"When you make a list of the qualities needed in a polo horse, the obvious choice for playing and breeding polo horses are American Quarter Horses," said AQHA Executive Vice President Don Treadway Jr. "AQHA is proud to partner with the American Polo Horse Association and will work to strengthen the industry and explore opportunities that will mutually benefit each association."
American Quarter Horses have a long, but generally unknown, history in the sport of polo, the AQHA said, adding that polo horses are some of the most unique equine athletes on the planet; they have to be able to run flat-out like a racehorse, but have the control and agility of a reiner or cutter.
"There are standout American Quarter Horses at the top levels of polo, and we believe as much as 40 percent of the low- to mid-level polo in the United States is played on these horses," said APHA President Sunny Hale. "The breed is used in domestic and international competition, but little was done to keep track of horses and their performance on the polo fields until now. Through this alliance partnership, we want to identify these horses and keep playing records to add even more value and recognition to these equine athletes."
While this may be of general interest to all horse people, there's a specific connection with Cowtown. Fort Worth's Alan Meeker, avid polo player and president of Crestview Farm, owns a large ranch in Southwest Tarrant County and a large horse farm in Aiken, S.C., where polo ponies are trained. He was pictured with Prince William on the April 2011 cover of the British-based Polo Times. He's that much of a big shot.
