Hamzeh Ilkhanizadeh and His Role in the Iranian Sport of Polo

Polo is an authentic Iranian sport. Experts trace the history of polo to the first millennium BC and believe that because this sport improved riding skills and the strength of horses, it met with the support of the rulers and grew. Later on, this sport found its way to other countries. In the olden days, this sport was performed in celebrations along with narration, impersonation, and music, and trumpets were played in the corners of the polo field. Images of polo can be seen in the paintings of the past, which are mostly in the form of miniatures, and in which musicians are depicted busy playing such instruments as Sorna and Naqareh. Therefore, polo should be described as a “happy sport”.

Polo competitions were taken so seriously in Iranian society that rulers and famous people personally came to watch them. This position was due to the fact that polo was of a special social and cultural value. However, this sport gradually lost its place in Iranian society and was not of much interest. In the last few decades, many efforts have been made to revive the polo sport and introduce it to everyone. These efforts were formed especially after 2002 AD and following the emphasis made by Iran’s Supreme Leader on investing more in polo and improving the status of this sport. In the same year, with the separation of polo from horse riding, a new federation was established among the sports federations of Iran. Finally, by preparing and presenting a file to UNESCO, “Polo, a game on horseback with music and narration’ was inscribed on the list of World Heritage in 2015 AD. Hamzeh Ilkhanizadeh was one of the several people who made a lot of efforts to introduce the cultural and historical position of polo and to point out its importance, and due to his activities in the field of polo, his name was, therefore, inscribed on the list of Iran’s living human treasures in the year 2018 AD.

Who Is Hamze Ilkhanizadeh?

Hamze Ilkhanizadeh was born in a nomadic family. The place of his birth was a village called “Hammamian” near the city of Bukan in the west of Iran. Ilkhanizadeh describes his family as lovers of Iran and Iranian culture and literature. According to him, his family’s interest in literature caused a deep connection between him and Persian culture and literature, such that he began to read Hafez's poems from his childhood. He got acquainted with polo in his childhood and teenage years, and even after leaving for Tehran to pursue his education, he did not give up this sport. Ilkhanizadeh, who was also active in the industrial field, was elected as the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran Polo Federation in 2002 and held this responsibility for 15 years. It was during his presidency of this federation that the polo file was inscribed on the UNESCO World List.

He considers the enthusiasm caused by polo to be unique among all sports and believes: “Polo is a value for our country and future generations and must be preserved, but some people wanted to present this sport as an anti-value… This country has always had lovers who took the initiative to revive its culture. Whenever there was an opportunity, with the support of these people, we raised opinions about polo, and finally, we introduced the isolated, oppressed, and rejected polo to everyone, and we managed to have it inscribed in the name of this land at the world level.” He considers the inscription of polo under the name of Iran as a great achievement and describes polo as a collection of historical, artistic, cultural, and literary elements. One of Ilkhanizadeh’s goals and dreams is to transform Imam Square (previously Naqshje Jahan) of Isfahan into a polo competition arena. This square was originally built as a field for holding polo competitions and there are still remains of the goals that were used in this game. It is said that the Safavid kings along with their families used to attend polo matches in the Aali Qapu Palace and watch the games.