By Quibian Salazar-Moreno
Who knew a bunch of black kids in Philadelphia would forgo basketball and football to play polo? The Philadelphia youth polo team, the Cowtown/Work to Ride based in Fairmount Park, is an all-black team and a force to be reckoned with in the world of polo.
The team won the 42nd annual USPA National Interscholastic Championship tournament over the weekend in Charlottesville, Va.
“It was awesome,” Cowtown/WTR Coach Lezlie Hiner told the Philadelphia Inquirer about her team’s 24–17 victory over Baltimore in the title game. “We’re known as a come-from-behind team, but the boys were so explosive in these games.”
Lezlie Hiner started the team back in 1994 with the goal of exposing the sport to underprivileged kids. In exchange for horse-riding lessons, kids would help around the barns and take care of the horses.
Watch the team talk about their experience here:
