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泰国大象马球赛为大象保护募捐

Polo, the ancient team competition typically played on horseback, is known as the “sport of kings.” However, the royal version for one annual event, now underway in Thailand (through Sunday), swaps¹ the horse for the kingdom’s national symbol - the elephant. The King’s Cup Elephant Polo tournament in Samut Prakan is all for a good cause.

马球，这种一般是坐在马背上进行的古老团队竞技，被称为“国王的运动”。但是现在在泰国举行的一年一度的皇家版马球赛，把马换成了泰国的象征――大象。这次的国王杯大象马球锦标赛是为了一个公益事业。

The star athletes of this tournament are 51 teenage females, each weighing about three tons (3,000 kilograms).

马球锦标赛的明星是51头年轻的母象，每头重约三吨。

Mounted on each elephant on the polo field are two relatively² miniscule humans - the mahout, who steers³, and the player, who gives directions.

赛场上的每头大象上坐着两个人，一个是驾驭大象的象夫，另一个是指引方向的球手，他们的身形相比之下微乎其微。

This is the 13th year the tournament, created and organized by the Anantara resort hotel chain, has been played in Thailand. The only other games played under the auspices⁴ of the World Elephant Polo Association are the annual world championships in Nepal.

大象马球锦标赛是由安纳塔拉连锁度假酒店创立和组织的，今年是第十三年在泰国举行。唯一一个类似的其他比赛是世界大象马球协会主持的世界冠军赛，每年在尼泊尔举行。

For those who also participate in the more conventional version on horseback, the slower game of elephant polo requires a significant adjustment, as Dubai-based player Wael Soueid, explains.

对于那些也参加骑马进行的传统马球赛的人来说，节奏较慢的大象马球需要很大的调整。来自迪拜的黎巴嫩裔球手瓦埃勒.苏艾德解释说：

“First, you don’t have control of the elephant because there’s a mahout who is guiding it," he said. "Second, is the language because the mahout speaks only Thai. And the stick is very long. It’s two meters long while the stick of [horse] polo is at 1.20. So that’s a big difference.”

他说：“首先，你不能控制大象，因为有象夫在那里带领它。第二是语言，因为象夫只说泰语。还有就是球杆很长，有两米长，而马球球杆只有1米2。所以差别很大。”

These captive-born, super-size athletes are bred as working elephants and loaned to the corporate⁵ teams by their owners, allowing the intelligent mammals a change of pace.

这些圈养出生、体形巨大的健将们是作为干活用的大象培育的，主人把它们借给公司组队参赛，让这些聪明的哺乳动物有机会换个节奏。

Tournament organizer Tim Boda says the females seem to catch on to the spirit of competition.

酒店集团组织比赛的蒂姆·博达说，用母象是因为她们更有比赛意识。

“A lot of these elephants have been playing now for years. I do not speak elephant but watching them, first of all, it looks like they’re having a whole lot of fun," he said. "It may well be that they actually to understand the rules. Who knows?”

他说：“这里的好多大象都参加了多年球赛。我说不了大象的语言但是我观察它们，首先，它们看上去都非常开心。很有可能它们实际上都明白打球的规则，谁知道呢。”

Spectators can enjoy the matches while chomping⁶ on gourmet⁷ wagyu beef burgers, sipping⁸ champagne⁹ and puffing¹⁰ cigars. But this is more than just a spectacle for the elite¹¹. The annual tournament raises money for the care of Thailand’s domesticated¹² and wild elephants.

观众们可以在一边享受比赛的同时，一边大嚼牛肉汉堡，喝香槟、抽雪茄。不过，这项比赛并不只是上层人士的乐子，也是为泰国的圈养和野生大象募捐的活动。

Proceeds from this year’s tournament are expected to take total donations over the $1 million mark.

今年的比赛预计将使得全部捐款突破一百万美元。