Tag Archives: Sunset Polo

*Featured/Spotlights, Community/Charity, Competitions, Fundraisers, Polo

Brooke USA Raises over $210k during Signature Event

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Timmy Dutta – GJ Racing © Rachel-Elizabeth.com/Rachel Spencer.

(Wellington, Fla.) March 30, 2021 – Brooke USA’s Sunset Polo® & White Party | Special Edition: Latin America, presented by Lugano Diamonds, proved to be an astounding affair, receiving rave reviews from the Wellington, Palm Beach, and Miami social scenes. Held at the International Polo Club Palm Beach with an exclusive guest list of only 350, the event provided an entertaining evening highlighted by its exciting signature Sunset Polo, gourmet Latin cuisine curated by Celebrity Chef Ingrid Hoffmann, and a live band, the Miami-based Tartara. The event raised more than $210,000 for Brooke USA, whose mission is to alleviate the suffering of working equines in some of the poorest parts of the world.

“We are thrilled with the results of our event, not only financially, but also because it allowed us to further our mission. We made new friends and supporters and educated those present about the plight of working equines and the families who own them,” Chair of the Brooke USA Board of Directors Katherine Kaneb remarked. “It is important to understand that these animals are the engines that fuel the developing world and if they are healthy and cared for, families will benefit from better living and working conditions.”

Brooke USA strives to significantly improve the welfare of working horses, donkeys, and mules and the people they serve throughout Asia, Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, and the Caribbean by raising funds and responsibly directing them to the areas of greatest need. The 2021 special edition event focused on the Americas, with program funding benefiting Nicaraguan fodder plots, COVID-19 response and recovery, advocacy to end the donkey hide crisis in the United States, and its newest project, scoping and research of Native American Reservations attitudes towards working equines.

“As Brooke USA grows, so do our investments in this hemisphere. We were thrilled to offer a means of support that focused on our work in the United States and Central America,” stated Emily Dulin, Brooke USA CEO.

The evening began with a thrilling sunset polo match, where three teams played in a six-chukker round-robin polo tournament consisting of three two-chukker games.

The tournament kicked off with Team Celebrity Cruises, made up of Mikey Matz, Whitney Ross, Marcos Bignoli, Tareq Salahi, and John Gobin challenging Team GJ Racing, the 2019 defending champions. Riding in orange for GJ Racing were Ignacio Cabrera, Timmy Dutta, Jake Schaufeld, and Jessie Graham. Salahi scored one goal in the opening chukker to secure the lead, and his alternate, Whitney Ross, made the second goal in the second chukker to take the first win with a 2-0 finish.

With one win under their belts, Celebrity Cruises then faced off against Team Invicta Farm, consisting of Annalise Phillips, Alyssa Braswell, Michel Dorignac, and Milo Dorignac. Salahi scored the first two goals of the second game, while Invicta scored one goal by Dorignac. Celebrity ultimately snatched the win with a 3-1 victory when Mikey Matz scored the final goal to take the win.

In the decisive last two chukkers, Team Invicta challenged Team GJ Racing in a match that went down to the wire as Invicta took the early lead with both Braswell and Dorignac scoring in the fifth chukker. Dutta tied up the game in the final chukker for GJ Racing with two back-to-back goals; however, Milo Dorignac pulled Invicta ahead with the final goal scored, securing the win with a 3-2 finish.

In the end, Team Celebrity Cruises was declared the winner with a final cumulative score of five. Team Invicta finished in second place with a score of four, while Team GJ Racing took third place with a final score of two.

For more information or to donate, please visit www.brookeusa.org.

Competitions, Polo

GJ Racing Wins Brooke USA’s Sunset Polo Tournament

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Wes Finlayson on the Provident Jewelry team races Marwan Mohey-El-Dien, of team Invicta, to the ball.

Polo match supports Brooke USA’s efforts to help working equines and the people they serve in the developing world.

