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《大酒店》独家专访九龙山马会俱乐部主席韦逸天
Grand Hotels Exclusive Interview with Steve Wyatt, Chairman of the Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club

采访 Interview: Cherry Li  文 Story: Zhu Jie  摄影 Photo: Zhu Xiaoci

    位于巴基斯坦斯卡尔杜市马球场附近的一块石碑上铭刻着这样一句古谚：凡夫俗子各享其乐，帝王至尊投其所钟。这句精雕于古石之上的诗句一语中的，直诉当代马球爱好者的心声。

    明朗的蓝天白云，艳光四射的名媛绅士，名贵的跑车，醉人的美酒，熟悉的史泰龙，持重的查尔斯┄┄还有骄阳下泛着健康粟色的纯种马，全副装备神气风发的马球球员，硕大平整充满活力的绿色草地和四周五彩缤纷的帐蓬、凉伞、气球，还有贵妇小姐巧笑倩兮，白领绅士散发出的淡淡香水味道，以及孩子们无邪稚嫩的欢笑声组成了一幅时尚优雅的风情画廊——这就是绅士的POLO运动。

    马球运动历史悠久，是世上最古老的团队运动，也是征服欧洲庆功宴的一项活动。比赛中，两队相抗，各队3人(小型封闭场地)或4人(正规大型草地)骑在马上挥动马球杆击球, 以攻球入对方球门为目的, 和足球,曲棍球,冰球都有些相似之处, 但自有其甚为独特的魅力。马球比赛时间可以是4,6或是8巡, 但通常大都规定为6巡，除有受伤、犯规或不安全情况发生，每巡时间为7分钟。马的身材和年龄不限，但需具备良好的速度、耐力和灵活性，特别是脾气温顺，能够沉着面对各种突发状况，保护球手的安全。往往，比赛中马匹的种类和质量也标志着整个比赛的规格。

    至今，马球运动依然是皇室贵族、各国领袖的挚爱；因而享有“王者运动”之称。这种要求人、马、杆三者合一且必须配备最佳设施的运动在当下更是吸引了众多富豪权贵涌入它的行列。在美国这个世上最富有的国家里流传着这样一句话：如果年薪2百万（当然是美金），你可以玩Golf; 如果年薪2千万，那你就去玩Polo。由此看出，马球运动不仅是项对品味和技巧要求极高的运动，更是象征着成功、象征着优雅的运动。

    九龙山马会俱乐部位于嘉兴平湖的九龙山庄园内，占地面积300亩，距离上海、杭州、苏州以及宁波四大城市均为80分鐘车程左右。庄园内风景秀丽、依山傍水，临近国家森林。可谓是“墅墅临水，岛岛相连，亦真亦幻，室外桃源”。同时，庄内高尔夫球场、五星级酒店、购物中心等一应俱全。实为各界名流和成功人士休闲聚会和商谈公务的不二选择。高尚的环境更彰显出了九龙山马会的高贵魅力。俱乐部内的设施同样堪称经典：整体竣工后将会有两个国际标准户外马球场，可供国际性马球赛事使用；另配有室内马球练习场；室内骑术兼马球训练比赛场；马槽用户和环山而建的可瞭望整个九龙山发展区的环保公园郊游马场。

    此外，俱乐部董事长韦逸天先生（Steve Wyatt）也为该马会增色不少。Steve是地地道道的马球运动热爱者，有三十多年策骑经验和多个国际性马球赛的临场经验。他连续两年参加了泰国大象马球帝王国际邀请赛这一云集世界各地马球员的著名活动。同时，Steve也是一位不折不扣的资深马会管理者。他现为澳洲昆士兰Meadow Brook马球会的创会人及总裁，新加坡马球会及澳洲昆士兰马球协会的活跃成员。然而这样一位拥有着十一年之久的马会管理和组织工作的专业人士，看上去又是那么的年轻潇洒，身材健瘦，风度翩翩。剑桥、哈佛生产工程和工商管理双料硕士的身份更是为他额外增添了一股温文尔雅的不俗气质。当被问到是否认为自己是成功人士时，他毫不犹豫地答道“是的。”伴随而来的爽朗的笑声带着王者的自信足以感染在场的每一位人。从马会筹备伊始，他对所有的环节都采用了极高的标准，绝对地细致入微，步步经典。而此前在香港长达九年的定居生活里积累下的对中国社会和文化的深入了解也令他对九龙山马会的推广工作充满了信心。作为中国第一家国际标准的马会俱乐部的管理人，他决心成为一个出色的“吃螃蟹的人”。目前，他正忙于将首批马匹从国外运抵马会的准备之中，全部马匹皆为进口的纯血马种。的确，对于一项帝王的运动，自然要呈现出最好的一切。

