Haryana Polo Club
- Uploaded by Aryana Momood
- Published in Polo Club News
- Hits: 23691
- Print,
Haryana Haven for Domestic Polo in India
story by Aryana Mohmood Photography by Haryana Polo Club
The Haryana Polo Club is notably known for being a close-knit community rather than a club. Created to encourage the growth of domestic polo in India, it also provides a mechanism for the younger generation to follow polo as a professional sport.
The club has numerous high-goal domestic and international players competing in matches and tournaments. Beginners are also encouraged to participate and join polo lessons to learn the basic skills of polo playing. The resources within the club; equipment, horses and polo playing fields, are maintained well and allow participants to enjoy their experience.
This unique, non-commercial polo club was initiated by the Kalaan family in 2001, with founding members being Karan Thapar, Bala Mallaya and Navin Khanna and Raj Kalaan. Adding to this, are other well-known players within the team including Uday Kalaan, Simran Shergill, Dhruvpal Godara and Angad Kalaan, whom all have an impressive handicap of 4, placing them in the league of the top players in the region.
In particular Angad Kalaan is a polo player of over 20 years - and the sport itself has run through his family for generations. Throughout his career, he has had many proud polo playing moments and wins - most notably being part of the national team of India and travelling around the world to play the sport he has grown up with.
When asked about what aspects of polo motivate him to keep pursuing the sport, Kalaan replied,"It takes a long time to get better, even after 20 years I still have things I need to improve". He also mentioned that, 'polo is one of many sports that has nothing to do with age.
The Haryana Club attracts families and friends to play for leisure and embrace the wonderful sport. Where Polo was once deemed exclusively as the sport of kings - it is now becoming accessible to those who enjoy the exhilarating and glamorous lifestyle that the sport of polo offers.
