Argentina is obsessed with soccer but visitors sometimes don’t realize that the sport the country truly dominates is polo. The ‘sport of kings’ is played professionally only in 18 countries. Argentina is universally recognized as polo’s mecca, with several thousand active players. Polo was an on-again off-again Olympic sport from 1900-1936. Argentina’s national team won […]
Cerro Catedral: South America’s Budget Tahoe
Cerro Catedral in the vast winter play land of Argentina’s Lakes District is the country’s largest ski destination. Catedral Alta Patagonia, as it’s officially named, is popular both for its extensive terrain spread across three mountains and its 19 kilometer (12 mi.) proximity to Bariloche, Patagonia’s second largest city. The 1030 meter (3379 ft.) high […]
Crazy Fist: The Life and Tragedies of Boxer Carlos Monzón
I made the whole world talk, their hearts beat. I made them see that everybody has blood. —Leon Gieco, Puño Loco The exemplar of calculated aggression in the boxing ring, Carlos Monzón was at times a blazing, uncontrollable menace out of it. He was Argentina’s über-celebrity of the 1970’s. He dated the most famous movie […]
Luna Park: Buenos Aires’ Historic Downtown Stadium
Luna Park, that art deco building downtown with the neon sign is Argentina’s answer to Madison Square Gardens and on any given Saturday night in Buenos Aires the 80-year old stadium still might be the place putting on the best show in town. The Palacio de los Deportes, or ‘Sports Palace’, as it’s called is […]
Diego Maradona: Goal of the Century
The World Cup and The Hand of God Diego Maradona appeared in four World Cup tournaments— more than any other Argentinian. He had his moments in 1982 as a youngster and in 1994 as a veteran and cunningly helped his team to the final in Italy ‘90, but the tournament that will forever be associated […]