MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine-Globalport polo team, led by sports patron Mikee Romero and skippered by 2007 SEA Games veteran Antonio Veloso, bested a tough field to rule the 2012 Thailand Kuppa Gold Cup championship in Pattaya, Thailand last weekend.
Globalport leaned on the gutsy performances of Romero, Veloso and pro players Adrian Garcia and Jake Gordon in pulling off a stunning 2-1.5 win over China’s Axus team in Thailand’s premier polo tournament.
Globalport earned the right to face the Chinese team after defeating two Thai teams, including the highly touted VR Sports of Duty Free giant King Power. Members of VR Sports were the same squad that powered Thailand to a bronze medal finish in the 2007 SEA Games.
Globalport, mentored by Anthony Garcia, also beat the Argentinian-powered Polo Escape owned by Kun Robin to underscore its supremacy in the tournament where Romero emerged as the top scorer with five followed by Veloso and Garcia with three each.
It was Romero’s fourth major victory this year as he was also a member of the Philippine team that won the Inter-circuit and Silver Cup, a high goal tournament organized by the United States Polo Association (USPA) in St. Louis, Missouri. He also triumphed in Chicago.
The title romp was the first by a visiting Philippine team in Thailand, considered as the mecca of polo in Southeast Asia. This February, Thailand will host the All Asia championship, considered to be the biggest event in Asia’s polo.