‘Good on ya, ladies’: Feminist icon Pink offers to pay women’s beach handball team’s fines for swapping bikini bottoms for shorts

Pop superstar Pink has publicly praised the Norwegian female beach handball team for "protesting sexist rules about their uniform", offering to pay the fines given to them by the European Handball Federation over their kit choice.

Norway's rebels were fined 1,500 euros (around $1,800) for "improper clothing" at the European Beach Handball Championships in Bulgaria last week, having chosen to wear shorts similar to those donned by their male counterparts rather than traditional bikini bottoms.

Bosses explained that their sartorial selection against Spain did not comply "according to the athlete uniform regulations", leading to a row over equality and inclusivity among some.

Now chart-topping multi-millionaire Pink has emphatically offered her moral and financial support to the team in front of her huge global following on social media.

"I'm very proud of the Norwegian female beach handball team for protesting sexist rules about their uniform," said the singer, who has been known to wear eye-catching outfits in her music videos during her long career behind the microphone.

"The European Handball Federation should be fined for sexism. Good on ya, ladies. I'll be happy to pay your fines for you. Keep it up."

Pink then retweeted an outraged post that argued: "When the men play a sport wearing long shorts and tank tops but the women are required to wear bikini tops and bottoms, that is sexism. So either let the women wear the same as the men, or make the men play in Speedos."

The American has formed an unlikely alliance with the Norwegian Handball Federation in offering to fork out for the fine.

"Of course we would pay any fine," the federation's president, Kare Geir Lio, told AFP.

"We are all in the same boat. The most important thing is to have equipment that athletes are comfortable with."

Norway's minister for culture and sport, Abid Raja, described the sanction as "completely ridiculous".

Tennis great Billie Jean King was also among those moved to have their say on the issue on Twitter. "The Norwegian Women’s Beach Handball team is facing fines for wanting to wear shorts instead of bikini bottoms," she observed.

"The bottoms are not to cover 'more than 10cm on any sides.' The men’s team wears shorts. The sexualization of women athletes must stop."

The team ended their tournament with a hashtag of "let them wear shorts", adding that they were happy to have qualified for next year's World Championship despite not winning a medal this time around.

"We are also very proud about making a statement in the bronze final by playing in shorts instead of the required bikini bottoms," they said.

"We are overwhelmed by the attention and support from all over the world. Thank you so much to all the people who support us and help to spread the message. We really hope this will result in a change of this nonsense rule."