Why Road Bowling wants UNESCO protectionRoad Bowling could soon stand alongside hurling on UNESCO’s list of protected cultural heritage. The Irish Road Bowling Association launches a campaign to safeguard one of the country’s oldest sports and win its elite players the recognition they deserve. The association is seeking recognition from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation as intangible cultural heritage, on a par with the status already given to hurling, harp music and uilleann pipe music. Played mainly on the public roads of counties Cork and Armagh, road bowling sees two competitors throw a 28-ounce iron ball, or bowl, along a course of between two and three kilometres, with the winner completing it in the fewest throws. “Road bowling is part of our distinctive cultural heritage," said Séamus Ó Tuama, Secretary General, Irish Road Bowling Association "And for the sport to have a chance to survive and grow, it needs corresponding protection from the United Nations.”