The National Collegiate Gaelic Athletic Association (NCGAA) has announced that the US national collegiate GAA championships for the 2013/2014 academic year will be hosted in New York.
The tournament will take place over the Memorial Day weekend, May 24 and 25. This will be the fourth year's running of the National College Hurling Championship and its first appearance on the East Coast. It will also be the first running of the National College Gaelic Football Championship.
"The NCGAA is committed to developing the collegiate GAA system on the East Coast, particularly to bolster the Gaelic football movement that has been taking root in universities there," said Eamonn Gormley, NCGAA Chairman.
"The Northeast Collegiate GAA is a new regional committee under strong leadership, we have the utmost confidence in their ability to host this event, and our ambition to develop the northeast region is underlined by our hosting this event in New York."
Simon Gillespie, Chairman of the NECGAA, has welcomed the decision. "We are delighted to get to host this growing movement in New York," he said.
"New York has a long and proud GAA tradition, but we also recognize the importance of the collegiate system in securing our future growth and keeping underage players engaged with the GAA as they get older. It protects our investment in youth."
A total of three bids were submitted from collegiate clubs eager to host the tournament, two of which came from the northeast. The bid to host it in New York came from the University of Connecticut Hurling Club. The NCGAA selected New York due to "a combination of the impressive facilities and the enthusiastic support for the bid that came from the local GAA community."
The hurling club at the University of California, Berkeley, (Cal) are the current holders of the national collegiate hurling championship title and will now face a challenging journey across the country to retain the title. Meanwhile the national title in Gaelic football is yet to be claimed.
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