Aspen Valley Polo Club’s summer lineup gets going July 3 with Independence Cup
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times
The Aspen Valley Polo Club is set to open its summer season on July 3 with the traditional Independence Cup, the start of a busy lineup of events that carries into September.
This includes the marquis Aug. 28 Summer Polo Benefit for the Aspen Valley Hospital Foundation, which last year raised more than $500,000 for AVHF after it wasn’t held in 2020 because of the pandemic.
According to a news release, there will be a record 13 tournaments hosted by the Aspen Valley Polo Club, which is located just outside Carbondale. The tournaments often bring in some of the most recognizable names in the sport, including Nacho Figueras and Nic Roldan.
Resurrected in 2014, the Aspen Valley Polo Club is run by Marc and Melissa Ganzi. The venue includes six world-class fields and both indoor and outdoor polo arenas. There also is a polo school, operated by former 8-goaler Juan Bollini, with the first lesson being free.
“I think the club will continue to flourish and it will continue to grow,” Marc Ganzi said in the news release. “It is a sport that has a lot of tradition and has a lot of history. I think we are sort of writing our own history in the Aspen valley.”
Other summer tournaments include the ChukkerTV Cup (July 6-10), Craig Sakin Memorial (July 13-17), Basalt Handicap (July 20-24), Emma Challenge Cup (July 27-31), High Alpine Cup (Aug. 3-7), Mount Sopris Cup (Aug. 10-14), Rocky Mountain Open (Aug. 12-21), Carbondale Classic (Aug. 19-21), Triple Crown of Polo-Aspen (Aug. 24-28), Silver Queen Invitational (Aug. 31-Sept. 4), Maroon Bells Cup (TBD) and Ute Challenge (TBD).
ChukkerTV, which is based out of Wellington, Florida, will again live stream the entire summer season, with announcer Dale Schwetz back calling each event.
All matches, food and refreshments are free and open to the public, per the release.
The Ganzis and the AVPC are also behind the World Snow Polo Championship, held each December in Aspen.
For more information, visit http://www.aspenvalleypoloclub.com. The live streams can be found at http://www.chukkertv.com.
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