Polo and Other Royal Sports


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HMQueenElizabethII

HMQueenElizabethII

Heir Apparent
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Which sports British Royals like?I know that Prince William like Polo.Her Majesty The Queen and her mother like horse races.Duke of York likes tennis.
 
Prince William also loves Water Polo--he plays for his university team. He developed a love of tennis from his Mum who always attended Wimbledon when she could. William also loves rugby.

Prince Harry plays polo. It has been said he wanted to play polo professionally.

Peter Phillips was a rugby player until an injury ended his aspirations.

Zara Phillips has aspirations of being an Equestrienne like her Mum, but it has been said she does not have her talent.

The Duke of York is an avid golfer--they can't get him off the course!!

The Duke of Edinburgh loves polo and and carriage racing. He detests horse racing and attends Ascot "under protest" according to Ingrid Seward.

Diana was an avid swimmer and played tennis and skied.

Prince Edward is a lover of "real tennis"--tennis as it was played in Henry VIII's time.

Her Majesty the Queen is an avid horse racing fan and loves to ride even to this day!

Princess Anne is an Equestrienne who competed in the 1976 Olympics. Her first husband, Mark Phillips, is an Olympic Gold Medalist in the Equestrian events.

The Duchess of York used to compete in horsing events as a child and competed in an equine endurance event in Qatar. They say she is fearless on a horse and on skis!!
 
Oh,i have just read Vietnamese magazine.It told that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II also like football.She ussually phone to David Beckham every week and watch some important football matches.
 
Philip taught Charles how to fish at a very young age.
 
Originally posted by Windsorfan@Jun 15th, 2004 - 5:53 am
Oh,i have just read Vietnamese magazine.It told that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II also like football.She ussually phone to David Beckham every week and watch some important football matches.
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Her Majesty calls David Beckham??? That is intriguing if true!!!
 
The late Queen Mum was an avid fisherwoman. Into her 80's she could be seen in the River Dee with her wellies on fishing away!!!
 
Originally posted by Windsorfan@Jun 15th, 2004 - 5:53 am
Oh,i have just read Vietnamese magazine.It told that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II also like football.She ussually phone to David Beckham every week and watch some important football matches.
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And who said so, he's PR?
 
Yes.Sometimes Queen Elizabeth II phones to Becks to ask about England team's situation.
 
Well, it semes be a very good sport, especial for who like horses and ride him ( like me). For many years we see the Windsor mans play this game . Some1 now the rules and have pics from the fild? I like to understend more. Now what is the size of the filds, how many players are alowed in the game,etc..................
Well, i wich to now everything, if that is possible

:flower: :flower:
 
The are 2 form of polo-field polo (the kind that you see played by the Windsors) and arena polo. Not too much high profile activity in arena polo-so I won't bore you with that.

So field polo-don't know exact size of field but it is h-u-g-e. There are 4 people on each team. And usually 6 chukkas in tournament play. Chukkas are periods of play and they last 7 minutes.

The best players come from Argentina. Most horses that are used in polo are anglo-arab or thoroughbred. It depends alot on the style of rider and level of play what kind of horse you use.

There are 4 positions on the field and the player wears his position on his shirt 1, 2, 3 or 4. Usually 1 is easiet, followed by 4, 2 is quite hard and 3 is usually played by a professional even in low goal polo.

I could go on for days-if you need any more information, just ask.

check out this website also: 7minutes.co.uk
 
So if game have 6 parts ( chukkas ) with 7 minuts. They can change horses betuin, correct?

Ich team have 4 players, and if one hurt? is other for replace him?

Look for this pic

http://cache.gettyimages.com/comp/51112045...757C85AE85A779B

If the bole ( maibe have a special name ) pass in the midle of that 2 bars is point?

If you want to talk for days fill free i listen you with plesure. Just now do you play?
 
yep, you change horses between chukkas. but there is a concept of a 'two chukka' horse. that is a horse than can be played for 2 chukkas in a match (the chukkas are not consecutive). obviously how many horses a person needs depends on their level of skill, riding style, fitness of horse and a million other variables.

most teams have 'reserve' players. someone who can play in one of the teammates gets injured. the reserve is supposed to have the same 'handicap' as the injured player.

many players believe there are only two ways to leave the pitch-ride off on a horse or ride off in an ambulance. walking off is considered 'wimpy'.

polo as a sport was designed to train the mounted cavalary of the military so they would be prepared for battle. one of the queen's of persia actually died during a match. and it is the world's oldest team sport.

every year there are some major fixtures in the calendar. and it depends if you follow US or UK polo (the rest of the world falls into one of the two camps) which ones are important and then there is the Argy Open which is considered the world's best tournament with the world's best players.

