More than 1,000 people attended the Butler International Cup featuring the Oak Brook Polo Club against the England Polo Club Sunday at the Cecil Smith Field, 700 Oak Brook Road.
The final score was Oak Brook 7 and England 6, officials said.
Winners of the Best Playing Pony category were “Twoey” Owned and played by Jim Drury and “Papaya” Owned by Crestview Farm’s Alan Meeker played by Horacio Onetto.
The match capped off Oak Brook Polo Club’s 100th anniversary as one of the oldest clubs in the country and the 4th oldest sports property in Chicago, having been founded in 1922.
The match also celebrated the 50th Anniversary since Oak Brook helped bring back international competition to England by reestablishing the Coronation Cup, which is presented to the winning team by a member of the Royal Family — in past years Queen Elizabeth II, according to a news release.
Michael Butler led the effort in coordination with the Hurlingham Polo Association (“HPA”) recognizing the Butler family’s deep friendship with the Royal Family, the release said. The trophy was founded in 1911 to commemorate the Coronation of King George V. Since then, the trophy has become one of England’s most prestigious polo events.
“Of the 30 or more countries that have visited and played at Oak Brook, England has returned most often,” Jim Drury, President of Oak Brook Polo Club, said in a statement. “Having over a half century relationship, and deep roots in England’s polo community, including Hurlingham, the Royal Family and countless other leaders have helped elevate polo into the exceptional international equestrian sport that it is today.”
In addition to the polo players personally welcoming spectators, horses paraded onto the field, national anthems for both countries being played, and contests for both “best tailgate” and “best hat,” Oak Brook will paid tribute to the passing of Queen Elizabeth II with a 96-second moment of silence, the release said. Both the American and English teams wore black arm bands in honor of the British monarch, and for her love of horses and engagement with the sport of polo and all things equestrian.
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Oak Brook’s team was led by its captain Jim Drury, includes Tommy Collingwood, Horacio Onetto, and Herndon Radcliff.
England’s team was led by its captain John Bunn, includes Alec Banner-Eve, Tommy Severn, and Will Emerson.
“In respect of the recent event in the UK with the passing of the Queen, it is an even more poignant fixture that England have been invited to play for the Butler International Cup against Oakbrook,” Josh Tuthill, Director of Sport, The Hurlingham Polo Association, said in a statement. “We are not only very honored to be involved in the 100th anniversary celebrations of Oakbrook polo club and also to remember the great relationship with the Butler family that was instrumental in re-instating the Coronation cup but can pay further tribute to the Queen in remembering the enormous impact she had on Polo as a sport and as a community.”
The day’s events will also benefited the Friends of Conservation (FOC), founded in 1982 as one of the world’s earliest leaders in community conservation, according to the news release. FOC has been actively engaged since 1988 with communities in the Masai Mara region of Kenya _ furthering actions and policies that reorient the attitudes of local people and officials to embrace sustainable natural resource management.
Here are more photos from the event:
