IT’S A GAME that suffers in the popularity stakes when compared to its more illustrious cousins of hurling and football, but handball is a game that still enjoys a fairly passionate core following in pockets around the country.

But now the sport could be set for a remarkable new boost to its profile: the sport may now be set for inclusion in the Olympic Games, after a significant number of national associations gathered in Spain to found a new international federation to promote the game.

GAA Handball was one of the 33 organisations taking part, which agreed after two days of negotiation to set up an international body putting forward a professional bid to ultimately have the game included in the Olympics, possibly as quickly as the 2016 games in Rio de Janiero.

The conference, which was attended by the president of Colombia’s national Olympic committee, also saw agreement that the sport would be included as an exhibition sport at the next World Games, being held in that country in 2013.

Such a status at the World Games, which are run by the International Olympic Committee and include games that are not among the 26 that enjoy full Olympic status, is a prerequisite for consideration for the Olympic Games proper.

The campaign to have the game included at the 2016 games will be further boosted by the presence of IOC officials at the Irish national One Wall finals this June, when a working group will present its proposed constitution for the new international federation.

Given the regular dominance of Irish handballers at international collegiate tournaments, any bid to get the game included in the full Olympic Games could provide a handy boost for the country’s medal hopes.