Coronavirus has been spreading throughout the world at a rapid rate, and has recently been deemed a pandemic. There have been over 100,000 cases worldwide, and over 3,000 in the United States alone. Because of this, the NCAA and other sports organizations have taken certain measures to prevent the spread of this virus.
When I first started writing this blog post, There were only around 1,000 cases in the United States, and while some sporting events announced that they were going fan-less, all sporting events were proceeding as usual.
There is no doubt that in the last week, a lot has changed. Here is everything that transpired leaving American sports at an utter standstill.
Wednesday, March 11
Around 3:00pm, The Ivy League announced that they were canceling all spring practices and games for the remainder of the semester. The initial reaction was negative, as many thought that the restriction was too harsh.
Less than two hours later, the NCAA announced they were limiting all spectators at the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments to just essential staff and family members. This announcement sent a shock to many of us, as March Madness always brings in thousands of sports fans at many locations. Having no fans at the games seemed unimaginable.
The news in the sports world just kept getting worse and worse. Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus causing the NBA to suspend the season just minutes later.
Thursday, March 12
Thursday morning was filled with announcements that the top NCAA conferences were suspending the remainder of their basketball tournaments. For the ACC, this led to Florida State being given the tournament title. For the Big East, this led to one of the conference tournament games getting cancelled at halftime.
Then, the biggest announcement happened, which left us all in complete shock. At 4:16pm, the NCAA announced that the men’s and women’s basketball tournament was cancelled, along with all winter and spring championships.
There were a lot of emotions. Not only was March Madness cancelled, but college seniors’ athletic careers were done in a matter of seconds. Although the NCAA announced a day later that spring athletes would be given an extra year of eligibility, staying an extra year for many is simply unfeasible.
By the end of the day, the sports world stopped. The MLB, NHL, and MLS announced a suspension of their seasons, along with the PGA tour being suspended. When you look on ESPN, the games are all re-airings.
What Now?
As athletes, we are left with emptiness that we cannot describe. Sports have been our life, and we could never imagine a world without them. However, this is the state that we are in now. We cannot play or watch sports the same. This is our new normal at least for the coming months.
What can we do? We can look back on all of the memories that we have had playing sports. We can continue to train, just not in a team environment. We can keep in touch with our teammates, especially our seniors, who we had to say goodbye to. We can spend time with our family, and truly thank them for everything that they have done during our athletic careers.
Then, when the time comes and we can go back to the sport that we love, we can appreciate every moment that we have to play with our teammates. We can take absolutely nothing for granted. We can realize that any game could be our last.
If you haven’t already, check out the Speaking Of Athletes Twitter and comment below what kind of posts you want to see next.
Speaking of Athletes 