LONDON, 1 July — The Prince of Wales team won the GCC Polo Cup by beating the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) squad 8-5 in their annual encounter at the Guards Polo Club at Windsor on Saturday.
The event, organized by BMG Foundation of BMG Financial Advisors, was to promote understanding between the Arab world and the West and supporting numerous worthwhile charities in both societies.
More than 2,000 people attended the 6th annual GCC Polo Cup tournament. Prince Faisal ibn Salman, the guest of honor, spoke of the importance of such events in both developing understanding and boosting social and economic ties between the Arab world and the West.
Saudi Ambassador to the United Kingdom Dr. Ghazi Al-Gosaibi reflected on the late Prince Fahd ibn Salman and praised his humanitarian activities. “Prince Fahd ibn Salman set an example by supporting worthy and needy charities and will always be remembered as a great philanthropist,” the ambassador remarked.
After the presentation of the trophy to the winning team, Basil Al-Ghalayini, president of BMG Financial Advisors and chairman of the organizing committee, stressed the importance of the event this year.
“It is certainly a notable year because it is the year of Queen Elizabeth’s Golden Jubilee. We also remember the sad passing away of Prince Fahd ibn Salman almost a year ago and we miss him immensely this year. May his soul rest in peace,” Ghalayini said.
Prince Fahd, the eldest son of Riyadh Governor Prince Salman, was a philanthropist to the core. He had played an active role in a number of charitable, medical and social organizations. He was the board member and secretary-general of the Charitable Society for Kidney Patients.
Considering the events of the year since the last meeting of the two teams, Ghalayini said, “All of us were shocked by the tragic events of Sept. 11. Many of us were also dismayed at the outbreak of finger pointing, suspicions and misunderstandings, which followed it.”
“This event will help put these misunderstandings to rest and in doing so we revive the foundation of trust and mutual respect, which our predecessors have worked so hard to achieve,” Ghalayini added. At the conclusion of the event, Prince Charles presented special prizes to all the sponsors from Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Philippines, Switzerland, and the United Arab Emirates.
The sponsors included Al-Hamrani Group, UBS Assets Mgt, Noon Food Products, Air Touring Management, Banco Filipino, Haji Hussein Alireza (sole agent of Aston Martin in Saudi Arabia), Alireza Advertising, Saudi Arabian Airlines, BMG Financial Advisors, Al-Jazeera, United Tech, the Law Office of Motasem Khashoggi, and CWC.
