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Port Harcourt rolls out red carpet as kings celebrate polo’s golden jubilee

By Christian Okpara
26 January 2022   |   3:37 pm
When it comes to style, there is no beating the Niger Delta. Aside from the serene environment and rich sea food the people guarantee their visitors, nobody visits a Niger Delta event without having a story to tell. And so it was at the Port Harcourt Golden Jubilee Polo tournament, which attracted teams from across…

President Port Harcourt Polo, who is also patron Strata Base Polo, Dr. Chukwudi Dimkpa (fourth right), presents the King Diette-Spiff Cup to the crowd before the grand finale of the 2022 Golden Jubilee Polo Tournament at the GRA Polo Ground… at the weekend.

When it comes to style, there is no beating the Niger Delta. Aside from the serene environment and rich sea food the people guarantee their visitors, nobody visits a Niger Delta event without having a story to tell.

And so it was at the Port Harcourt Golden Jubilee Polo tournament, which attracted teams from across the country.

On the field, teams from Kaduna, Lagos, Yola, Nigeria Navy and hosts, Port Harcourt, took the top laurels, but the event was much more than a battle for honours.

There was the launch of Arena polo facility, the glittering award ceremony, the rich display of culture, the Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration and a mega musical entertainment, which made the Golden Jubilee Anniversary festival splendid for polo buffs from across the world.

After eight days of thrilling polo action that saw 33 top teams with all the big names in the noble game of kings and foreign professionals from Europe and Argentina, Kaduna Trappco were the top kings, carting home the event’s biggest laurel, the King Diette-Spiff Cup.

As the biggest sporting festival in the oil rich Niger Delta region, the anniversary polo fiesta lived up to its cutting edge thrills and excitements, with Hasske & William and the Navy teams winning the OB Lulu Briggs Cup and  T.Y Danjuma Cup respectively.

The spectacular Golden Jubilee festival also threw up Lagos GDF team as the proud winners of the glittering King T, J.T Princewill Cup, with home teams, led by Strata Base/Solotone, Bob Track, Shabazz, carting home runners-up laurels.

Traditional rulers, Polo administrators and aficionados and tourists from across the world, who witnessed the weeklong international festival, praised the organisers and players for showcasing their awesome talent in a most friendly atmosphere.

“On behalf of the board of trustees, management and the entire members of the Port Harcourt Polo Club, may I humbly thank everyone for making the epoch Golden Jubilee Anniversary celebration such a huge the success,” Dr. Chukwudi Dimkpa, President of Port Harcourt Polo Club, said in his closing remarks.

“The fact that tourists from abroad and polo enthusiasts from other parts of the country attend this festival annually, attest to the immense tourism and social values of the exciting game of kings in the oil rich region and Nigeria,” he noted.

Dr. Dimkpa confirmed that the club and the Nigerian Army have agreed to mark the Armed Forces Remembrance Day during the Port Harcourt polo tournament every year. He specially thanked the founding fathers of the club and chairman board of trustees, King Alfred Diette-Spiff, for his fatherly advice and presence throughout the grand celebrations.

“I want to say a heartfelt thank you to every one of our sponsors both corporate and individuals. We are grateful for your continuous support for its activities. We look forward to more mutually beneficial relationships between us. To the events planners and vendors, we say a very big thank you.

“To all the teams who participated in the tournament, we say thank you for honouring our invitation and for giving us World class displays of this beautiful game all through the tournament. We look forward to hosting you in future tournaments.

“The fact that tourists from abroad and polo enthusiasts from other parts of the country attend this festival annually; attest to the immense tourism and social values of the exciting game of kings in the oil rich region and Nigeria,” he noted with pride.

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