Polo, the Sport of Queens

Polo, the Sport of Queens
Maine Native Finds Home With Gay Polo League

 

 

Polo has been called “the sport of kings.” It’s now also the sport of queens. In Southern California, the Gay Polo League (GPL) is thriving. It doesn’t matter if you can’t tell a mallet’s head from its shaft, or even if you’ve never mounted a horse. All comers are welcome. At first glance, polo seems poles apart from gay life. One of the oldest horse sports in the world, it originated in China. It moved to India, where the British discovered it. Today it is primarily played by two types of people: professionals and their “patrons” (pronounced “patrones”), wealthy benefactors who sponsor pros in return for playing alongside them. In places like Argentina, where polo is particularly popular, it is considered a very macho sport.