Polo & More, Singapore 2017 Polo & More, Singapore 2017 | Page 64

Polo Style
The impeccably dressed former President of FIP,
Patrick Guerrand-Hermes talks about his great
love for the sport he is so immersed in.
B
orn in 1932 into the prestigious luxury brand
Hermes family, Patrick Guerrand-Hermes
had a love for horses from an early age.
His uncle had been on the French dressage team
whilst his grandfather was a prolific carriage
horse breeder and competitor. “I recall many
stories with my Grandfather,” recalled Patrick.
“He would regularly take the family to supper
to a village some 60km away and on the return
journey we would curl up in the cushions and the
horses would lead us instinctively home.”
His first horse was given to him by a friend of
his father’s, a Field Marshall who was summoned
to a parade in France. His horse made the journey
from Africa, through Italy to France; by the time it
reached the parade, it was hobbling lame and the
Field Marshall wasn’t prepared to put it through a
return trip. Thus he made a gift of the recovered
horse to Patrick – and from then the young boy
threw himself into the world of horses. “In those
days, I would have to walk the 6km from home
to the stables and after a day of school and then
riding, I was too tired to read my geography books.
Sadly, as my schooling took a hit, I didn’t keep
dear Cloche for too long.”
However, that wasn’t the end of his equestrian
career, as he went on to event, steeplechase and
was selected to show jump for France. And it
wasn’t just equestrianism that held such an
allure for him; he was equally enamoured with
winter sports on the slopes. From medal-clinching
skiing to participating in St. Moritz’s skeleton –
a terrifying form of bobsleighing – it’s clear that
he enjoys the spirit of the high octane. It appears
in contrast to the ever dapper gentleman in his
pin-strip suit and Hermes tie; but naturally the
family company has unconsciously made him
the well-dressed thrill seeker.
He joined the Army in 1953, and it
was here that he was introduced
to polo. His family had been
members of the Bagatelle
Polo Club in Paris and he
remembers attending
matches there during
his childhood, but
it wasn’t until he
enlisted that he took up
a polo stick.
“On my first days
at the barracks in Fez,
Morocco, I was told that my
Captain had fallen during his game,
and as I was a rider, I was rushed to the field to
take his place. I didn’t even know how to hold
the mallet, but I did manage to hit the ball
once or twice and I was instantly hooked.”
Throughout his career with the family
Photography by ©RBpresse
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“And that began a love
affair with polo, which has
spanned over 50 yea