    对于马球和马会，韦逸天坚信这几条原则。首先，马球绝非只是男人的运动。帅俊高大的马匹、绝妙的风景和神气的马装同样可以属于女人；儿童若能从小学习马术也必然对培养高贵的气质大有益处。再者，马会并非只是单纯的马球会所。它并不只向人们传授马术，它带给人们的是一种全新的、顶级的生活风格。它涵盖了权势、成功和竞争；也同样涵盖了休闲、放松和享受。来一场比赛、做个按摩或spa, 喝杯香浓的咖啡，逃离喧嚣于优雅恬静中滞留一夜……这一切，都应当是和马球相连，高档生活里的关键词。此外，热爱马球并不一定非得驰骋赛场。组织和拥有一支马球队、尽情观赏一场精彩的比赛、开怀享受豪华的圈内聚会、结交马球好手等等都可成为采撷马球艺术乐趣的途径。

    正是基于这一认识，韦逸天先生特别设置了四种会员制度。值得一提的是他特别为中国客人设计的“基本会籍”，入会费只需5万元加每年4000元的年费。该类会员制度在全部四种当中收费最低，却可以享受使用设施、参加马术培训和会员活动等超值的服务，尤其适合对马球运动缺乏了解的人士。其他三种会员分别为马术会籍、马球会籍和荣誉会员，入会费分别为275，000元、350，000元、而荣誉会籍入会费由韦逸天先生在会员申请时才会透露。最后一种会员不仅可以享受全部的贵宾待遇，更可拥有私人马球队聘用制的马球手驻场的冠名权。就好比拥有一支自己的军队一般，“君临天下”的感觉实至名归！会籍的销售工作现已在推行之中，正式启动将有望在明年三月开始。                    

    丘吉尔说：马会会员的身份意味着通往世界名流圈的入场卷。随着九龙山马会俱乐部的成立，中国的马球爱好者和社会名流们有了更多的机会领略这项王者运动的无穷魅力，继而获得和享受到别样的贵族生活。

"Let other people play at other things—the King of Games is still the Game of Kings"

This verse is inscribed on a stone tablet next to a polo ground in Skardu (Pakistan). In one ancient sentence, it epitomizes the feelings of many polo players today.

The warm weather, blue sky with light clouds, beautiful ladies and handsome gentlemen, rare sports cars, fine wines and the ever present champagne; famous movie stars such as Stallone rub shoulders with royalty such Princes Charles, William and Harry, and successful entrepreneurs and business moguls; exquisite thorough-bred horses and the thunder of their hooves compete for attention with the confident swagger and spectacular skills of the globe-trotting players. The wide expanse of the finely manicured grass is surrounded by VIP private boxes and marquees and the busy movement of the well groomed, uniformed waiting staff, is the domain ruled over by the team owners and sponsors as they impress their guests and close new business and social arrangements. Success is on display and in competition both on and off the filed of play – by those who know how to live well, to enjoy the finer things in life and who can afford to participate in this rich mans environment – this is the world of Polo.

Polo is one of the oldest team sports in the world, with origins of the game being traced back to 600BC, it has always been associated with kings, emperors, their generals and their armies. Whilst often thought of as a European sport in fact early forms of Polo were played in China, as was also referred to and briefly glimpsed in the recent popular film “The Banquet”. Modern day polo is governed by the global organization the ‘FIP’ who set and establish the rules and who assess and award players their ratings or handicaps; which vary from  -2 for a beginner through to a rare few in the world of professional players that are awarded +10. A match consists of 2 teams of 4 players each, where the total handicap of the players of each team is approximately equal to one another. The players seek to strike a small, hard white ball (approximately 9cm wide) through their opponent’s goal whilst being continuously challenged and harried by their opponents. Polo is a fast game which allows full contact between opposing players, it is a game of skill and courage and above all adherence to the rules in order that it is not too dangerous for either the players or their horses. A match consists of several periods, called chukkas, each chukka lasts for 7 minutes of playing time, with the clock stopped for fouls, penalties and out-of-bounds. The higher standard matches have 4, 6 or even 8 chukkas in a match and the players will usually require fresh horses for each chukka.    

The term pony is purely traditional and the mount is actually a full-sized horse. A good pony should have agility, intelligence speed and calmness; unlike any other form of horse activity in polo the horse has to contend with constantly changing direction, the on rush of other horses from any direction and the movement of the player and the mallet as he leans out of the saddle and strikes the ball or blocks an opponents swing. It takes generations of careful breeding and 4-5 years of training to make a good polo pony.

Polo is much more than a sport it is in fact often referred to as the polo ‘life-style’, as many of the owners and major sponsors of top teams do not themselves play the game, rather they enjoy building their team into a winning unit, through the right balance of the professional players and the careful selection and training of the horses; and much as how the owners and sponsors of F1 teams are rarely themselves the drivers, they spend the tournaments and events hosting business and social guests. The club house facilities and amenities, as you would expect, have to be ‘fit for a king’ as the owners and sponsors and players themselves are ‘kings’ in their own right. It is often said “If you have 2 million bucks, you play golf, if you have 20 million, then you play polo”.

