Chile came from behind to defeat USA in overtime of the 10th
Federation of International Polo World Championship held at
the pristine San Cristobal Polo Club located in Santiago, Chile.
The six teams, divided at random into two brackets, competed in the
tournament, played from March 27-April 1 after rain delays.
In the United States’ first FIP
Championship appearance since 1989, a
determined American team, led by
Coach Joel Baker, stormed through the
first three matches of the tournament,
their only loss on an overtime goal in
the final match against Chile. The
starting lineup, Remy du Celliee Muller,
Jesse Bray, Felipe Viana and Patrick
Uretz, impressed spectators and players
alike with their classic style of polo,
skillfully utilizing every member on the
team throughout the tournament.
Brazil faced off against a strong
Argentine team in the first day of the
tournament, and secured its first win in
a tightly fought match. The second
game of the day saw the home Chilean
team narrowly squeeze by England to
record its first win.
In the second afternoon of play,
Team USA got the ball rolling in its first
match against Argentina, defeating the
defending champions 11-10 in overtime.
USA took a commanding lead at the
start of the game, maintaining a twogoal
lead throughout the first half.
Argentina came back in the fourth
chukker, rallying to tie the match, and
proceeded to take the lead in the
beginning of the fifth. Viana, on
tournament Best Playing Pony, Pajarita,
scored a deep neck shot to tie the score
10-10 in the last seconds of regulation
play, sending the game into overtime.
Viana kept his scoring momentum
going in the extra chukker, tapping the
final goal in for Team USA. Teammate
Bray scored an impressive six goals with
Uretz adding an additional three goals
to the tally. Following the game, Coach
Baker praised his team, saying, “I am so
proud of these guys. Not only did they
beat them on the field, but had to come
from behind to win in overtime. We are
all very proud we sent the defending
champs home.”
With less than 24 hours between
games, USA focused their efforts on
their match against Brazil. Bray and
Uretz repeated their scoring streak,
putting a combined nine goals on the
board for the American team. Team
USA controlled the first half of the
game, leading the Brazilian team 5-1 at
the end of the second chukker. Brazil answered back in the fourth chukker,
bringing the score to within one goal, 7-
6. Brazil pushed forward early in the
fifth chukker to tie the score 7-7. The
United States team took control of the
game, scoring two more points to end
the match 9-7. Team USA emerged as
the leader of the bracket with an
undefeated record, placing them against
England in the semifinal match for
Bracket 2. Chile’s overtime win against
Pakistan positioned the team to play
Brazil in the Bracket 1 semifinal.
USA took the field by storm against
England in a single elimination
semifinal, leading the entire match.
USA built their offensive attack in the
first chukker, scoring four unanswered
goals, and continued to push through
the second chukker, leading by six goals
7-1. Bray, Viana, and Uretz each added to the tally to further the lead, 10-3.
England fought back, scoring six
goals in the second half, but was unable
to overcome the American team. Team
USA defeated England 15-9, securing its
spot in the 2015 FIP Championship
game. In the other semifinal, Chile
managed to overpower a strong
Brazilian team, advancing to the final
following a 11-10 win.
I am so excited for the guys. They
just played their hearts out. They won, I
think, 90 percent of the players they
went to, they had their man, they were
playing for each other,” said Coach
Baker. “Our team has maintained a
positive attitude throughout this world
championship and it really showed
today. Making it to the final is truly
amazing.” Joel’s strategy of focusing on
winning individual plays helped the team move on after any mistakes made
on the field.
I could not be more proud of our
USA team competing in the FIP World
Championship in Chile,” said USPA
CEO Peter Rizzo. “It took a superlative
national effort on so many levels to
remain undefeated at this stage of the
competition.”
USA rode into the final match against
Chile determined to continue their
winning streak.
Uretz kicked the game off with the
first goal of the match, followed by two
penalty goals by Bray. A goal by Bray
and Viana pushed the USA ahead 5-2 at
the half. Chile returned from half time
with a strong offensive strategy, scoring
four goals in the fourth chukker. Muller
won the ball out of the lineup and
scored to tie the score, 6-6. The
American players regained the lead in
the fifth chukker, scoring three goals to
a single goal by Chile, 9-7. In the last
lineup of regulation time, MVP Felipe
Vercellino stole the ball and scored a
quick goal to send the game into
overtime. Mario Silva backed the
winning goal in to end the game 11-10.
This was an incredibly challenging
game and Chile was a tremendous
competitor on the field. The USPA is
exceedingly proud of how Team USA
played and represented our country as
great players and sportsmen,” said
Rizzo. The young team was heartbroken
after controlling the majority of the
game. “It was a tough way to lose, we
had them, and it didn’t end the way we
anticipated,” said Bray.
Remy Muller was named Sportsmen
of the tournament. Jesse Bray led the
scoring throughout the tournament,
finishing with a total of 24 goals.
The USPA chose the seven members
of Team USA from a roster of 61 Team
USPA members. Remy du Celliee
Muller, Felipe Viana, Patrick Uretz,
Jesse Bray, Cody Ellis, Will Tankard,
and Mason Wroe trained in Wellington,
Florida during March, playing 14- to 18-
goal polo at the International Polo Club
and Grand Champions Polo Club. Bray,
Uretz, and Viana were members of the
undefeated team who played in the FIP
Zone Championship in December.
Deserved recognition
As most of you have heard, our USA Team brought
home silver medals in the FIP World Cup, losing 12-11
in overtime in a thrilling polo match to the hometown
team of Chile. The Chilean supporters outnumbered our
U.S. contingent by 5,000 to 10.
The last time the USA team was in the final of the FIP
World Championship was 1989. What you may not have
heard, and what I would like to share with you, is the
rest of the story and why, as a member of the USPA, you
should be very proud of what this team of young men
and the support staff around them accomplished for the
U.S. Polo Association. They all deserve a thank you.
In the first game, the USA Team played classic, open
polo and beat Argentina, who was in a win-or-go-home
scenario. Coach Joel Baker was a master at working with
the team and it showed. Most thought the match would
be difficult at best. The next day USA played Brazil, and
beat them as well. Both
games were won due to
our team's discipline,
training and
horsemanship under
Joel’s leadership. In the
semi-finals, USA handily
beat the English team
setting up the
championship against
Chile.
Comments I received
from all the teams and
FIP representatives were
extremely positive about
our team and the
players' attitudes and
professionalism on and
off the field. Everyone
expressed how well
prepared the USA Team
was.
Remy Muller received
a sportsmanship award
after stopping to help a
competitor pick up his
mallet in the middle of
play. After every game,
our players dismounted the horses on the field and
loosened the girths to walk them back to the pony line.
No other team did this on these borrowed horses.
Everyone I spoke with said the USA matches were the
best polo they have seen in a very long time. I heard
comments like: They really play as a team; You can tell
these guys have really worked hard getting ready; This
is the best team polo we've seen, I wish we could go
back to this instead of the tap, tap stuff; It's amazing
what the USA has done to their polo program; and We
need to do this back home.
I was informed that after we sent Argentina home, an
article in the Argentine press said Argentina needs to
have a program like the USA has.
Approximately six years ago, the board of the U.S.
Polo Association decided we needed to support our
American players. We passed the American rule and
then, more importantly, put our money where our mouth
was and decided to build a program to help young American players become skilled in the game with
mentoring by some of our best high?goal players and
other experts in the game.
What is interesting about each of the players is they
previously had all been on championship teams in the
USPA I/I. You could see their strong arena and
horsemanship skills as they rode off their competitors.
In addition, the USPA support staff worked tirelessly to
develop and train the team This included the
leadership of Charles Smith, Kris Bowman and Bob
Puetz, along with support from the USPA Umpires LLC,
the USPA Marketing LLC and Polo Development LLC
staffs. It paid off. Even the three players who did not
play helped the on?field players with horse selection
and support during the game and gave insights to the
players during and after the game.
Since the start of the World Championships, USA
only placed one time in the top three medal positions
and that was in 1989 when it won it. Four of the years
it did not even qualify. Out of 10 championships,
Argentina placed in the top three seven times and won
it four times. Brazil placed in the top three eight out of
10 times and won it three times. Chile placed in the
top three four times and this is its second win.
USA eliminated Argentina and beat Brazil in the
toughest bracket. Our only loss in the entire
tournament (including the zone playoffs) was in OT in
the final. Even though USA didn't bring home the gold,
it was one overtime goal away from first place. The
team's record speaks for its (our) amazing success.
I suggest that you reach out to the players and say
Thank You for taking time out of their Florida and
California polo schedules to work with Coach Baker to
represent the USPA board, our membership and the
clubs of the U.S. Polo Association.
I am very proud of this team. The final score does
not reflect what happened in Chile. The old saying, |
By Hayley Heatley • Photos by Alejandro Rustom and Ernesto Zelada/Xpress Media |
