Fundraiser launched to help fund equipment for Uganda Lacrosse

A fundraiser has been launched to help fund playing equipment for the Uganda Lacrosse Association (ULA).

Set up by lacrosse veteran Tim Holdsworth, who is connected to the ULA through his wife, the fundraiser hopes to raise an initial £1,700 to help buy lacrosse sticks, balls, reversible pinnies, and shipping to Uganda to support a group of 20 lacrosse players.

There are currently no lacrosse equipment companies in Africa and the ULA has historically sourced equipment via donations of used equipment from Europe and North America; Tim hopes this will be the start of a movement which can bring new equipment into Uganda annually.

After being founded in 2011, the ULA has managed to sustain lacrosse in the country for 13 years while receiving no government funding or operating a standard National Governing Body (NGB) model due to the economic difficulties faced by the general population.

 Despite these obvious challenges, the ULA has managed to create a participation base of around 1,000 players with plans in place to introduce the sport to more schools and educational settings.

Full details of the fundraiser can be viewed on the GoFundMe page below.

Uganda Lacrosse Recognised as World Lacrosse Full Member

The Uganda Lacrosse Association (ULA) has become the first National Governing Body from the continent of Africa to be recognised as a World Lacrosse (WL) Full Member, in a move that indicates the huge growth in lacrosse across the world.

The ULA first became an Associate Member of WL nine years ago in 2011 and, by unanimous vote of the WL Board of Directors, is now being elevated to Full Member status.

As a Full Member, the ULA will have a voting delegate eligible to participate in the annual World Lacrosse General Assembly.

In addition, national teams representing Uganda will be eligible to advance to the championship bracket and win medals in all WL World Championship events.

After the announcement, WL President, Sue Redfern, said:

“Sport has the power to transform lives, and that is exactly what we see happening in Uganda through the important work and progress of the ULA.”

“Today’s announcement is a significant milestone in the growth of our game, but there is considerable work that still must be done in order to make certain lacrosse is available to any young person, anywhere in the world, who wishes to participate.”

The recommendation to elevate the ULA to Full Member status was made by the WL Development Committee, “based upon the tremendous progress being made to expand opportunities for participation in the sport in Uganda”.

The ULA joins Puerto Rico Lacrosse and the Hungarian Lacrosse Association as members of WL that have been elevated to Full Member status in the past year, taking the total of WL member-National Governing Bodies to 68 worldwide.

Read the full WL statement HERE and we wish the ULA all the best as we welcome them as a WL Full Member!

Uganda Lacrosse Launch Brand New Website!

Earlier this week, Uganda Lacrosse, the national governing body for the sport of lacrosse in Uganda, announced the launch of their new website, marking a big step in the growth of lacrosse in the country and the world.

It is hoped the new website will “provide […] visitors with an easier way to learn about Uganda Lacrosse’s services and to browse information based on their own choices”.

Uganda Lacrosse became a World Lacrosse member in 2011 before making their international tournament debut at the 2014 World Lacrosse Championship in Denver, USA.

They made history at that tournament by becoming the first African team to feature at a World Lacrosse Championship.

And, although they finished 34th out of 38 teams that year, they did manage to gain their first win at an international tournament as they overcame South Korea 10-9 in their play-in game.

The new Uganda Lacrosse website will undoubtedly help the growth of lacrosse in the country and further afield and England Lacrosse wishes them all the best as they continue to grow the game in their part of the world!

In a statement, Uganda lacrosse said:

“We are very excited to announce the launch of our newly designed official website.

“After four months of hard work and dedication, we are delighted to officially announce our new website.

“We will continue feeding it with more information while at the same time making it faster, easier to navigate, and more user-friendly.

“As the national governing body for the sport of lacrosse in Uganda , it’s important for us to make information regarding our leadership, services and trends easily accessible for our current and prospective members, donors and partners.

“We endeavour to provide our members and partners with the most accurate, up-to-date information.

“Our goal with this new website is to provide our visitors with an easier way to learn about Uganda Lacrosse’s services and to browse information based on their own choices.

“We will be constantly updating our content with helpful information, updating our gallery, Association announcements and our successes in the Blog and News Center.

“You can also sign up for our Uganda Lacrosse Association Monthly newsletter.

“Finally, we would like to thank our amazing staff at Uganda lacrosse who donated their time and energy to make this site what it is, and our donor World Lacrosse, the world governing body, who provided the grant to us for the website. We wholeheartedly thank them!

“For any questions, suggestions, feedback or comments, please email us at info@ugandalacrosse.ug”.

To view the website, simply click HERE.