....hmmm...i can think of more-but just tell me what interests you......
 
oh and another thing...the goal you are playing for changes every goal. so there is no 'home' side and 'away' side.
 
Yes, glossypinky that is very help.

Well, i gona try see a game. I just can see details from one and not a all game. I belive that should help.

If you remember some more post.
 
The Royal family and field sports, biodiversity, conservation

I am starting this thread in a desperate bid to have some discussion about this complicated, fascinating topic. I think there are many members who know a lot about this. It is key to understanding one of the biggest causes championed by members of the royal family.

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is President of the Game Conservancy Trust. On the GCT official website, it says many members participate in field sports, which promote, enhance, and maintain biodiversity, or 'biological diversity'.
Prince Philip is also a patron for the British Trust of Conservation Volunteers.

Princess Anne is patron of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. Prince William is royal patron for the Tusk Trust. These are all inter-related. I think Prince William is going to be a major force for wildlife and game conservation, bringing it back to youth awareness. I am so glad to see he is taking on these issues that have been such a huge part of his grandfather's work since the 1950s.

What are field sports? These include Game hunting (deer stalking) and Game birds' shooting (pheasants, grouse). On the Balmoral estate, there is a deer reserve with thousands of 'red deer'. I have not been able to find much specific information about the royal family's participation in conservation and biodiversity through field sports. I am hoping this thread will have some informative posts on this topic.

Is anyone able to tell me about or at least that any of the royal family participate in another kind of field sport, falconry? falconry is also believed to promote biodiversity and conservationist values.
I also look forward to reading posts concerning what people think about fox hunting and how it plays into the conservationist efforts.
I have not found any threads on the forums that deal with this topics. It did not seem exactly appropriate for the animal rights' threads.
These links I have provided are extremely informative, and obviously they are the official sites for organizations supported by the royal family. But I also found another awesome website: British Association for Shooting and Conservation also talks about the UK Biodiversity Action Plan which the royal family actively supports.
Please if anyone has input on this topic, pretend that you are informing a totally ignorant public because I am desperate for more knowledge about this. I think this is a minefield of valuable information. I am trying to write about the royal conservationist work. Every kind of input I would appreciate so much. I know a lot of you know about this, so please speak up! ;-)
 
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Both Charles and Camilla opposed the bill to ban hunting with dogs. Those that believe hunting is a country pursuit and should be allowed to continue, love nothing more than chasing a small dog type animal across fields, to the point of exhaustion and then watching it being pulled apart by hounds. They say it is to protect the fabric of the countryside and while I accept that foxes can be a nuisance, there should be better ways for C & C to get their jollies! I do speak as someone who hunted in her youth.
The RF own vast tracts of land and breed and release for shooting many game birds, they also earn a lot of money from charging others to shoot birds and deer on their land.

The Game Conservancy Trust advises landowners how to provide good habitat for the sole purpose of raising birds and deer to be shot for entertainment, normally by people who may not be good shots, but do have the money.

BASC also supports the same causes.
So far very little in the way of conservation work in the UK.

Charles does support conservation in the way of keeping old skills and old buildings, (Titus Alba and Athene noctuais are struggling for habitats to nest in) . Hedgerows for birds (non shooting variety) field mice etc to live in.

Philip is the patron of the WWF and supports BTCV, which among other things replants and tidies many sites.

Many of the royal patrons lend their names to charities with conservation in the title, not all of the charities are about conservation, just keeping the uncaring hunting shooting brigade alive.

As far as I know, none of the RF are involved in any of the Raptor charities or involved in falconry. In fact, most game bird estates will condone the poisoning of Raptors by their gamekeepers. Much as I dislike Al Fayed and the rumours that he shoots deer out of season while they are captive on his estate, he is involved in the breeding, safe keeping and release of Red Kites on his Scottish Estate, although three of them have been deliberately poisoned this year.
 
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This area confuses me. How can you be involved in conservation of land and animals and be a hunter at the same time? Providing safe havens for animals to mature in just to allow others to shoot them? It's beyond me. What am I missing here?
 
Laura Elizabeth, your confusion is common! I am becoming less confused, however, because I have been trying to learn as much as possible about this element of the British royal life. See here I have started to write a bit about this, using Prince William's patronage of Tusk as a springboard. Maybe my essay will help to answer some questions you have.
I don't claim to be an expert, but I am not finished with this topic!
Thank you for your input, Skydragon.

