The proceedings began early in the morning with a traditional ceremony overseen by monks who placed sacred garlands over the necks of the stars of the event, 20 street elephants, and then blessed them with a trickle of sacred water. Thailand's last elephant spirit men the Kruba Yai, who possess spiritual guardianship over all elephants in the Kingdom, also presided over the rituals and assured polo players and spectators alike that the tournament would indeed be a resounding success.
The opening match saw reigning champions King Power easily beat host team Anantara with a resounding 10 – 6 win, but the match of the day was between Citibank and PWC's mighty New Zealand All Blacks rugby players Robin Brooke, Olo Brown and Charlie Reichelmann.
There was impressive play on both sides, with the All Blacks kicking off the game with an early goal. Citi came back strong with solid teamwork and long passes up the field ensuring a flurry of goals, resulting in a six-all draw at half time. The experienced polo players Robert Mullis and Oliver Winter continued to showcase their domination on the pitch resulting in the final score of 11 – 6, with Citi beating the mighty PWC All Blacks.
All elephants taking part in the tournament are unemployed street elephants and the event gives organisers the chance to give the elephants essential vitamin supplements, full veterinary checks and care for the duration of the tournament. All funds raised from this year's King's Cup Elephant Polo Tournament will be donated to various projects throughout Thailand and beyond. To date the tournament has raised more than US$1 million for elephant oriented charities.
Day One – Scores
King Power v Anantara 10 – 6
Audermars Piguet v Mekong 13 - 6
Citi v PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) 11 – 6
Rueang Chang v Arabian Knights 7-4
Johnnie Walker Blue Label v Casillero del Diablo 8 - 4
For more information on the 14th Annual King's Cup Elephant Polo Tournament, please visit www.anantaraelephantpolo.com .