Fall sports in schools will be forced to face additional restrictions under new guidance from the Illinois Department of Health, the state governor announced Wednesday.
Governor JB Pritzker said the state “will restrict organized recreational sports for youth and adults,” including school sports, beginning August 15. The restrictions do not include professional or university sports.
Pritzker said each sport will be classified into three “risk levels”: high, medium and low, determined by “the amount of contact between athletes and their proximity during the game.” Still, certain sports may move forward with their fall seasons under the new restrictions.
Although he did not list all sports, Pritzker noted that tennis, golf, and baseball would be lower risk, while basketball, soccer, and volleyball fall at medium risk. Higher-risk sports include things like soccer, hockey, and lacrosse.
“This is not news that anyone wants to hear, but this virus is still dangerous,” Pritzker said during his press conference on Wednesday.
Under the guidance, each risk group will be limited to certain levels of play:
Level 1: only practices and training without contact
Level 2: Scrimmages within the team allowed, with the consent of the parents for minors; no competitive play
Level 3: Intra-conference or Intra-EMS-region1 or within league only plays / meets; state or league championship
game / match allowed only for low risk sports
Level 4: tournaments, out of conference / league play, multi-team matches, out of state allowed play; championship games allowed
Under current state coronavirus conditions, here is a look at the allowed levels for each risk group:
• Least risk sports can currently play at levels 1, 2 and 3
• Medium risk sports can currently play at levels 1 and 2
• Highest risk sports can currently play at Level 1
The announcement comes when the Illinois High School Association, with the guidance of state health officials, set out to announce a plan for fall sports in schools.
The IHSA had several options to consider, including but not limited to: canceling the fall season entirely, postponing it for winter or spring (condensing the seasons together), or allowing fall sports without contact.
People close to Governor JB Pritzker had already hinted that fall sports were not likely.
“IHSA has said that they will basically go out of business in the fall,” Pritzker said at a recent press conference.
It is unclear what IHSA will decide after its private board meeting on Wednesday.
The decision has big implications for high school athletes. For Chicago athletes in particular, the decision weighs heavily, as last year’s fall sports were cut short due to the Chicago Teachers Union strike.
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