Icon Global Group Announces New Team Entry into Susan G. Komen® 2019 U.S. Open Women's Polo Championship™- Concurrently Withdraws "Notorious RBG" Team Name Inspiration as US Supreme Court Declines Permission
DALLAS, March 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- "The once heralded and so-called horse 'Sport of Kings (and Princes and Men)' is no more. The fastest growing segment of the world's oldest and most dangerous equestrian sport of polo worldwide is now women. Fifty-two percent (52%) of the United States Polo Association (USPA) membership are female, moreover; they account for the biggest increase in new memberships," said Bernard Uechtritz, Australian founder of the Icon Global Group who is sponsoring one of the eight teams in this year's inaugural Susan G. Komen® U.S. Open Women's Polo Championship™. Finals will be held at the International Polo Club in Wellington, Florida, Saturday, March 23rd, and live streamed via www.uspolo.org at 11am Eastern Time.
After viewing the CNN Films documentary 'RBG', and drawing on the parallels of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg's rise and accomplishments within a similarly male dominated environment of legal practice and the US Supreme Court, Uechtritz attempted to name this year's Icon Global Woman's Open Polo Team entry as 'Team Notorious RBG' in a tip of the hat to the now viral Ginsberg moniker and, further, a nod to the rise and arrival of professional women's polo, hoping to further inspire the rising group of female players. "We reached out to several sources, including the US Supreme Court, seeking permission to utilize the name and imagery; however, we were unsuccessful. Last week I received a letter from the offices of the Supreme Court, appreciating our quest but declining permission citing a potential conflict with judicial ethics guidelines," said Uechtritz. "I was hoping to promote a sort of poetic polo justice in the now parallel metaphoric leveling of the professional polo field between men and women."
"Women's polo has arrived and is a rising tide of force in what has historically, for centuries, been a predominately male dominated sport, absent the exception of a handful, but growing number, of highly professional and competitive female athletes who now compete at the highest level of open men's polo worldwide. As a group, however, women's organized polo has been slow to emerge from a long-incubated culture of man only testosterone zone within a membership association and culture where women were once historically relegated to the sidelines as social support hosts and onlookers to male pro teams as well as catering to support and management behind the scenes," explained Uechtritz. "That has all changed."
"Female players of today are professional, tough, skilled, and competitive and are now becoming well organized globally through groups such as the Women's International Polo Network (WIPN) founded by women for women. Frankly, women are universally recognized as generally kinder, and more capable horsewomen than most horsemen, and any truly great male professional will tell you that many of the greatest horses playing today and yesterday were trained by skilled female equestrians," he said.
The Icon Global Team is itself global in that it is made up of an Australian, an American and two Argentine girls. Two of the players are 18 and one 17. In other teams there are a 15 and a 16-year-old, also internationals, exhibiting the rapidly growing demographic of today's young professional polo athletes. Many of these girls are daughters of some of the world's greatest male players.
Dawn Jones is a polo competitor, team entrant and wife of actor and polo player Tommy Lee Jones. She is but one of the many personalities in a collective group effort behind the formation of the Women's International Polo Network (WIPN), as well as the recent repositioning of the United States Polo Association U.S. Open Women's Polo Championship™ being moved to Florida in which the final is to be given center stage on the coveted #1 field known as the U.S. Polo Assn. Stadium Field at the International Polo Club on March 23rd.
Uechtritz said, "These factors affirm the rightful place of equality within the United States Polo Association as well as other world organizations and as such should no longer be treated as a 'political accommodation or afterthought'. The good ole boys need to let these great young girls into an equal place on both the podium and the organizational platform."
Of the eight (8) women's teams entered in the series, Icon Global is the singular mainstream global brand fully underwriting a team at the time of press. The company hope and goal is to be an awareness conduit for other brands to follow for next year's Open in 2020. "We hope that every team entered next year will be underwritten by a national or global brand, who understands the enormous potential of this emerging platform and recognizes first mover advantage in becoming part of its growth. Ideally, some of these entities would be woman owned or woman run corporations."
"We want decision making, key female CEOs, marketing executives and others to come see firsthand the opportunity of this platform at the International Polo Club or watch the playoffs or finals live streamed via www.uspolo.org. The final match is scheduled for Saturday, March 23rd, 11am Eastern Time."
Icon Global considers itself as a first mover in what it believes to be an unspoiled and fresh groundswell of opportunity in an equal opportunity, opportunity and last year also sponsored a women's team in the 2018 French Women's Polo Open, as well as several other tournaments across the USA.
Player photos and bios may be downloaded via the following Dropbox link Polo Open.
About The U.S. Open Women's Polo Championship™ Together with the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) and Port Mayaca Polo Club in Southern Florida, the United States Polo Association® (USPA) will host the Susan G. Komen U.S. Open Women's Polo Championship™ (16- to 22-goals), March 16-23. A record eight teams comprised of women's players from across the nation and around the world will be taking the field to compete for the most prestigious women's tournament in the country. To further their reach as the leading breast cancer foundation, Susan G. Komen will partner with this high-profile women's event as the title sponsor. For the first time in the events History the final match will be played on field one at the International Polo Club known as U.S. Polo Assn. Stadium Field. All matches including the final will be live streamed via www.uspolo.org.
About Susan G. Komen® Florida Susan G. Komen® is the world's largest breast cancer organization, funding more breast cancer research than any other nonprofit while providing real-time help to those facing the disease. Komen Florida is working to better the lives of those facing breast cancer in local communities across its service area of southwest, central, north, south and the Florida Suncoast regions. Komen Florida has invested nearly $57 million in community breast health programs and has helped contribute to the more than $988 million invested globally in research. For more information, call 561-514-3020 or visit www.komenflorida.org.
About Icon Global Group Icon Global (www.Icon.Global) designs and implements strategic, tactical marketing and sales campaigns for private clients with unique, high-end properties around the world. The company specializes in one of a kind, complex deals on behalf of high net worth clients, international investment funds, corporations, oil and gas ventures, among many others. Icon Global was founded by complex deal maker and international real estate advisor, Bernard Uechtritz. The Australian native most notably led the record-breaking global marketing and sale of W.T. Waggoner Ranch in Vernon, Texas. Listed at $725 million, the iconic property sold in 2016 to billionaire businessman Stan Kroenke, earning the "Real Estate Deal of the Century" title. The company's combined listings and sales volume reached or exceeded $1 billion in 2016 and 2017, including the well-publicized sales of the recent $32.5M KC7 Ranch (TX), $60M Barefoot Ranch (TX), $45M Rio Bonito Ranch (TX), $21M Dodge Ranch (WY), $34M Broseco Ranch (TX), among many others.
About The International Polo Club Palm Beach The International Polo Club Palm Beach is the premier polo destination in the world, hosting the largest field of high-goal teams and the most prestigious polo tournaments in the United States. Polo enthusiasts descend upon Wellington, each winter season to enjoy their love of the sport in the most prominent and well‐equipped polo facility. Polo matches are open to the public, with a wide range of hospitality and guest seating that includes elegant grandstand viewing, field tailgating, stadium seating, field-side champagne brunch at The Pavilion, and exclusive sponsor boxes.
SOURCE Icon Global Group
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