HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) A 19-year-old from Philadelphia is set to become the first African-American woman to play in a top-tier U.S. polo event.
Shariah Harris will mount up Friday for the Postage Stamp Farm polo team in the Silver Cup at the tony Greenwich Polo Club in Connecticut.
Harris grew up in single-parent home just outside west Philadelphia. She learned how to play polo as part of the Work to Ride equestrian program for low-income children.
The U.S. Polo Association’s 2016 interscholastic player of the year now plays for Cornell.
She said she’s had to endure stares and some racist comments in what has traditionally been a sport for the rich and white, but she believes it will be worth it to give other kids like her a similar opportunity.