What happens with the FIP?

[Sandra Funk]

Is it true that the AAP, USPA and the HPA, the 3 biggest polo associations of the world with more than 9.000 members, have left the FIP?
What happens now?
Why does the FIP act like that? They dont give the requested answers to the international members.
Is this the end of the FIP? I hope NOT.

What do you think?
Do they (AAP, USPA, HPA) come back to the FIP if the president will change?
Should Patrick Guerrand-Hermès go?

[Sandra Funk]

have a look at this press release

http://www.hpa-polo.co.uk/news/articles/FIP%20Press%20Release.asp

[mauricio sordelli]

thank you sandra,
polo is far from olympics...

[Luis A. F. Wetzler]

Dear Sandra I had been yesterday after the final at the Hurlingham Club was cancelled due to the rain, with Alex Lalor and his nephew Luis who is the current Chairman of the Argentine Polo Association. The reason why our APA left the FIP is quite simple; they are fed up with Patrick Guerrand Hermès’s lack of respect for the three largest polo associations in the world. M. Guerrand Hermès has a way to conduce the FIP, which is totally unilateral; he organized meetings knowing that those federations had a schedule and cannot assist. We must wait for the Argentine Open, he is still invited like other presidents of polo association from many countries, but if his autocratic policies continue, a separate international federation will be organized. It is a pity because will harm polo, not in Argentina, the UK, Ireland and the USA but in the rest of the countries, which their polo associations are supporting M. Guerrand-Hermès.

“London, 29th October 2009. The three largest national polo associations, representing well over half of the world’s amateur and professional players, have resigned their membership of the Federation of International Polo (FIP).
The Asociación Argentina de Polo (AAP) withdrew from the international federation on 26 October 2009, followed on 27 October by the US Polo Association (USPA) and the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA), governing body of the sport in the UK and Ireland.
Between them these three biggest former stakeholders in the FIP have just over 9,000 registered members, compared with less than 7,500 in the other approximately 50 polo-playing countries that are members of the FIP.
“It is with the deepest regret that we three associations have resigned from the FIP,” said a spokesman speaking on behalf of the three. “We believe strongly in the concept of a global body to represent the sport of polo in international forums, but we have been disappointed by the unwillingness of the current president to take on board or even discuss the concerns of ourselves and others. The polo world is a small one so it is sad day for the game and we will now have to look at how best we can continue to help expand the game in the many countries where it is now played or might be introduced.”
The HPA traces its ancestry back to the 1875 Polo Committee of London’s Hurlingham Club and currently has 24 affiliated countries playing under HPA rules. The USPA, under Chairman Thomas Biddle of Aiken, South Carolina, was founded in 1890. The AAP, under president Luis Lalor, had its beginnings in 1892. The FIP was formed much later, in 1982, to promote the growth of polo worldwide and foster cooperation between all the autonomous national associations”.
This press release was the same for the four countries.

[mauricio sordelli]

estimado luis,
muchas gracias por tu aclaración. por los comentarios que recibíamos acerca del manejo de la FIP por su presidente medio que este desenlace se veía venir.
esperemos que este tipo de desencuentros sirva para fortalecer el polo en el mundo y no para debilitarlo ya que de hecho se encuentra hoy bastante golpeado.
hay países en que no despega, solamente existe una actividad basal, promocional, pero no logra proyectarse seriamente y eso frena la posibilidad de expansión que pueden ofrecer aquellas asociaciones más tradicionales y organizadas.
un fuerte abrazo, nos debemos un encuentro. (ayer no viajé porque se preveía la lluvia, como a las 11 hs me llamó mi hijo Felipe que estaba jugando una práctica en hurlingham, pero si me largaba a esa hora no llegaba a la final...finalmente todo suspendido )

[Dr. Inge Schwenger]

Dear Sandra,
thanks for putting this item on the schedule here at PCW!
In my opinion as a player following the development of our sport since 14 years now the decision of the three biggest association marks the changing which we all experience over the last years. Polo is not any more a nice after work doodledido for the rich and pretty, it is not longer a closed shop for some familys who avoid to open it. With the decision to vote Nicholas Colquhoun-Denvers for president of the HPA and even the decision for the new board of the German association a change has reached the heads of our comunity - opening the sport, public discussions about the most imortant questions even here at PCW, support of young players and talents independent from the money of their families.
We have to ask the FIP what for it stands: Just a party of old man travelling around the world and beeing invited for those nice Ambassador Cups? Or: giving their experience into the sport to help the younger ones improving, to help the international polo comunity getting importance inside of the equine sports, to give assistance for building up necessarily needed standards regarding doping, handicaps, education, training, horsemanship etc.etc.
I experienced Patrique Guerrand Hermes as somebody who is standing for sportiveness, fairness and the developement of polo. His duty now is, to not let the FIP explode because of his person but help solve (really solve) the problems which had been risen up.#Inge

[Luis A. F. Wetzler]

