Camogie Assocation gives green light to wearing of shorts

A special congress of the Camogie Association has voted in favour of allowing shorts to become part of the sport’s official kit.

The ballot on Thursday night saw 98% vote in favour of the change which will result in players across Ireland having the option of wearing shorts or skorts.

There had been protests in recent weeks over whether camogie players should have the option of wearing shorts or skorts, leading to some matches being postponed or delayed.

Previous rules had dictated that camogie players must wear a skort during matches, which has the appearance of a skirt, but has built-in shorts underneath.

Camogie is the female equivalent of hurling, a team-based field game played with a wooden stick called a hurl or hurley and a ball called a sliotar.

The special congress meeting was held at Croke Park in Dublin.

Camogie Association president Brian Molloy said: “We are pleased to announce that delegates have voted by an overwhelming majority in favour of giving players greater choice in their playing attire.

“From midnight tonight, each individual player will have the option to wear skorts or shorts – adding choice while maintaining the professionalism and uniformity of our team kits in both colour and design.

“I want to sincerely thank our incredible volunteers for their ongoing support over the last few weeks, and to our delegates for voting on behalf of over 120,000 members, including 94,000 playing members.”

A statement from the Gaelic Players’ Association (GPA) welcomed the vote.

It said: “The GPA would like to put on the record our admiration for camogie players across Ireland and beyond, both at inter-county and club level, who made their voices heard to ensure this outcome.

“To our own membership who have led the campaign for choice, we salute your willingness to stand up for both yourselves, and future generations of camogie players.

“We thank the delegates who listened to players’ call for choice.

“The last few weeks have once again shown the necessity of putting players at the heart of decision making within Gaelic Games.”