First person

Last November the sport lost a leading light in Gabriel Donoso: a gentleman, a talented coach, and the pride of Chilean polo

WORDS RODERICK VERE NICOLL As Prince Charles was approaching a 30-yard penalty shot at Sandhurst, there was a barely audible ‘Watch out for the windows, Sir!’ from his fellow teammate Gabriel Donoso. Sadly, the polo community lost one its best members, on 10 November 2006, when Gabriel Donoso died after a fall during a practice game in Pilar, Argentina. Chile’s best player ever, he will be remembered as a national hero.

Polo was his love and livelihood but, as a man who lived life to its fullest, he also became one of Chile’s top rodeo riders. He was an excellent horseman predominantly playing ponies which he had bred and made himself on his ranch outside Santiago. He would only make nine or ten ponies a year –the most he could ride and school by himself, not trusting anyone else to nurture them along. They were always beautifully trained and it was a joy to watch Gabriel play classic polo with his ponies on a loose rein. As he manoeuvred effortlessly on the field, Gabriel was never in a rush: like all great players, he was in the right place at the right time.

Gabriel had an illustrious polo career. He played in the Argentine Open eight times and won the La Provincia Cup. In the USA, Gabriel played many seasons in Palm Beach, where he won the Gold Cup, but his greatest success was in Britain in 1988, when he won the Queens Cup with George Milford-Haven’s Broncos. In 1993, he won the Gold Cup and captained the winning Chilean team in the 1998 and 2004 Coronation Cup with his brother José.

Last summer, still in top form, Gabriel reached the finals of the Prince of Wales Trophy with Emlor, losing by only half a goal to the mighty Cambiaso and the well-organised Dubai. In the ultra competitive medium goal he won the Eduardo Moore Tournament.

Also a talented coach, from the sidelines he took the Broncos to the finals of the Queen’s Cup and Ellerstina to the finals of the Gold Cup. Gonzalito and Facundo Pieres had unprecedented success with Gabriel’s insight, help and patience. Whether playing or coaching, Gabriel always got the best out of a player and team – he knew how to win.

On the field and off, Gabriel was a gentleman. He was an attentive listener and always had something to add with his wry and enchanting smile. With his terrific sense of humour and zest for life, he made you smile – you felt as though you were the only one he was talking to. Gabriel could always be found at the high-goal games on the other side of Ambersham or maybe at Knepp watching Tommy Beresford, his 10-year-old nephew, in his first tournament. You didn’t have to look very hard to find him following the game with his binoculars, leaning on the back of a car surrounded by young players. His brother José and his sister Teresa – along with his daughters Olivia and Amber –were always close by.

Smiling, laughing and joking, and dispensing polo lore and wisdom - that, in my mind’s eye, is how Gabriel Donoso will be this summer. And for many, many seasons to come.