For the first time ever, the Tennessee Crain’s Nashville Arena Polo Team will take on Kentucky’s Gainesway Farm Polo Team, reaching back into history to the early connection of thoroughbred racing and the sport of polo across state lines.
The match, which begins at 5:45 p.m. next Saturday, June 25 at the Tractor Supply Co. Arena at the Park at Harlinsdale Farm, will feature amateur and professional players from around the nation. General admission tickets are $10, and VIP cabanas are also available.
“Gainesway Farm in Lexington is one of the preeminent farms in the international thoroughbred breeding and racing industry, with a powerful history of champions and stakes horses being born and trained there,” said James Armstrong, founder and owner of the Franklin Polo Academy. “Of course, Tennessee was the center of horse racing in America before the Civil War, and today many thoroughbred polo horses start their careers on the race track and then enjoy a second career as polo ponies.”
Andrew Beck, whose family owns Gainesway Farm, will be competing on the Kentucky team, and nationally recognized players will be featured on both sides.
Middle Tennessee was widely known in the 18th and 19th centuries as the epicenter of thoroughbred racing in the United States, before the Civil War decimated millions of horses and the state’s temperance movement later ended betting on horse racing. Multiple race tracks were located in and around downtown Franklin; President Andrew Jackson raced here, and Maryland Farms in Brentwood was a leading thoroughbred breeding facility well into the 1960s. Harlinsdale Farm, established in the 1930s, shifted focus to Tennessee Walking Horses, and produced multiple grand champions while working with clients around the world.
“This area is still known for thoroughbred training for flat track and steeplechase racing, and we’ve begun to establish a strong polo tradition here. All of that ties Tennessee and Kentucky together historically, so it’s a fun rivalry to establish,” Armstrong said. “It’s exhilarating to watch these equine and human athletes compete together, and we encourage the public to come join us. It’s a great way to spend a Saturday evening with family and friends, and food and drink will be available through the concessions stand.”
Next Saturday, the Tennessee Arena Polo Team will be sponsored by Crain’s Nashville, a new online daily business news source tailored around each subscriber’s interests. Crain’s Nashville also sponsored the USA team that took on South Africa on June 3, with the Americans leading 4-3 when the match was called for thunderstorms in the second period. Some of the best players in the nation were featured in that match, and Armstrong says spectators can anticipate the same intensity, horsemanship and skill to be on display next Saturday.
Gates open at 5 p.m., with the first ball dropped at 5:45 p.m. For more information, contact Armstrong at info@franklinpolo.com or by phone at 615-800-2268. To learn more about Franklin Polo Academy, including information on lessons and other upcoming events, visit MailFilterGateway has detected a possible fraud attempt from “r20.rs6.net” claiming to be www.franklinpolo.com.