Iransaid Monday that it would oppose attempts byAzerbaijanto officially register polo with the United Nations as a purely indigenous sport, arguing that polo is an international game and Azerbaijan has no right to claim that it originated there.The official Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Mohammad-Ali Najafi, the head of Irans Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, as saying in aletter to Unescothat Iran strongly requests the rejection of Azerbaijans application to register polo which both nations call chogan as an entry on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India are among the countries that also have a claim on the game, the worlds oldest known competitive team sport, in which players on horseback use mallets to swat a ball through the opposing sides goal posts.Unesco the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization will decide on Azerbaijans application during ameetingof its Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 2-7.
By The New York Times
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