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Camogie President Joan O’Flynn has announced the establishment of the Association’s first Player Welfare Committee. The Committee, headed up by Stellah Sinnott manager of the 2007 senior All Ireland winning Wexford team, will be comprised of eight current inter-county players and Paula Rankin, Head of Sports Science in Carlow Institute of Technology.
O’Flynn said, “”As the national governing body of camogie, it is important that we exercise an active interest in and support for the health, safety and welfare of our players. The establishment of a Player Welfare Committee, headed up by Stellah Sinnott, is a very significant demonstration of this.””
She continued “”Player welfare is a shared responsibility between players, coaches, mentors and administrators. There are now more camogie players, more camogie clubs and more camogie competitions than ever before. This means that there are more girls and women playing and undergoing intensive training for camogie.
“”Camogie players, as female athletes, have specific issues and experiences, different to their male counterparts. As sporting equals, it is really important that we provide good guidance and best practice on health and well-being issues in recognition of this.
“”This Committee, with a clear focus on women in gaelic games, includes a range of members with professional backgrounds in health and sports science. It is an important initiative and I am confident that it will be a positive influence in the future development of camogie and it is recognition of the centrality of the player in our game.””
The Committee will focus on key elements of player welfare. These will include increasing awareness and knowledge of the relationship between good nutrition and sporting performance, and promoting awareness of compliance with anti-doping requirements as set down by the Irish Sports Council.
It will also focus on gathering objective evidence on the extent and nature of player injuries, promoting awareness and education on injury prevention and recovery, and examining the adequacy of player insurance and developing standards of player welfare. This development will culminate in a national strategy and action plan on player welfare.
The eight players are Sally O’Grady (Waterford, Physiotherapist), Jane Adams (Antrim, All Ireland winning senior club captain), Aoife Lane (Galway, undertaking related research in WIT), Rena Buckley (Cork, Physiotherapist, All Ireland winning dual player), Susan O’Carroll (Kildare, UCD Ashbourne Cup captain 2008), Elaine Dermody (Offaly, All Ireland junior finalists 2008), Aileen Donnelly (All Ireland winning Division 4 Meath captain, Physiotherapist), Aine O’Mahony (Laois, member of Harps three-in-row All Ireland junior club champions, undertaking related research in UCD).
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