ndia and Britain[edit]

The modern game of polo is derived from Manipur, India, where the game was known as 'sagol
kangjei', 'kanjai-bazee', or 'pulu'.[20][21] It was the anglicised form of the last, referring to the wooden
ball that was used, which was adopted by the sport in its slow spread to the west. The first polo club
was established in the town of Silchar in Assam, India, in 1833.
The origins of the game in Manipur are traced to early precursors of Sagol Kangjei.[22] This was one
of three forms of hockey in Manipur, the other ones being field hockey (called khong kangjei) and
wrestling-hockey (called mukna kangjei). Local rituals such as those connected to the Marjing, the
winged-pony god of polo and the creation-ritual episodes of the Lai Haraoba festival enacting the life
of his son, Khoriphaba, the polo-playing god of sports. These may indicate an origin earlier than the
historical records of Manipur. Later, according to Chaitharol-Kumbaba, a royal chronicle of King
Kangba who ruled Manipur much earlier than Nongda Lairen Pakhangba (33 AD) introduced sagol
kangjei (kangjei on horseback). Further regular playing of this game commenced in 1605 during the
reign of King Khagemba under newly framed rules of the game. However it was the first Mughal
emperor, Babur, who popularised the sport in India and ultimately made a significant influence on
England.

Old polo field in Imphal, Manipur

In Manipur, polo is traditionally played with seven players to a side. The players are mounted on the
indigenous Manipuri pony, which stands less than 13 hands (52 inches, 132 cm). There are no goal
posts, and a player scores simply by hitting the ball out of either end of the field. Players strike the
ball with the long side of the mallet head, not the end. [23] Players are not permitted to carry the ball,
although blocking the ball with any part of the body except the open hand is permitted. [24] The sticks
are made of cane, and the balls are made from the roots of bamboo. Players protected their legs by
attaching leather shields to their saddles and girths. [25]
In Manipur, the game was played even by commoners who owned a pony. [26] The kings of Manipur
had a royal polo ground within the ramparts of their Kangla Fort. Here they played manung kangjei
bung (literally, "inner polo ground"). Public games were held, as they are still today, at the Mapan
Kangjei Bung (literally "Outer Polo Ground"), a polo ground just outside the Kangla. Weekly games
called Hapta Kangjei (Weekly Polo) were also played in a polo ground outside the current Palace.
The oldest polo ground in the world is the Imphal Polo Ground in Manipur State. The history of this
polo ground is contained in the royal chronicle Cheitharol Kumbaba starting from AD 33. Lieutenant
(later Major General) Joseph Ford Sherer, the father of modern polo visited the state and played on
this polo ground in the 1850s. Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India visited the state in 1901 and
measured the polo ground as "225 yards long and 110 yards wide" 225 by 110 yards (206 by
101 m).[27]
The Cachar Club established in 1859[28][29] is located on Club Road in the heart of Silchar city in
Assam. In 1862 the oldest polo club still in existence, Calcutta Polo Club, was established by two
British soldiers, Sherer and Captain Robert Stewart. [30] Later they spread the game to their peers in
England. The British are credited with spreading polo worldwide in the late 19th century and the
early 20th century at the height of its empire. Military officers imported the game to Britain in the
1860s. The establishment of polo clubs throughout England and western Europe followed after the
formal codification of rules.[25] The 10th Hussars at Aldershot, Hants, introduced polo to England in
1834. The game's governing body in the United Kingdom is the Hurlingham Polo Association, which
drew up the first set of formal British rules in 1874, many of which are still in existence.
This version of polo played in the 19th century was different from the faster form that was played in
Manipur. The game was slow and methodical, with little passing between players and few set plays
that required specific movements by participants without the ball. Neither players nor horses were
trained to play a fast, non-stop game. This form of polo lacked the aggressive methods and required
fewer equestrian skills. From the 1800s to the 1910s, a host of teams representing
Indian principalities dominated the international polo scene.[25]
The Champions polo league was launched in Jaipur in 2016. It is a new version of polo, similar to
the T20 format of cricket. The pitch was made smaller and accommodated a huge audience. The
first event of the World Champions Polo League took place in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, with six teams
and room for 10,000 spectators. The rules were changed and the duration was made shorter. [citation
needed]