正文
马球运动使用的球杆
在半场（两巡）比赛结束后，便是马球比赛的传统活动——
踩草皮
（Divot Stomping）
。
Halftime provides a good opportunity for spectators to participate. The crowds of spectators vault the picket fences and take their places on the pitch. Gentlemen abandon their jackets, and ladies pick their way gingerly over the churned grass, smoothing out the surface with the help of their heels.
中场休息期间无疑是一个让观众近距离感受马球的好机会。众多的观众围在球场上，“占领”着一小块被马蹄和球杆翻起的草皮。风度翩翩的绅士们脱掉了外套，窈窕淑女们则小心翼翼地用脚后跟抚平着草皮。
The tradition of divot stomping may appear absurd to an onlooker, but it is in fact one of the longest and most important traditions in the Sport of Kings.
对于观众来说，“踩草皮”的传统可能听上去有些荒谬，但是它却是这项贵族运动中历史最悠久、最重要的传统之一。
马球运动的古老传统之一——踩草皮（Divot stomping）
The history of polo can be traced back to the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) in China. In Cao Zhi's poem Mingdu, there was a verse which described the fierce scenes of the ancients playing polo. Popular during the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties, the sport of polo in China gradually faded out after the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
说起马球的历史，最早可以追溯到我国汉代。
曹植的《名都篇》中就曾用“连骑击鞠壤，巧捷惟万端”的诗句来描写古人们进行马球运动时的激烈场景。
中国的马球运动在
唐宋时期
风行一时
，但在明朝后逐渐淡出了人们的视野。
马球运动曾一度风行于我国唐宋时期 图为唐代《马球图》壁画
The prosperity of modern polo is attributed to the UK. In the 13th century, polo was discovered and brought to Europe by the British from India, and this sport quickly became popular among the upper class. Even now, the British royal family still regularly holds the Queen’s Cup Polo every term.
现代马球运动的兴盛归功于英国。13世纪时，马球被英国人在印度发现并带入欧洲，这一运动迅速在上流社会中流行开来。时至今日，英国皇室还会定期举办皇家马球挑战赛。
英国女王伊丽莎白二世也是一个马球迷 来源：Daily Star
也正是目睹了马球在海外的兴盛，
邱一草的内心被
深深刺激到了。
