It’s a victory for the beach handball players. Until then forced to play in bikinis, these sportswomen can now wear shorts, which must however be “tight”, after the International Handball Federation (IHF) changed its regulations in early October.
“The players must wear short and tight shorts”, now indicates the IHF regulations, while their male counterparts can wear shorts which arrive “ten centimeters above the kneecap” provided they are ” not too wide ”, according to this regulation published on October 3.
For the upper body, the dress required by the IHF is the same for men and women: “fitted tank tops”.
Fine for Norwegians
The clothing now legal for the women is almost identical to that worn by the Norwegian players in July, when they were sanctioned for having abandoned the bikini then required by the IHF, during the match against Spain for the medal of bronze at the European Championship.
The disciplinary commission of the European Handball Federation (EHF) fined the Norwegian team 1,500 euros, triggering outrage from Norwegian sports circles and commentators, who called for a change in the rules.
The question of clothing has agitated beach sports circles for years, where players consider bikini degrading or impractical. Beach volleyball players are no longer obliged to wear it since 2012.
Born in Italy in 1990, beach handball is still a confidential sport, unlike beach volleyball.
