🇦🇷 Argentine Polo : The best in the world

Argentinian polo field, the best field in the world, the largest polo stadium in the world. I tell you that polo is one of the sports in older teams, it is believed that its origin has been in Persia, approximately between 6 and 10 BC. It is played approximately between 4 and 8 chackers, which is the name given to the times in polo. And for each chacker or time that is played, 7 minutes, a horse is used. And some players come with more than 10 horses to the field, that is, there are approximately 40 horses in each team, like 80 horses in a game. We are going to see the life of a professional polo player, Alejo Nitti. He has a very important structure, very good horses, with which he has the pleasure of having fun and giving himself the pleasure of playing around the world as a professional. How long have you had them? I have had this lot since 2011. It is the noblest horse. The mare is used for breeding. So if you have the mares, it is good to have the females, because if they are doing well, you use them for breeding. On the other hand, the male, castrated, you have to clone it, because it is something that is available now, it is not something that was always there. But the hays are a little more noble. This is the open hole. With this one, nothing moves. It is extraordinary. The piano is famous. The piano? Extraordinary, yes. Is it the one you like the most? Yes, it is the best. I have to say that it is good. The female is also, if it is male, it is male. I see that here in this lot you have almost all the horses. Yes, most of them are male. There are only two mares. Unlike many players who always look for the mare, it is a bit ... Yes, in fact there are, it depends. Last season we had a mare that was caught. But is it a matter of taste? Yes, it is a matter of taste. We put together the lot for this season. We are going to play in March. And two in April. So we face it and organize it from now on. So we are right at the beginning of the season. Yes, at the beginning of the season. They played three games. Today they will play the third game. Do you keep them in a field? During the year, if they leave in the middle of summer, they leave in the field, they are there eating grass, enjoying the holidays, from the first days of December until February 15, more or less. From there they start well, the first thing they do is the lair, it accommodates them. And they started with the mess every day to get in shape, right? And now they are ready to get in. The first games are sometimes a bit heavy and so on, but nothing, like one too, me too. In the first game everything hurt me until the third day. The role of the horse There is a very important role that we rarely take into account, which is the role of the caretaker of the horses, the so -called petisseur. He is like the best friend of the player, to put it in some way, right? When you finish a championship or have won a championship, the one who will hug first is the petisseur, because the greatest recognition is for him. And well, we have also had the opportunity to meet with Jorge, who has been working with Alejo for 25 years, and we have been able to see how it unfolds in the caballerizas, how it unfolds before, during and after a tournament. And who takes care of the state of the horses is Jorge, right? Jorge knows them, he knows what they eat, what they don't eat. He comes and listens to him scratch the floor and says, this one is hungry, he is thirsty, he knows everything. How long has Jorge and I been working together? More than 20 years? The day Jorge says, no, no, no, I don't take care of the horses, I don't take care of the people. Exactly, 25 years. It's weird to find. Yes, when he told me a lot, I say, well, it will be 5, 6, 7. 25 years. Sometimes I think about it and I say, what a madness, so much effort, so much work, so much, so much everything. But it is what one has done all his life, then you see it as normal, it is like that. With the years he has been taking care of, he has noticed what each horse eats. Three fields of grass, three quarters of a jar. They eat in the morning, they go out for a walk. They eat at 5, they go out for a walk, at 6 and a half. Do they eat at 5? At 5 they eat. What a professional, Jorge. They go out for a walk, they finish. It's 9 and a half in the morning, 9, 9 and a half, and the work in the morning is over. Do they rest until the afternoon or until the next day? Do they rest until the afternoon or until the next day? If there is practice, of course. Sometimes in the morning break they go for a ride, depending on how it was. On the day of the game, but in general, that's the work they do. You know, they listen to the truck, they know how to get on the truck, they know how to play on the other side, and all that. They already know if they have to be a local or a visitor. How nice, what a blessing to be able to do this. Jorge is already training for the second chakar. You can see that he has a lot of experience, both the caretaker and the horse, because they are both super relaxed. He takes care that air enters through here, through the cartilage, so that a little air enters. The ride has that shape, precisely so that air runs under the back, and it doesn't, well, get injured. The type of brake that is used, Jorge, for this horse, is it a Pelan Puente, or a Quebradito? A Quebrado. A Quebrado? Is it like a fillet? No, it's a fat Quebradito. A fat Quebradito, yes. Generally, they are empty inside, and they are played with double reins, usually. I don't know if he's going to use reins, or... Reindeer. Reindeer, yes. Some put them on the string, and some directly on the reins. Commonly, they have like a leather ring, and there it goes to the string. This one, I think, goes directly to the reins, right? Yes. And it has a pulling effect. The horseplayers Bajador, Mucerola, Cuyadín. Bajador is for the horse to feel more contained in the nose. The horse has a lot of sensitivity in the nose. Even many, at the beginning, when they start to tame, they tame from the nose. So, from there, the horse is kept collected, with the head inward, ready to go out to the gallop. But it's more than anything... Of course, there's Jorge. Exactly, because the horse can gallop. When you put the reins so that the mount is held, you adjust it a little, not much, and the horse moves so that it relaxes, and then you adjust it well. Because there are horses that don't like it, and they can gallop. Gallop is when the horse gets up and goes backwards. It can even be when the mount goes up. It's dangerous. The horse that has that addiction is difficult to tame. Even many go to the field. The horses that come in now are already starting to notice that they are knowing that they are going to enter the field. They were just calm, and now they want to walk. They know that they are going to enter the field. Who sets up the horse lot to play? Both. And before bringing them from the field, you are already thinking... We make a list of horses that we are going to bring, and this season we bring a new horse. This is the newest horse, so we have to bring it in. But since we are going to travel, we don't do anything that we have to do. We just play, and that's it. Do you also take care of the new horses? Yes, I do. The organization is seen in the state of the animals. All the people, the farmers, the veterinarians, everyone. I started with the Polo at 15. More or less, yes. I've been riding it my whole life. I used to have a horse called Salto at home. I liked the Polo more, so I started riding it. I started with the horse Salto, and little by little I was organizing it. Experience, who says? Besides, you enjoy it. It's a piece of land. Of course, that's the part. We avoid the psychologist. Totally. With a good practice, we get out. That's good. They also have a formation. 1, 2, 3, 4. The 4 is like a back. The 3 is the one that sets up the game. You see, they are playing between the back, the 4 and the 3. And the 2 usually goes to the boards. The 1 is a forward. We're finishing the day. It's a wonderful experience. Here in San Diego. First level fields. Argentine polo, wherever you look at it. And well, especially highlighting the dedication, the professionalism of Alejo Nitti and his organization. Of course, the work of Jorge, who takes care of his horses, You were telling us a little while ago, Jorge, who has been working with Alejo for 25 years. And that speaks of both, or rather, of the whole organization. We were lucky to share with them in the stables, to see the boxes where the horses are, the way they are cared for and attended to 100% like an athlete. What we can also see during the day is the reason why the Argentine polo is so first level. Both players and peddlers with an organization really 10 points. music music music music music