Cloning Came to Polo. Then Things Got Truly Uncivilized
1 min read
Summary
In 2008, the Texas oil magnate Alan Meeker had a bold idea: He would bring the technique of animal cloning out of the laboratory and into the realm of elite sports.
Meeker’s intention was to revolutionize polo by cloning the greatest player’s prized pony, bringing the horse’s bloodlines into the 21st century.
To pull it off, he needed the help of the sport’s greatest player, Adolfo Cambiaso, and access to the cloned Cuartetera, the most celebrated polo pony alive.
But there would be heartbreak as, years later, Cambiaso learned that his clones had been sold without his knowledge and his prized bloodlines would be lost.
This is the story of how modern biotechnology transformed polo, and of how an experimental clone changed the course of the world’s oldest ball game forever.
