As the Ramadan Fasting progresses, preparations are in top gear in Kaduna, Kano, Maiduguri polo clubs to celebrate the religious festivities in grand styles.
Topping the list of clubs planning a big splash during the holidays billed for early next month is the foremost Kaduna Polo Club is looking to host a three days Sallah polo tournament at the foremost Murtala Muhammed Square in Kaduna.
Checks across major polo centres particularly in the northern part of the country also confirmed that the preparations are on-going by the managements of Kano, Zaria, Abuja, Minna polo clubs for what promises to be one of the most celebrated Sallah Holidays in recent times.
“Yes we are packaging a special Sallah mini tournament this year for all the good reasons,” a chieftain of the club confirmed. “Kaduna Polo Club has a tradition of hosting Sallah tournaments and the committee is pulling all stops to host another exciting and memorable event next month.”
Apart from Sokoto that has already confirmed its Sallah event, Kano, Minna and the Guards Polo Club in Abuja have already contacted visiting players to be part of the festivities, even though most of the participating players would be drawn from the host clubs.
The biggest Sallah polo news, however, comes from Maiduguri Polo Club as plans are at advanced stages to host a special tournament this year to celebrate the end of Ramadan Fasting period.
The foremost polo club has not hosted a tournament for years due to the insurgence that has almost ground sporting activities in the Borno State capital city since the Boko Haram attacks broke out.
A Maiduguri-based Polo aficionado, Saad Abubakar who dropped this hint , disclosed that Maiduguri and its environs are bustling with high anticipation as the club is making consultation with the state government and other stakeholders to host a mini tournament.
Since our team, Borno Yellow Pages returned from 2021/2022 Jos Polo tourney as one of the top finishers , hopes have been on high for a full return of the game of Kings to Borno, and we are working to consolidate on that success with the Sallah event,” Abubakar pointed out from Abuja.
The last time a polo tournament was staged in Borno State was in 2019 during the Easter holidays in a landmark Professor Zulum Revitalization Polo Tournament staged amidst pomp and ceremony in the state capital.
Hosted by Maiduguri Polo Club and staged at its traditional Polo Ground venue, the glamorous fiesta pitched six teams for the Shehu of Borno Cup and Governors’ Cup. The highly-anticipated 2022 Sallah tournament would be the second yet.
The Maiduguri Polo Club was established in 1913 by the British colonial masters, with a vision to nurture the physical, mental and emotional growth of young people through polo sport.
That inauguration offered the opportunity to improve the advancement of solidarity, social cohesion and peaceful coexistence that is still facing challenges in the face of insurgency, much to the chagrin of its founding fathers and all peace loving individuals across the country and beyond.
Polo’s intrinsic values such as teamwork, fairness, discipline, respect for the opponent and rules of the game are understood all over the world and it’s believed that this can be harnessed in the advancement of peace building, solidarity, social integration and economic development of the region.