I think that a lot of people have misconceptions about field sports. They think you can't be an environmentalist or conservationist and participate in field sports, but I am learning that is wrong. The most notable conservationists, from Robert F. Kennedy Jr to Al Gore to the Prince of Wales and Duke of Edinburgh (and now Prince William) are longtime supporters of this as a way of enhancing the biological diversity of natural habitat.
Basically, what shooting game does, it balances out the natural habitat, purging the harmful surpluses of game, and it provides incentive and raises money for the natural habitat to be preserved!
I didn't know about Fayed being involved in preserving deer.
How long is the deer stalking season? I believe it was recently shortened?
I think it runs from April through September??
Well, I know that Tusk Trust does conservation work, and Prince Philip has definitely been a conservationist since the 1950s.
Game Conservancy does do conservation work. They say on their site they support field sports, though, because it is a way to maintain biodiversity. You need a lot of money to maintain these natural habitats and by opening their habitats up at Balmoral and Sandringham to agricultural research and conservationist policies, the royal family can enjoy their shooting and hunting activities and call themselves "conservationists". RFK Jr is a conservationist and supports grouse game shooting, so I know you can be an environmentalist and conservationist at the same time.
 
Laura Elizabeth said:
This area confuses me. How can you be involved in conservation of land and animals and be a hunter at the same time? Providing safe havens for animals to mature in just to allow others to shoot them? It's beyond me. What am I missing here?
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I
IMO conservation means to protect habitat from shrinking further than it already has, it doesn't have to have anything to do with providing a non lethal haven for wildlife. I know several hunters & fishermen who are strong conservationists.
 
BMC said:
I
IMO conservation means to protect habitat from shrinking further than it already has, it doesn't have to have anything to do with providing a non lethal haven for wildlife. I know several hunters & fishermen who are strong conservationists.
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Also important to note is that the birds shot in a shooting party, for example at Sandringham, are subject to the guidelines, which will be different each season and based on the surplus breeding in the reserve. For example, they might have a cap of 300 birds they can shoot. This ensures the habitat does not become overcrowded, because too much in the habitat is harmful, and the regulations on the breeding are strict. Hence, the "biodiversity" argument stressed by the conservationists.
 
CasiraghiTrio said:
Also important to note is that the birds shot in a shooting party, for example at Sandringham, are subject to the guidelines, which will be different each season and based on the surplus breeding in the reserve. For example, they might have a cap of 300 birds they can shoot. This ensures the habitat does not become overcrowded, because too much in the habitat is harmful, and the regulations on the breeding are strict. Hence, the "biodiversity" argument stressed by the conservationists.
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Unfortunately that sounds as if it came straight from BASC's website and IMO, it is wrong. There is no 'cap' on the amount of birds bred, solely for people to 'enjoy' shooting. The only cap is that if they only breed and release 2000 birds, then they have a cap of 2000 birds and if 2200 are shot, that is unfortunate and undeclared. If they left the birds alone, instead of breeding them to shoot, natural predators would take them and keep the natural numbers down, but then pheasants are not indegenius to the UK. Biodiversity is wonderful, if it is natural, but breeding to kill, can hardly be called that.

Animal Aid: Fox shot and beaten at Sandringham

it balances out the natural habitat, purging the harmful surpluses of game, and it provides incentive and raises money for the natural habitat to be preserved
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It provides money for the landowners to continue to live in the style they are accustomed to, that is why there are so many shooting estates in the UK. It has nothing to do with conserving the countryside, just conserving the estates ability to make extra money from it. While I agree with culling of deer when needed, I think it is wrong for shooting estates to allow novices and those that think they can shoot to aim at anything.
Game Conservancy does do conservation work. They say on their site they support field sports
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Apart from advising estate owners on how to have a successful breeding year or environment, what do they do to conserve the countyside for wild birds, small mammals, badgers, raptors?

Being an environmentalist is not related to being a coservationist, the two are not joined at the hip.
 
Skydragon said:
Unfortunately that sounds as if it came straight from BASC's website and IMO, it is wrong. There is no 'cap' on the amount of birds bred, solely for people to 'enjoy' shooting. The only cap is that if they only breed and release 2000 birds, then they have a cap of 2000 birds and if 2200 are shot, that is unfortunate and undeclared. If they left the birds alone, instead of breeding them to shoot, natural predators would take them and keep the natural numbers down, but then pheasants are not indegenius to the UK. Biodiversity is wonderful, if it is natural, but breeding to kill, can hardly be called that.

Animal Aid: Fox shot and beaten at Sandringham
Click to expand...

You're right about there being no 'cap' on breeding. I didn't say this. There is a 'cap' that's based on breeding, because the amount bred determines the cap, the officially allowable amount that are for shooting. The estates are supposed to follow this, but I'm sure you are right that many, maybe most, do not follow that. I imagine it is easy to shoot as many they like and no one would know it or care to press the issue.

