By REYNALD MAGALLON
Businessman and lawmaker Mikee Romero continued to fly the country’s colors high in the international polo scene after climbing to the 20th spot in the United States Polo ranking for the January to May 2025 season highlighted by a No.6 overall placing for the month of April.
The Filipino sports patron collected 205 points to stand side-by-side with the best polo players in the world including 10-goaler and 2024 US Open Champion Poroto Cambiaso.
The April rankings, meanwhile, has some of the world’s most dominant 10-goal professionals as his peers with Tomas Panelo claiming the No. 1 spot followed by Juan Martín Nero at No. 2, Adolfo Cambiaso at No. 3 and Barto Castagnola at No. 4.
Aside from Romero’s feat, his pony ‘Niki” was also hailed as No.1 in the polo horse ranking in the US, sharing the top spot with ‘Catwoman’ (Juan Martín Nero), ‘La Dolfina Binter’ and ‘La Dolfina Jetcost’ (Adolfo Cambiaso), and ‘Oriental Oklahoma’ (Tomas Panelo)—each scoring a perfect 30-point rating.
“This is a deeply meaningful moment,” said Romero. “To stand among the best players in the U.S. and to see Niki recognized beside the finest horses in the world is a tribute to the effort, preparation, and heart that went into every game.”
Already ranked the No. 24 amateur polo player in the world and the highest-ranked Southeast Asian player on the global circuit by the World Polo Tour, the feat came as another huge achievement for Romero especially after helping his team, Globalport, become the first ever Asian-based team to participate in the Gauntlet of Polo in the US.
The team’s performance, which saw it hold its ground against some of the top teams in the US, also fueled Romero’s rise in the US rankings.
Globalport reached the semifinals of the C.V. Whitney Cup and the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open – top tier tournaments part of the Gauntlet of Polo alongside the USPA Gold Cup.
