Bushman Rock Estate comes alive this weekend when it plays host to the glamorous annual polo event, the Ambassador’s Cup, which has international wealth management experts Carrick Wealth as title sponsors this year.
By Munyaradzi Madzokere
Nestled between vineyards and a wildlife conservation expanse, the Bushman Rock Polo Club offers a perfect setting for an event, which is in its third year of existence.
Eight teams will battle it out for bragging rights in the tournament set for July 6 and 7, which is a culmination of the newly-instituted Victor Ludorum Series.
Polo is one of the oldest sports in the country having been first played in the 1890s remaining a minority sport since, but it has been growing in popularity in the past couple of years.
In fact, the VIP tickets sold out over a week ago.
“At its inception it was designed as a 150-person VIP only entry targeted at corporates,” Bushman Safaris MD Jonathan Passaportis said.
“Right from day one, the Zimbabwean public loved the concept.
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As a result, in the first year we sold 180 tickets; last year we stopped at 220; and this year we are desperately trying to maintain the number at 220.
We have actually ceased VIP tickets sales before they even go on sale.
“The uptake for the event has been huge.
This year we are going off the usual by opening it up to the general public.
“Tickets for the general public went on sale on Friday and are only available on pre-purchase as there will be no tickets at the gate.
We are not charging per person, but per vehicle.
“We are trying to get the sport to be more inclusive considering polo is an aspirational sport with everything that goes on around it.”
This year, the proceeds from the event would be donated to St Joseph’s Home for Boys, according to sponsors, Carrick Wealth.
“As part of Carrick’s corporate social initiative, a portion of the funds raised from ticket sales will be donated to St Joseph’s Home for Boys, which looks after more than 50 orphaned and abandoned children under the age of 18,” Carrick Wealth Zimbabwe manager Andrew Moore said.
“This would be Carrick Wealth’s first year partnering Bushman Rock for the Ambassador’s Cup.
We certainly look forward to being involved in future on a long-term relationship with polo as a sport and also improving the lives of the disadvantaged.”
Other partners for this year’s event include Land Rover Zimbabwe, AMG Global, Econet Zimbabwe, Rift valley, Manokore Attorneys, IS Insurance, Rooney’s Zimbabwe and Bagsdirect, among others.
The Carrick Ambassador’s Cup has always carried a heavy fashion theme since its inception.
With the theme Pretty Posh: Oh My Gosh, guests are expected to push the boundaries of fashion and battle it out for the “best dressed” award.
Thorsten Hutter, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, is the host dignitary while his British counterpart Catriona Ling is set to attend the event.
At its highest, there were about 20 polo clubs in Zimbabwe, but currently three, namely Bushman Rock in Ruwa, Harare’s Thornpark and Umzari in Chinhoyi, are active. Zimbabwe last competed at the Polo World Cup in the 1990s.
