Lechuza Caracas owned by Venezuelan multimillionaire
By SONJA ISGER
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
By SONJA ISGER
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Monday, April 20, 2009
The 21 horses that died this weekend were about to play in the 105th U.S. Open Polo Championship, a tournament which caps South Florida's winter polo season.
They were members of the Lechuza Caracas team which has been playing in the event annually since 1999
The team is owned by Victor Vargas, a Venezuelan multimillionaire who started playing polo when he was 24 years old, according to the North American Polo League.
According to the league website, Vargas has various banking and oil holding in the United sates, Venezuela, Panama and the Dominican Republic. The site reports that the man is also president of the Venezuelan Bank Association and director of the Latin American Banks Federation.
Vargas, who also plays on the team, was reported in tears as he held the dying horses Sunday afternoon.
Scott Swerdlin, a veterinarian on the scene and member of the Palm Beach Equine Clinic, described Vargas as "a man in his 50s, going on 40.
"He's very enthusiastic about polo. He loves to play and hang out with the players. He gives great parties for the grooms and the players. They're all like his family."
Despite his outgoing nature, Vargas is a very private person, he said. "You'd be more likely to get an interview with Madonna than him."
Vargas, the son of a doctor and the first female Supreme Court justice in Venezuela, also has local ties. Last year, he bought a $68.5 million home from art collector George Lindemann.
The Lechuza team slated to take the field this weekend included Vargas, a one-goal rated player, as well as three others from Argentina:
Guillermo "Sapo" Casset, Jr. , an 8-goaler
Juan Martin Nero, a 10-goaler
Nicholas Espain, a 7-goaler
Players are rated annually by their peers on a scale of 2 to 10 goals. It's a handicap system that does not reflect how many goals a player is expected to make in a match, but is meant to indicate his or her value to the team. Few players rise above a 3-goal rating. The match that was to be played Sunday was a high-goal match, with elite players in the polo world.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2009/04/20/0420lechuzateam.htmlhttp://www.diariolacalle.net.nyud.net:8090/imagenes_noticias/victor%20vargas%20irausquin.jpg
Victor Vargas
Victor's Palm Beach house$70 Millones pagó Víctor Vargas por mansión en Palm Beach
http://www.noticias24.com/gente/noticia/3107/la-nueva-mansion-de-victor-vargas-en-palm-beach/