The GAA is to host a special commemorative event at Croke Park next year to mark the Centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising.
The event will be hosted in conjunction with the Allianz League Division 1 and 2 finals on Sunday 24 April 2016, the same date as the start of the Rising, and will be staged between the two finals.
The initial plan is that all of the more than 2,000 clubs that make up the Association will be represented in a celebration that will reflect the role of the GAA in this period and in a modern Ireland. An artistic director for the event is expected to be named shortly.
The event is being planned in conjunction with the Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme.
“I am thrilled that the GAA is getting involved in the Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme,” said Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys.
“Next year will be a huge opportunity for us to come together to reflect on our shared past and look to the future.”
“As a grassroots community organisation, with its own place in history, the GAA is a very important part of that narrative.”
“The GAA event promises to mark the anniversary of the Easter Rising in an inclusive and exciting way and will complement the Government’s extensive programme of events.”
“Next year will be a hugely significant one for Irish people everywhere and we are pleased to highlight the role that the GAA played in the emergence of modern Ireland,” added GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail.
“As the largest sporting organisation on the island, there is an obvious link in this period with the activities of the GAA and we look forward to next April’s event which will celebrate history and tradition while also looking to the future of modern Ireland.”
Páraic Duffy, Director General of the GAA, added: “We are pleased to work with the government in the organisation of an event that we will believe will be a fitting commemoration of a hugely important landmark date in Irish history.”
“That this celebration will encompass our games and clubs exactly 100 years after the day of the event itself will ensure a special occasion and I am confident it will appeal to the wider public as well as our own members.”
