by Lauren Ericson
During these difficult times, it’s been a challenge to continue our sports seasons. As of December 1st, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) announced that they are canceling all Regional and State Championship Events for the Season 1 Sports Calendar. According to yourcentralvalley.com, “By canceling Regional and State Championship events for Season 1 Sports, more student-athletes will have the opportunity to participate in a longer season, rather than a truncated season with Regional and State post-season play for a limited number of schools, according to CIF.” CIF officials also said that they do not expect student-athletes to return to practices until Jan. 1, 2021. It was also announced that boys volleyball will be moved to Season 2 to avoid the loss of a full second season.
Football was able to practice at the beginning of the year but has now been canceled for the time being. When asked about football practices, junior Jacob Wheeler said, "Practice is a little weird now considering we can’t make contact, but the school is doing a good job at making sure everyone is wearing masks and keeping equipment such as bags and weights sanitized.”
Certain sports have been put into three categories that differ on how close you are to one another while playing. The three groups are Low-contact, Mid-contact, and High-contact. Some sports are being altered such as having staggered starts to races and changing different sports to other times of the year. Low-contact sports are going to be played for longer and sooner than high-contact and mid-contact. Any tournaments or events that involve more than two teams are not currently permitted in California.