I had a chance to search the web for sports trends for my site The UncoolHunter.com and i could see an interesting Polo variant: Yak Polo.
Polo is a team sport played outdoor on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Riders score by driving a white wooden or plastic ball into the opposing team’s goal using a long-handled mallet.
Yak polo (or sarlagan polo) is a Mongolian variant of the original polo. It is played on yaks instead of on horseback. This sport was originally designed to entertain tourists, much like the elephant and camel versions do. This game was also created to evoke the glories of the once-great Mongol empire and because of the necessity of Mongolians to reinvent themselves for the adventure and "ecotourist" market.
The Mongolian Association of Sarlagan Polo claims that the sport is booming, with four games a week since summer of 2006.
These show games are periodically done in Ulan Bator, the Mongolian Capital.
Nowadays the skillful riders of Mongolia’s nomadic population were putting their mounts yaks to this new unlikely use.
In an interview published on the London Daily Telegraph, Miss Tsedendamba Monhzul, whose family set up the first yak polo team last year, said that yaks can be trained to cope with a range of playing surfaces. In December, when temperatures plunge to minus 22 degrees, they play on the iced-over rivers.
Nomadic Sports
Yak Polo Brings a Mongolian Flavour to the Traditional Polo Game
Trend Themes
1. Nomadic Sports - The rise of nomadic sports such as yak polo presents a disruptive innovation opportunity for the sports industry to explore new and unique adaptations to traditional sports.
2. Ecotourism - Yak polo's focus on ecotourism and preserving cultural heritage presents an opportunity for the tourism industry to explore sustainable and culturally immersive experiences.
3. Animal-based Sports - The emergence of animal-based sports like yak polo provides an opportunity for the animal industry to explore new ways of promoting animal welfare and showcasing unique animal skills.
Industry Implications
1. Sports - The sports industry can explore and adapt traditional sports to the nomadic lifestyles and unique settings of remote cultures like yak polo.
2. Tourism - The tourism industry can create sustainable and culturally immersive experiences through yak polo and similar nomadic sports that promote cultural preservation and diverse travel options.
3. Animal Welfare - The rise of animal-based sports, such as yak polo, provides opportunities for the animal industry to showcase animal skills and promote animal welfare standards in unique and non-traditional ways.