KINGS OF THE FIELD

Photographer Aline Coquelle captures the illustrious game of polo in all its glory the world over...

- JARED PAUL STERN

In 2003, Parisian photographer Aline Coquelle began travelling to document the sport of polo as it’s played all over the world, from the USA to Europe, Mongolia, Pakistan, India, South America, and Saudi Arabia. She was soon established as the foremost chronicler of the “sport of kings,” her photos of players, trainers, horses and spectators, on and off the field, “celebrating the courage, strength and speed” of the game, and its undeniable “elegance and allure” — whether played by English aristocrats or nomadic tribesmen.

In 2009 Assouline published her impossibly gorgeous photographs in a book titled Polo: The Nomadic Tribe, which won praise from the likes of the Prince of Wales, an avid polo player for most of his life. Now the famed French luxury publisher is coming out with a long-awaited follow-up, Polo Heritage, which if anything is even more beautiful than the original. Coquelle believes “saving and transcending tradition is the ultimate modernity,” and her photos have a timeless quality to them, whether in black-and-white or lush colour. To accompany the visual feast, Coquelle corralled a number of high-profile names in the polo universe to contribute their thoughts, including Jean-Luc Chartier, president of Paris’ storied Bagatelle Polo Club, who gives a brief history of the sport.