USPA Piaget World Snow Polo Championship to be Played in Aspen, Colorado December 18-20

LAKE WORTH, Fla. - Dec. 18, 2014 - PRLog -- The United States Polo Association (USPA), the national governing body of the sport of polo, announced today the USPA Piaget World Snow Polo Championship, an officially sanctioned USPA event, will be played in Aspen, Colorado on December 18-20, 2014, and that U.S. Polo Assn. – the officially sanctioned consumer brand of USPA is the official clothing sponsor for the World Snow Polo Championship.

Competing for this year’s championship will be defending champion St. Regis Hotels & Resorts, Piaget, Flexjet, Audi, U.S. Polo Assn. and Aspen Valley Polo Club.  2014 marks the tournament’s 15^th year and the second year organized by the Aspen Valley Polo Club.  It will be played in Rio Grande Park, in the heart of downtown Aspen with majestic mountain backdrops for the polo matches. The tournament is played in an arena format which is played three-on-three.  The horses are shod with special cleated shoes to provide better traction. The ball is larger and lighter, and bright red, to better accommodate winter conditions. The event will allow players to gain points for their overall world polo ranking for the last time in 2014.

For the first time in event history the final of North America's only snow polo tournament will be televised by NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) on Dec. 27th at 4 p.m. EST.

The schedule of events for the tournament is:

Wednesday, Dec. 17: Tournament Draw and press event, St. Regis Hotels & Resort

Thursday, Dec. 18: First round games, Aspen Valley Polo Club, Carbondale

Friday, Dec. 19: Media Day at Rio Grande Park followed by the playoff for fifth and sixth place

Saturday, Dec. 20: Subsidiary game, championship final and awards ceremony, Rio Grande Park

“Just as sports including football, soccer and lacrosse are played in standard and arena formats, polo has developed as a sport that is played in a range of environments,” said Peter Rizzo, Chief Executive Officer of the United States Polo Association.   “Snow Polo provides an opportunity for players and spectators alike to enjoy the sport in new ways and in dramatic settings, furthering our success in growing the sport of polo.”

The sport of snow polo was first introduced in 1985 at the resort town of St. Moritz, Switzerland. In the U.S. snow polo is held exclusively in Aspen, Colorado. “We would like to take snow polo to another level, to make snow polo and the city of Aspen synonymous,” said Melissa Ganzi, co-founder of Aspen Valley Polo Club. “We’re really fortunate that we have our wonderful local partners.”

A star-studded lineup of players, sponsors and record six teams will participate:

FLEXJET

•        Tommy Kato

•        Luis Escobar

•        Martin Pepa

ASPEN VALLEY POLO CLUB

•        Juan Bollini, Jr.

•        Alejandro Novillo Astrada

•        Andres Gonzalez

PIAGET

•        Marc Ganzi

•        Jeff Hall

•        Nic Roldan

ST. REGIS

•        Alejandro Gonzalez

•        Mariano Gracida

•        Roberto Gonzalez

US POLO ASSN.

•        Grant Ganzi

•        Tommy Biddle

•        Brandon Phillips

AUDI

•        Melissa Ganzi

•        Kris Kampsen

•        Juan Bollini

Please visit the United States Polo Association’s Facebook page (facebook.com/USPoloAssociation) and follow the Twitter (@poloassociation) account for regular reports and updates on the tournament.

About Aspen Valley Polo Club

Aspen Valley Polo Club, the nation's newest private polo club features a complete facility offering stick-and-ball field, club house, wooden horse polo pit, exercise track, indoor school, arena, pony hire, livery, coaches, stable and turn to hire and grooms accommodations. The club has hosted several tournaments featuring several world-ranked players.

About US Polo Assn

U.S. Polo Assn. brand products are authentic and officially sanctioned by the United States Polo Association (USPA), the governing body for the sport of polo in the U.S. since 1890.

USPA Properties, Inc., a wholly owned, for-profit, tax-paying subsidiary of the USPA, manages its licensing program in over 135 countries through independent retail, department, online and U.S. Polo Assn. brand stores.

Primarily featuring sportswear for men, women, and children, the product offering has expanded to include accessories, luggage, watches, shoes, home furnishings and more.    As the steward of the Association’s marks, Properties’ mission is to develop a long-term source of revenue to help underwrite numerous programs for education about and promotion of the sport of polo in the U.S., from memberships and handicaps, to clubs and tournaments; from interscholastic programs to Team USPA mentoring; with particular concern for equine welfare and player safety throughout.

About the United States Polo Association ®

The U.S. Polo Association was organized and exists for the purposes of promoting the game of polo, coordinating the activities of its Member Clubs and Registered Players, arranging and supervising polo tournaments, competitions, and games, and providing rules, handicaps, and conditions for those tournaments, competitions, and games including the safety and welfare of participants and mounts. For more information, please visit www.uspolo.org.