Located within the Nine Dragons Hill Estate at PingHu in JiaXing district, the polo club is about 75mins from downtown Shanghai and within easy range also of Hangzhou, Suzhou and Ningbo. The resort includes the National Park, with the polo grounds themselves facing the sea and backing on the gentle hills; when completed it is expected to be one of the most fascinating clubs in the world. The Nine Dragons Hill estate also provides luxury villas and apartments, a marina and yacht club, a 5-star hotel operated by the Westin, 27-hole golf course, and a European style boutique shopping ‘street’. All of these make the place a wonderful choice to relax, to entertain friends and business associates or to enjoy healthy sports in a wonderful natural setting. The center-piece of the estate being the international standard and internationally managed equestrian center and polo club. The polo club management pride themselves on the quality of the imported horses and the overall standard of care of the horses as well as of the superb design of the facilities – all of which are essential to the safety, well-being and enjoyment of horse activities. The club provides a full range of rider training; from beginner through to advanced levels in several disciplines and welcomes children from the age of 8. The central focus of the club is polo and the club has programs and instructors who can take even a novice rider and have them participating in this most addictive sport with just a few lessons. In addition to polo and rider training the club also has extensive trail riding opportunities around the Nine Dragons Hill estate, including on the hills and beaches and the club provides training and introductions to dressage and show jumping, for those with less courage there are also rides in a beautiful carriage, imported from Australia and pulled by two specially trained horses “Long John” and “Little Joe”.

The chairman, Mr. Steve Wyatt adds much luster to the club. Steve is a passionate polo player with a long history (over 30 years) of horse-riding, he is also the founder and president of a successful private polo club in Queensland Australia and has been active in clubs in Europe and in Singapore. Not content with horse polo he has also twice participated in Elephant Polo in Thailand, this world-renowned polo event gathering famous players across the world. Steve however is a true professional who also in his person represents the polo life-style; a successful businessman, well educated having graduated twice from Cambridge University, he first made his career as a successful business consultant, advising the leaders of major corporations. He has lived through-out the world and yet is well-mannered and not at all arrogant and clearly the polo lifestyle is good for the health as he looks younger than his age and is in very good shape.

When asked if he considers himself a successful man, he answered with no hesitation “Yes”. The confident laughter making him sound like a king!  Ever since the beginning of founding this club, he has adopted a high standard in every detail. The years previously of his living in Hong Kong & Singapore helped him become so familiar with Chinese culture and this gives him full confidence in promoting Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club. As the operator of the first international-standard polo club in China, he determines to be a triumphant “crab-eater”. Nowadays, he is busy getting the first fully trained polo horses imported to China. All of the horses are thorough-bred ‘pure-blood’ lines. As Steve says “we have to provide the best as we are the first, it is our responsibility to let people here see and participate in the wonderful world that is polo, we have to be ambassadors for the sport in this great country”

Steve bears in his mind firmly certain principles towards polo and polo club. First of all, the club fully welcomes women and children to participate. The handsome horses, the beautiful scenery and elegance of the life-style also belong to women. Horse riding, in the appropriate surroundings and with the instructors is also particularly beneficial for children; for their self confidence, for their sense of responsibility for their social interactions and manners as well as their physical coordination and exercise.  Secondly, a polo club is in fact a lifestyle club, an exclusive environment where the successful, the powerful and the beautiful can intermingle and relax whilst enjoying the best that facilities and life-style brands have to offer. Membership of this club means that you are comfortable with power, success and overcoming competition; but it also means that you enjoy socializing, entertaining friends and business associates and that you like being surrounded by luxuries. The club is as much a destination for relaxation and hosting friends, for enjoying the spa treatments, or fine dining and great wines, for walking, exercising or quietly meditating in the peaceful grounds and facilities or staying overnight in the luxury suites, as much all of these as it is every bit a fully equipped international standard equestrian center. Lastly, loving polo (the game or the lifestyle) does not necessarily require participation on the field as a player; you can be a owner of a team, watch a game to your heart’s content, join the parties or make friends with like-minded souls.   

Based on this wise realization, Steve has created four kinds of membership. Special notice can be given to the kind of “Social Membership” which is tailored for Chinese customers. As the kind demanding least fee in the four, this kind of membership only costs 50,000RMB. The two principle riding memberships are the riding / family membership at 275,000RMB for those who wish to enjoy the gentler equestrian activities, or for those who wish to learn and participate in Polo, and have the possibility to ride, play and train on the higher performance polo horses then the membership is 350,000RMB. Above these categories are a special few memberships for those successful businessmen who wish to set themselves apart from the rest even in this most exclusive of private clubs; ‘patron’ members are accorded special privileges as if they were part owners of the club and have the right amongst other things to assemble and name a team that will carry their name and colors into each tournament competition, there are only a “handful” of these patron memberships available and money alone doesn’t guarantee that Steve will accept you, but for those that are accepted I am sure that the magic of the world of polo will enrich you far more than the cost of the membership. The club is being built in two phases, with the first phase due for completion in March 2007, as such the prices quoted above are regarded as ‘pre-sale’ prices discounted down by 30% from the price of each of the memberships after the official opening in March. The price of the special ‘patron’ membership is only revealed upon application and during the discussions with Steve. 

Winston Churchill, the former British Prime Minister said: “A polo handicap is a persons passport to the world” through membership of Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club, we in China can now participate in the game and the lifestyle of the “Sport of Kings”, and through the reciprocal agreements with other clubs, we can also enjoy the lifestyle and the company of ‘kings’ globally!