Elephant polo
| Highest governing body | World Elephant Polo Association (WEPA) |
|---|---|
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | No |
| Mixed-sex | Yes |
| Type | Outdoor recreation |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Worldwide |
| Olympic | No |
| Paralympic | No |
Elephant polo is a variant of polo played while riding elephants. It is played in Nepal, and Thailand. England and Scotland regularly field teams. Equipment consists of a standard polo ball and a 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) to 3 metres (9.8 ft) cane (similar to bamboo) sticks with a polo mallet head on the end. The pitch is three-quarters of the length of a standard polo pitch, due to the lower speed of the elephants. Two people ride each elephant; the elephants are steered by mahouts, while the player tells the mahout which way to go and hits the ball.