Dear Inge I share most of your comment but the problem is Monsieur Patrick Guerrand Hermès way to accomplish his task as president of the FIP, which in the opinion of most experts is a total disaster. He is a brilliant business man, heir to one of the most prestigious names in France, a real trade mark, but he had forgotten that a man with this kind of responsibilities cannot decide alone or with just a few of his friends inside the FIP. Alex Lalor told me that even Frankie Dorignac had lots of discussions and disagreements with M. Guerrand Hermès. So these polo associations, the oldest in the world, after waiting for a positive reaction coming from the FIP, which never arrived, decided until some other people takes control of the FIP, to leave this institution. Argentina as you know from your own experience is one of the countries where polo had advanced in such a way, that we have thousands of new players, the vast majority are not coming from a traditional polo clan or a wealthy family, but from outsiders who became part of the polo family here, just because they love the game, in the same manner that we support it here from PCW. I know through my personal experience many players who are excellent now and they started without even having their own horses, but they showed their skills and they are playing now very important tournaments. Nacho Figueras is a good example from somebody coming from a middle class family from Buenos Aires, and he found the way to play, now is more famous because he works for Ralph Laurent, but is just one example amongst thousands of others.

[Laurent Poirier]

Still no news about this issue on the FIP website... are you aware of any official comment from them?

[Luis A. F. Wetzler]

Laurent only I had found some press release, but total silence from the FIP, the latest comes from a British paper, but is more or less what we had read in these last days. I didn't find a single comment in most of the European press, in Europe polo is still for a "happy few", which is not the case in Argentina and the USA

Federation of International Polo in crisis as Big 3 pull out
"The three largest national polo associations, representing well over half of the world’s amateur and professional players, have resigned their membership of the Federation of International Polo (FIP).

The Asociación Argentina de Polo (AAP) withdrew from the international federation on 26 October 2009, followed on 27 October by the US Polo Association (USPA) and the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA), governing body of the sport in the UK and Ireland.

In what insiders say is a conflict between the "Big 3" and the President of FIP, the situation has escalated quickly, ahead of the FIP General Assembly that is scheduled for 23rd November 2009 in Buenos Aires.

The Hurlingham Polo Association issued a press release stating:

“It is with the deepest regret that we three associations have resigned from the FIP,” said a spokesman speaking on behalf of the three. “We believe strongly in the concept of a global body to represent the sport of polo in international forums, but we have been disappointed by the unwillingness of the current president to take on board or even discuss the concerns of ourselves and others. The polo world is a small one so it is sad day for the game and we will now have to look at how best we can continue to help expand the game in the many countries where it is now played or might be introduced.”

The HPA traces its ancestry back to the 1875 Polo Committee of London’s Hurlingham Club and currently has 24 affiliated countries playing under HPA rules. The USPA, under chairman Thomas Biddle of Aiken, South Carolina, was founded in 1890. The AAP, under president Luis Lalor, had its beginnings in 1892. The FIP was formed much later, in 1982, to promote the growth of polo worldwide and foster cooperation between all the autonomous national associations.

Between them these three biggest former stakeholders in the FIP have just over 9,000 registered members, compared with less than 7,500 in the other approximately 50 polo-playing countries that are members of the FIP.

FIP, through the efforts of its President Patrick Guerrand-Hermes, has pushed to have polo reinstated to the Olympic Games and has established closer ties with the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI), the world's governing body of equestrian sports. However the need to comply by the International Olympic Committee's WADA testing rules for athletes, and the FEI's strict rules on horse doping have been seen as sticking points with the Big 3.

A joint letter was sent to the President on 27th August 2009 outlining their concerns. They say no response was received, despite three written reminders. Their actions in pulling out of FIP was futher explained in an e-mail sent out on Thursday 29th October by the Hurlingham Polo Association to their worldwide affiliates. It states:

"After the utmost consideration and deliberations, it was decided with great reluctance to call for a special meeting of the Council of Administration as provided in the By-Laws (Article 15.2), and also to put forward an agenda for the forthcoming General Assembly as prescribed under Article 25.5 of the Statutes and By-Laws and to regrettably include a motion of no confidence in the incumbent President, Patrick Guerrand-Hermes. The votes being in accordance with By Laws 16.1 were as follows: 8 for the motion, 1 did not respond to the summons, 1 wished to discuss the matter further and 1 against the motion. However, despite this vote, the President claimed the vote to be incorrect or illegal and refused to allow the staff at the FIP office to send out the approved agenda for the General Assembly of November 23,against the wishes of the participating members of the Council of Administration.

FIP is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the world's governing body of polo. The AAP, USPA and HPA have not yet stated an intention to form a rival federation.(They will wait until the Argentine Open is over). Then the three associations willl decide what to do, Guerrand-Hermès has been invited to the Open with all the FIP Board, so we must wait and see.

[Laurent Poirier]

Luis,

Thank you for the update and let's keep on waiting for some statement from the FIP or EU press...

All the best,

L