WELLINGTON, Fla. – March 24, 2019 – Brooke USA’s Sunset Polo™ & White Party kicked off a weekend birthday celebration for Hope Arellano. She serves as an ambassador for the organization and played for the winning team, GJ Racing, and was named Most Valuable Player (MVP). The next day Arellano played in the U.S. Open Women’s Polo Championship final, and Sunday she turned 16 years old.

“It was super fun! I had a blast playing with everyone,” she said after the event at the Wanderers Club. “Brooke USA is a great organization, and I was very pleased to be able to play in a game that benefited them.”

Brooke USA strives to improve the welfare and alleviate the suffering of working horses, donkeys and mules and the people they serve in some of the world’s poorest communities.

Three 8-goal teams competed in the six-chukker round robin tournament composed of three two-chukker games. GJ Racing won the first two chukkers 4-1 over Provident Jewelry, the defending champion. Provident Jewelry’s Henry Porter made the first goal of the game with a midfield missile straight into goal.

The first chukker closed with a goal by former 8-goal player John Gobin, who ran the ball in from a distance and scored on a cut shot for GJ Racing. In the second chukker, he assisted on two Arellano goals. With 30 seconds left in the second chukker, Arellano made the winning goal of the first round. It was a complex play, with Porter on a breakaway until Arellano ran him off it and scored.

GJ Racing won the first two chukkers 4-1 over Provident Jewelry. Provident Jewelry’s Henry Porter made the first goal of the game with a midfield missile straight into goal.

Round two (chukkers three and four) was a 2-1 victory for Provident Jewelry over Invicta. Matías Gonzalez sent a pass to teammate Justin Daniels, who made a long run to goal for Invicta. Sam Farahnak and Wes Finlayson, a Brooke USA ambassador, each scored for Provident Jewelry in the fourth chukker. Finlayson, who had dashed to the Wanderers Club after playing a high-goal game at International Polo Club, blazed past nearly everyone else on the field to score the last goal of round two.

The fifth chukker opened with an Invicta goal by Tony Calle, who moved to Wellington from Quito, Ecuador three years ago. In the sixth chukker Gobin passed the ball on two long shots to Arellano, who tied the game at 2. Gonzalez swooped past Brooke USA ambassador Benjamin Avendaño to score, ending round three 3-2 for Invicta over GJ Racing.

GJ Racing won the tournament with the highest cumulative score. The remaining places were determined by round robin rules, with Invicta second and Provident Jewelry third.

For GJ Racing sponsor Gil Johnston, a longtime sponsor of teams, youth tournaments and the Polo Training Foundation, this was her first time sponsoring a team in Brooke USA’s Sunset Polo™ & White Party event. “It’s for a good cause and a good organization, so why not?” she said, adding that she felt her team played exceptionally well.

Lisa Bair also sponsored a team (Invicta) in this event for the first time. “I couldn’t be more happy and proud,” she said. “I have attended this event for four years, and I’m impressed by Brooke USA’s work, both in its mission to help animals and in how it has raised awareness in Wellington about the plight of these animals.”

Returning sponsor Geoff Fear said Provident Jewelry came back ready to defend the title they won last year. “We wanted to win again, but the important thing is that it was a good competitive game, and everyone had fun,” he said.

Game organizer Gates Gridley said he strived to put the three balanced 8-goal teams together. “There was a lot of young up-and-coming talent on the field today,” he said, adding that the players consider it a privilege to play in Brooke USA’s Sunset Polo™ tournament because they support the organization’s cause.

Emily Dulin, executive director of Brooke USA, said she was grateful to the participating players for “giving their time to this cause to help the working equine world because like us, they truly understand the bond between people and animals.”

Longtime Coca-Cola player Julio Arellano (father of MVP Hope Arellano) selected the best-playing pony. “The last chukker is what decided it for me,” he said. “Marwan [Mohey-El-Dien] came out on a gray mare that played her heart out for him. She got him to a lot more plays than he was in before, and he did great.”

For more information or to donate, please visit www.brookeusa.org.