Once again, the Ivy League has sent a loud and clear COVID-19 message to the collegiate sports community. After initially delaying the start of the winter sports schedule until January 2021, the Ivy League Counsel of Presidents has voted unanimously to cancel all intercollegiate sports until at least March, becoming the first Division I conference to officially suspend its winter sports schedule in the midst of escalating coronavirus pandemic spikes and increasing hospitalizations in the Northeast and around the country.
In addition, to the postponement of all sports until at least March 1st, the conference also announced that it will no longer hold in abeyance its previous delay in deciding to allow fall sports to play in the spring by formally canceling fall sports competition during the 2021 spring semester.
“The Ivy League announcement regarding winter sports follows its ongoing precautionary pattern of having been the first conference in the country to act in response to the pandemic by canceling its men’s and women’s conference basketball tournaments last March and its fall sports schedule in early July.
Despite broad criticism for overreacting from multiple professional leagues and other college conferences for its preemptive decision in March, within days the Ivy League and its Executive Director Harris were ultimately lauded for their decision to exercise extreme caution to protect their student-athletes. Approximately two days after the Ivy League’s decision, all professional sports leagues were shut down following the COVID-19 diagnosis of NBA player Rudy Gobert and the NCAA was forced to cancel the men’s and women’s NCAA basketball tournaments.
In response to the announcement of the cancellation of the league’s winter sports schedule,
“Executive Director Harris commented, “We are heartbroken to be here again. This is definitely not a decision we want to make, but I know it’s the right decision for the Ivy League.”
Harris acknowledged that Ivy League coaches and athletic directors offered various options for conducting a season, including the elimination of overnight road trips and modification to travel meals. Unfortunately, the proposed alternatives were not deemed to be sufficient to diminish to potential risk of COVID-19 exposure to the athletes.
The Ivy Council of Presidents concluded that the risk of transmission of the virus far exceeded the goal of for the Ivy League athletes to compete. In a prepared statement, the Ivy Council of Presidents acknowledged the sacrifice of the League’s student-athletes, their families and coaches for public health purposes and stated, “While these decisions come with great disappointment and frustration, our commitment to the safety and lasting health of our student-athletes and wider communities must remain our highest priority.”
The league also announced that training opportunities and practices for enrolled student-athletes will be permitted, provided they are structured in accordance with each institution’s procedures and applicable state and local regulations. This approach is consistent with the plan implemented by the Ivy League for all sports in the fall 2020 term.
While this announcement may not be followed by similar announcements from other basketball dominant conferences, it will be interesting to see if other conferences once again follow the Ivy League’s lead as the Coronavirus continues to spike across the country.
