Swedes win USA-Sweden polo invitational

 

The beautiful site of this unique event was Almare Stäket Polo Country Club representing Sweden, which hosted Scuppernong Polo Club of Atlanta, GA, representing the USA.

The U.S.-Sweden Polo Invitational, a first of its kind in Sweden, was held outside Stockholm on Thursday, September 10 and Friday, September 11, 2009.  The beautiful site of this unique event was Almare Stäket Polo Country Club representing Sweden, which hosted Scuppernong Polo Club of Atlanta, GA, representing the USA. Until this match, a U.S. team had not played in Sweden in a recurrent tournament.



The game was divided into four chukkas on each day with the average handicap of “0” for both teams. Play was vigorous and competitive; however, Sweden won both matches handily on their home ground. The umpires, whose duties included selecting the MVP, awarded it to Geoff Conroy of Team USA. With the outstanding weather and hospitality served up by the Swedish team, all players and fans enjoyed all aspects of the trip. The strong friendships forged will be a bridge between the clubs, and successfully promote growth of the sport in Stockholm and Atlanta.  



The new U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, Matthew Barzun, himself a fan of polo, received the U.S. team at his residence and expressed his thanks to both clubs for the initiative, especially in light of the match occurring on September 11. After the first day of play, the U.S. team had the great fortunate to meet with the Board of the AmCham Sweden and its Managing Director, Berit Salheim, at the Almare Stäket manor house, where AmCham offered the teams its best wishes and congratulations on participating in this historic event. In addition, Gary Baker, President of the American Club of Sweden attended the Après Polo Party, hosted by the U.S. team, at the Lydmar Hotel where he echoed the sentiments of the U.S. Ambassador and AmCham.




The Scuppernong Polo Club as Team USA was represented by Geoff Conroy, Jeannie Hartman, Jim Campbell and David Kaplan. The Almare Stäket Polo Country Club as Team Sweden, joined by the Stockholm Polo Club, was represented by Jonas Bingestam, Per Jacobsson, Caroline Sjöström, Anna Sofia Olsson, Catharina Tengblad, Adi Quade, Niclas Johansson, Patric Norman, and Johan Seth.

Both teams are enthusiastic the reciprocal visit and rematch in Atlanta planned for next year, with the hopes the meetings will become a tradition for years to come.