Interview with Manupal Godara, two-time World Cup polo player

Manupal Godara’s name is almost synonymous with polo in the Indian circuit. His brother Dhruvpal, too is a name to reckon with in the sport. Though their dad was in the army, the siblings have set a standard, as they are among the very few non-army personnel to have achieved great heights in a sport often associated with the armed forces.

Manupal is a two-time Polo World Cup player and a professional six goal player in the country. His accomplishments and style of play has the potential to leave you awe-struck.

In an informal chat with Sportskeeda, Godara senior shares his passion for horses, and his desire to see the game grow from strength to strength in India.

Excerpts:

How did you get inclined towards polo?

Dad was in the 61st Cavalry, and we were born and brought up around horses. We had a natural inclination towards riding. Back then, Cavalry had almost every top player in the country, so we were quite glued to the game right from the start. Our dad was the main reason for us doing so well. He sacrificed a lot for me to become a professional polo player.

You were a junior national champion in show-jumping and dressage before you took to polo. You think this helped you better your game?

Polo, dressage and show-jumping complement each other. It gives you an opportunity to become a better horseman. I used to use the same horses I used for show jumping and dressage to play polo too. It was a great opportunity for me to do both. We trained the horses to do both back when I started, but unfortunately now, the trend has changed due to a lack of coaching and time.

How difficult or easy is it for civilians to pursue the sport?

People don’t usually associate with polo, thinking that it’s a rich man’s game. It does cost a lot to buy a horse, and you certainly need a couple of them if you want to take up polo as a career. You need one or two horses to begin with in polo, and if you are a professional then you need at least four to five horses, and polo ponies are quite expensive. But if there is a nexus of some sort between the polo association and corporates, then it can surely do a world of good for the sport.

There is an Army-run establishment here in Bangalore and in Delhi, where civilians can use the facilities, but it isn’t the case in other parts of the country. Though having membership in a riding club will help, they charge a large fee. There is interest among the younger generation and I am optimistic that it’s only a matter of time before things improve for the good.

Parents often look at returns from sports in the longer run. Like in cricket, there’s a lot of money involved. What is it like in polo?

We can make a decent living out of sponsorships. For the handicap I have, we get paid pretty well. We get picked to play for our sponsored teams; we maintain horses, coach people. It’s quite well-paying.

What’s the sort of fitness regime that a polo player needs to follow?

Polo is not like racing, where the rider has to be extremely lean. You need to be fit and have the right amount of power and aggression. I do yoga twice every day, and also a little bit of jogging as well as working out in the gym for a bit. We spend our whole day training the horses and maintaining them, and that leaves us with little time to do anything else.

The standard of polo here at the Bangalore polo season has been great, but it’s sad that the event has failed to draw larger crowds, and especially the youngsters. Do you have suggestions for improvement?

There’s a lack of media coverage, which is why not many people are coming to watch. To improve in polo, we need tournaments and more competition. Right now, there is a lack of tournaments, while coaches and basic infrastructure are missing as well. People associate polo to being a rich man’s sport. We need different polo clubs, and coaching centres where people can come and ride. People should be able to afford it. It looks difficult, but not impossible. I am very confident that polo has a bright future in India.

How do you rate our Indian team compared to international standards?

Indians are right next to the top teams in the world. In 2010-11, we were among the top ten. The team has been doing well. We need more competition to get a higher handicap. France, Italy, England and the United States have a different polo culture compared to ours.