.

“Beach polo is a sport played in only a few countries, so it is good opportunity for us to see a match in Hua Hin — and the only opportunity in Asia,” said Suwat Liptapanlop, former deputy prime minister and advisory chairman of the organising committee of the championship.

“The tournament was open for international polo teams to compete, therefore it has attracted tourists, polo enthusiasts and sport fans to Thailand.”

“B. Grimm has done business in Thailand for over 135 years. We have committed to giving back to Thai society and improving the lives of its people. The Asian Beach Polo Championship is one of our charitable events to raise funds for the Kamlangjai Project,” said Harald Link, chairman of the B. Grimm Group and the Asian Beach Polo Championship’s organising committee, who organised the first “Asian Beach Polo Championship InterContinental-B.Grimm” in 2010.

In the evening, polo players and guests attended the “Hua Hin Sweet Old Day” themed dinner party. A highlight of the party was the charity auctions of three oil paintings by Hua Hin local artists. Hua Hin Railway Station With A Royal Waiting Room fetched 250,000 baht from Nutthachai Srerungsukpinitt. The beautiful view of Khao Takiab went to Hiram E Manville at 200,000 baht.

The third and most impressive work, HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha On Horse Riding At Hua Hin, drew applause when Harald Link placed the top bid at 400,000 baht.

The auction managed to raise 850,000 baht for the Kamlangjai Project.

Harald Link, left, and Suwat Liptapanlop, right, pose with Vorachit Wongkasoe, Veerachai Ngao–Osa and Rodrigo Castro of the winning Macau team.

Nunthinee Tanner, second right, watching the kids’ polo match.

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