The newly-formed United Polo Players Association (UPPA) hopes to deliver at least three gold medals for the Philippines in the Southeast Asian Games which the country will host next year.
“We vowed to give three of four gold medals in our sport,” said UPPA chair and Partly-list Rep. Mikee Romero (1Pacman) after getting the nod from Ricky Vargas and Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, newly elected president and chair, respectively, of the Philippine Olympic Committee, to stage the event that will be participated in by the regions’ rich and famous, including the royalties of Brunei.
Choosing the right players for the team, according to Romero, poses no problem since members of the association are playing regularly.
UPPA is headed by Coco Garcia, son of former Philippine Sports Commission chair Richie Garcia.
The projected events are the men’s 2-4 goals, men’s 5-8 goals, men’s seniors and women’s 0-2 goal.
UPPA officials said they need to rehabilitate the Clark Air Base and Bulacan polo fields, put up horse stables that can accommodate at least 200 horses, and build an indoor polo arena in Clark—all needing at least P50 million.