Pat Fitzgerald Elected IRFU President : Irish Rugby

Pat Fitzgerald, a well-known and successful businessman involved in the construction, property and plant and machinery industry in Ireland and the UK, has created a piece of Irish rugby history by becoming the first member of Longford RFC to be elected President of the Irish Rugby Football Union.

Pat Fitzgerald assumed the highest office in Irish rugby at the IRFU's annual Council meeting in the Aviva Stadium today, following a long and distinguished contribution to the game at club, branch and Union level.

Fitzgerald is the 126th President of the Union and the first representative of a junior status club from Leinster to hold the office. Last year he was awarded the Mr. Boots Award for outstanding services to junior rugby.

Kildare-born, Fitzgerald is associated with Longford RFC since joining the club in 1972. Following a distinguished playing career as a scrum half/centre, he contributed to the club's affairs on various committees and was President from 1983 to 1985.

His administrative path included his nomination as Chairman of the Midlands Area of Leinster rugby in the late 1970s and subsequently, as the longest-serving Leinster Branch member, he had the distinction of serving on every committee - most notably in the area of commercial and marketing.

Co-opted to the IRFU's Marketing Committee in 1997/98, he was elected to the full Union Committee in 2000.

Since then he has contributed to a variety of committees including the Management Committee, and also as Chairman of the Commercial and Marketing Committee to which he has brought a whole new dimension and unprecedented success in terms of sponsorships and revenues generated for the Union.

He has also sat as an IRFU representative on the main Board of the Aviva Stadium.

Married to Ann, he has one son, John, and lives in Castleknock, Dublin.

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