Prince Harry Saddles Up in Singapore for Polo Match to Benefit His Beloved Charity

Prince Harry is galloping for a good cause in Singapore.

On Saturday, the Duke of Sussex, 38, competed in the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup at the Singapore Polo Club. The polo cup is a flagship fundraiser for Sentebale, the charity Harry co-founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in 2006 to help children and young people affected by poverty, inequality and HIV/AIDS in southern Africa.

The first Sentebale Polo Cup was held in Barbados in 2010, and the equestrian event has raised over $14 million for the organization to date.

Prince Harry was joined on the field by friend and Sentebale ambassador Ignacio “Nacho” Figueras. The Argentinian polo star acted as captain for the Singapore Polo Club Team, while Harry played for the Royal Salute Sentebale Team.

Prince Harry takes part in the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup in Singapore.

ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty

Figueras met Harry at a charity match benefiting Sentebale in 2007 and previously told PEOPLE the prince’s passion instantly made an impact.

“From day one, I saw how committed he was to his charity,” the pro rider told PEOPLE last summer.

“Fast forward 15 years, I’ve been to Lesotho with him a few times, and I’ve seen what great work the charity does and how important it is for a lot of kids, how committed he is, how much he really cares about it,” he added.

Prince Harry takes part in the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup in Singapore.

ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty

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Although Figueras, 46, and Prince Harry competed against each other for Saturday’s charity match, they rode on the same team for a season at the Santa Barbara Polo Club last summer. According to Figueras, hitting the pitch for the Los Padres team — which means “the fathers” or “parents” in Spanish — brought them even closer.

“Being able to play with him for two months in a real competition with the Los Padres team was a dream come true for me, and maybe for him too — we should ask him,” he told PEOPLE in July 2022. “We got to spend a lot of time together on the field, off the field with our families. We really bonded more than we’ve ever bonded before, being able to be with him so much.”

Nacho Figueras, Sentebale Ambassador and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Co-Founding Patron of Sentebale, pose for a photo during the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup on August 12, 2023 in Singapore.

Matt Jelonek/Getty 

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It doesn’t hurt that Harry is a talented polo player, either!

“He’s very competitive,” Figueras said. “He plays very well, he rides very well — it’s an honor to be his teammate.”

The pro athlete has accompanied the Duke of Sussex throughout his trip to Asia, which kicked off with a sports summit in Tokyo.

On Wednesday, Figueras and Prince Harry participated in the ISPS Sports Values Summit-Special Edition with a diverse cohort — ISPS Handa Founder Dr. Handa, former New Zealand All Blacks and ISPS Handa Ambassador Dan Carter, Sentebale Chair Sophie Chandauka MBE, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of South Africa’s Stellenbosch University Professor Wim de Villiers and Royal Australian Navy Veteran and Invictus Games Gold Medalist Steve James. The discussion focused on the power of sport, community and philanthropy.

Britain’s Prince Harry (L) with a teammate takes part in the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup in Singapore.

ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty 

In a statement shared through Sentebale, the Duke of Sussex broke down the importance of teamwork both on and off the field as well as defining what the power of sport meant to him.

“The lessons we learn on the field are the same principles of philanthropy: that a mission, hard work, dedication, and partnership can make even the impossible, possible,” he said. “Whether banded together in victory or showing up with respect in loss, no one ever crosses a finish line or scores a goal without the help and belief of others. That, to me, is the power of sport.”

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ISPS Handa, the nickname for the International Sports Promotion Society founded by Dr. Handa in 2006, has lent its name to Prince Harry’s Sentebale Polo Cup since 2018. The charitable organization was created to “further the transformative power of sport across the globe,” funding and promoting events across the sports spectrum, its website states.

In a family tie, Prince Harry’s first cousins Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips are also ISPS Handa ambassadors. Zara, 42, is a professional equestrian, while Peter, 45, is a sports management executive who recently organized the Festival of British Eventing at Princess Anne’s Gatcombe Park home.

Sentebale Ambassador Nacho Figueras and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex during the Sentebale ISPS Handa Polo Cup 2022.
Chris Jackson/Getty

Meghan Markle didn’t join her husband on his trip to Asia, but she wasn’t far from Prince Harry’s mind! In a post shared by Figueras on Instagram, the polo star posed with Harry sporting sunglasses in Japan.

“Shopping for our wives,” Figueras captioned the snap.

The Duchess of Sussex, who celebrated her 42nd birthday last week, stayed at home in California with their two children — Prince Archie, 4, and Princess Lilibet, 2 — and also enjoyed a night out at Taylor Swift’s concert at Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium on Tuesday.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education