The spirit and pride of Asian people shone brightly at final round of the “All Asia Cup 2020”
Thailand Polo Association showcased its strength by organising the biggest polo competition in Asia, the 5th All Asia Cup 2020. The final of the All Asia Cup 2020 polo tournament, themed “Honouring to the Spirit of Asia”, had the Thai national team competing with the Philippines. The theme of the tournament reflects the pride of Asia and the unity of Asian people who together can achieve wonderful things. The final round was attended by many celebrities and famous faces at VS Sports Club, Bang Bo district, Samut Prakan province.
One of the biggest sport matches of Asia, the All Asia Cup is now in its fifth year, organised by the Thailand Polo Association following the mission of Khun Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who supported and promoted polo in Thailand. He founded the Thailand Polo Association, which is certified by the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), and successfully made polo one of the sports on the programme for the first time in the 24th SEA Games in Nakhon Ratchasima in 2007.
Kanoksakdi Bhinsaeng, chairman of the Thailand Polo Association, talked about the All Asia Cup 2020, “The All Asia Cup is back in its fifth year, greater than ever, and this year we have been honoured by polo players from six Asian countries, including honorary players HRH Princess Azemah Bolkiah, HRH Prince Jefri Bolkiah, and HRH Prince Bahar Bolkiah, which is such an honour for the Thailand Polo Association. This proves that we are the centre of polo in Asia. The tournament is like the Asian Games for polo players, and is an internationally recognised tournament. So far, Thai polo players have won the tournament three times in 2012, 2016 and 2018.”
The final round was a match between the Thai national team and the Philippines. The Thai team was led by Apichet Srivaddhanaprabha, as the team manager Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha had been injured during practice, but was present at the match to show support. The Philippines team was led by Mikee Romero. It was a rematch for the two teams as they had earlier competed back in 2018, and before the final round, they had successfully beat four teams from four countries namely Brunei, China, Indonesia and South Korea. The final round was fun and very exciting, with the Thai team taking home the trophy at the score of 7 1/2 to 4, winning the All Asia Cup 2020.
In addition to the exciting final round, equally interesting was the opening ceremony, which was under the concept of “Honouring to the Spirit of Asia” to signify that Asians are united as one and can reach great things together. The ceremony began with an equestrian dressage show to highlight how the rider and the horse working as one is the heart of playing polo. Next was a special performance titled “The Harmony of Spirits” which featured three Thai icons in three shows to reflect Thainess from the past to the present, namely Chaiyo which portrayed the colours of the Thai flag, a performance depicting Thai martial arts, and mixing Khon, a high-class performing art of Thailand, with horse dressage.
After the proud performances was a parade for the All Asia Cup 2020 trophy, with rising actress “Baifern” Pimchanok Luevisadpaibul carrying the All Asia Cup 2020 trophy, and Kanoksakdi Bhinsaeng, chairman of the Thailand Polo Association, tossing the polo ball to begin the final match.
The highlight was the long-standing tradition of polo — stomping the divots, which welcomes everyone on the field to stomp the divots back in place and smoothen the grass. This is a great opportunity for the fans of both teams to meet the players and mingle before the second half begins.
The match concluded with an award ceremony to recognise the best dressed ladies and gentlemen under the concept of “Honouring to the Spirit of Asia”. Eight awards were announced, namely Panjaporn Chotjurangkool for the Best Dressed Lady, Preeda Pasawong for the Best Dressed Gentleman, Chalida Wijitwongtong for the Most Stylish Lady, Tim Yap for the Most Stylish Gentleman, Laleewan Komolsut for the Best Photogenic Lady, and Rakpong Chantaramungkorn for the Best Photogenic Gentleman. The Best Pony Award went to King Power’s Bloody Mary while the MVP Award (Most Valuable Player) went to Adrian Garcia from the Philippines.
The 5th All Asia Cup 2020 received great support from Singha Corporation Company Limited, King Power Duty Free, Thai AirAsia Company Limited, BEC-Tero Entertainment, Siam Commercial Bank, Samart Corporation Public Company Limited, Pullman Bangkok King Power, Plan B Media Public Company Limited, Boot Room Apparel Company Limited (Ari) and the Bangpakok Hospital Group.
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