What is your belief about fox hunting? Is it the same with foxes being bred for the hunts? 'Officially', the Countryside Alliance will say things like, Oh, these foxes would be homeless and strays otherwise, tearing up the farms and like that? But is this the case, or are/were (before the ban) the foxes bred for the hunt?
 
BMC said:
IMO conservation means to protect habitat from shrinking further than it already has, it doesn't have to have anything to do with providing a non lethal haven for wildlife. I know several hunters & fishermen who are strong conservationists.
Click to expand...
Conservation is planned management of a natural resource to prevent exploitation, destruction, or neglect. While some take this to preserve habitat ideal for the breeding and slaughter of deer, grouse, ptarmigan, foxes etc, conservation in the sense interpreted by many is the conservation of natural habitats. The later is to encourage the natural bio diversity of plants, animals and birds.

There are a number of schemes available to landowners that encourage natural planting to encourage bio diversity, the cardinal rule is that there is no shooting/hunting or fishing allowed in order to qualify - that is conservation.

The Game Conservancy Trust for instance is dedicated solely to maintain the habitat in an area for successful stalking or game bird shooting, We often dine with some of the regional secretaries, which makes for lively conversation!

Many of the UK 'conservation' charities that CT has cited as societies supported by senior royals are not about conservation as a lot of people understand it, but about conserving a blood sports industry. Game conservancy is exactly what it says, to conserve game in an area, in order to kill it for pleasure.

It just sounds so much 'cleaner' to call it game conservation or field sport
 
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CasiraghiTrio said:
What is your belief about fox hunting? Is it the same with foxes being bred for the hunts? 'Officially', the Countryside Alliance will say things like, Oh, these foxes would be homeless and strays otherwise, tearing up the farms and like that? But is this the case, or are/were (before the ban) the foxes bred for the hunt?
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Foxes have never been bred for release for hunting, but it was not unknown for them to be trapped and released prior to a hunt years ago. They do the same with the hares for coursing, the difference is that they erect closed wire around the fields, so that the hares have no chance to escape. Kennel men and hunt employees will check the area intended for the hunt and stop up any bolt holes they find.

The Countryside Alliance are as bad as the Animal Liberation Army in their propaganda. We have never allowed fox hunting on our land and have never been bothered by homeless or stray foxes tearing anything up. Nature is wonderful, if an area cannot support a large amount of foxes, they only seem to breed one pup in a litter, if there is not enough food in the area, they die. That's why many foxes have moved to the cities, so much food rubbish about. A lot of landowners don't like the fox, because he will dig under and get into their game bird pens and kill as many as he can, mainly in the hope of going back for more. The farm over from us has free range chickens and because he is a good farmer, he has proper fencing and takes them in at night.
The Countryside Alliance also said 1000's of hounds and horses would have to be put down, farriers would go out of business etc, I would have thought the majority of people, like me, keep horses to ride out on, not just use to hunt with.
 
Skydragon said:
Foxes have never been bred for release for hunting, but it was not unknown for them to be trapped and released prior to a hunt years ago. They do the same with the hares for coursing, the difference is that they erect closed wire around the fields, so that the hares have no chance to escape. Kennel men and hunt employees will check the area intended for the hunt and stop up any bolt holes they find.

The Countryside Alliance are as bad as the Animal Liberation Army in their propaganda. We have never allowed fox hunting on our land and have never been bothered by homeless or stray foxes tearing anything up. Nature is wonderful, if an area cannot support a large amount of foxes, they only seem to breed one pup in a litter, if there is not enough food in the area, they die. That's why many foxes have moved to the cities, so much food rubbish about. A lot of landowners don't like the fox, because he will dig under and get into their game bird pens and kill as many as he can, mainly in the hope of going back for more. The farm over from us has free range chickens and because he is a good farmer, he has proper fencing and takes them in at night.
The Countryside Alliance also said 1000's of hounds and horses would have to be put down, farriers would go out of business etc, I would have thought the majority of people, like me, keep horses to ride out on, not just use to hunt with.
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Here in the US we have a major problem with coyotes coming into the cities because their natural habitat is destroyed. This is why some groups have made it a sport of chasing and killing coyotes, as traditionally with the fox hunts. I was never a supporter of fox hunts or coyote hunts anymore than of horse slaughter (the trend among horse breeders to put horses down when they can't race anymore). These are hideous things.

What I do belief is good, however, is what the royal family has done with their estates to create a natural habitat for red deer and grouse, and at Sandringham for pheasant and partridge. I agree with Skydragon that to breed to kill is horrible, and I hope the royal family practice what they preach and do not kill beyond what is necessary to preserve the healthy balance.
 
King Edward II of England liked hawking and hunting with his greyhounds.
 
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