Winter sports likely to change this year

Winter sports likely to change this year

NEW YORK STATE--The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) released an update on the winter sports season, Monday, Nov. 9. While low and moderate-risk sports are permitted to be played, high-risk sports such as basketball have not yet been approved due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"After consultation with state officials today, NYSPHSAA has confirmed low and moderate-risk winter sports (bowling, gymnastics, indoor track and field, skiing and swimming and diving) are permitted to be played," the statement from Dr. Robert Zayas, executive director of NYSPHSAA read. "NYSPHSAA has established Nov. 30 as the winter sports start date. At this time, authorization has not been provided for high-risk sports to begin play. The high-risk sports start date continues to be examined and will be revised if needed but is contingent upon authorization from state officials."
High-risk sports are characterized by the state as having the least ability to maintain physical distance and/or be done individually. These factors include (1) least ability to avoid touching of shared equipment (2) least ability to clean and disinfect equipment between uses by different individuals (3) least ability to not use shared equipment at all.
For the now ending fall sports season, the high-risk sports of volleyball and football were moved to the springtime. While some contests have had to be postponed or had location changes, locally, the fall season has been successful in offering student-athletes opportunities for team sports. Attendance of spectators has been limited throughout the season, and masks are worn by athletes as much as possible.