There will be no fall sports in the Ivy League this year, officials announced on Wednesday.
This is the latest in a series of coronavirus-related …
There will be no fall sports in the Ivy League this year, officials announced on Wednesday.
This is the latest in a series of coronavirus-related disruptions in the sports world, but the first Division I conference to cancel fall football plans.
The Ivy League Council of Presidents said in a statement that their institutions are implementing campus-wide health and safety policies that will make it impossible for sports teams to compete before the end of the fall semester.
“With the information available to us today regarding the continued spread of the virus, we simply do not believe we can create and maintain an environment for intercollegiate athletic competition that meets our requirements for safety and acceptable levels of risk, consistent with the policies that each of our schools is adopting as part of its reopening plans this fall,” they wrote.
Enrolled student-athletes can participate in practices and other training opportunities, as long as they comply with guidelines of their institution and state. The league will also issue guidelines for a phased-in resumption of conditioning and practice activities, beginning with individual and small group workouts.
Fall sport student athletes will not use a season of Ivy League or NCAA eligibility in the fall, whether or not they enroll.
“A decision on the remaining winter and spring sports competition calendar, and on whether fall sport competition would be feasible in the spring, will be determined at a later date,” they added.
The Ivy League was the first conference to cancel its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments as the coronavirus pandemic worsened in March.
While the move was viewed as an overreaction at the time, the NCAA canceled March Madness two days later. The NCAA canceled all remaining winter and spring championships on March 12 because of the public health threat.
