The PIAA has opened its opening speech to Father Gov. Tom Wolf on why high school sports should take place this fall.
In her message sent to Wolf on Tuesday, PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi announced that student-athletes will participate in athletics this fall, despite the PIAA ruling it. In a letter sent via email, Lombardi states that many of the athletes will turn to recreational sports as a means to continue this year.
“Come this fall, if schools are unable to engage in sports, and another compulsory shutdown is absent, families and students will not stop playing. They will just find other stores. Stopping interscholastic athletics will not eliminate the risk, it will simply move it to other locations that do not have enough oversight, “Lombardi wrote.
The news comes as student-athletes, parents, coaches and spectators have put pressure on social media and organized a rally at the State Capitol to hold high school sports for the fall. The PIAA had earlier canceled the spring sports season and the rest of the winter championships at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
In the letter, Lombardi states that up to this point other groups in the state have continued to host athletic events for “all different age groups”, including in the sports of golf, tennis, racing, field hockey, volleyball, basketball, baseball and football. He added that “to our knowledge, no one has reported problems with coronavirus outbreaks” and noted that so far, “parents and families have shown that they are ready to allow their children to engage in sports when available. “
Lombardi explains that the PIAA has taken substantive measures to address the health and safety concerns of those involved in athletics and created guidelines to ensure that everyone stays as safe as possible. The letter describes that the PIAA has an advantage over recreational sports, in that schools can provide local health and safety guidance is followed and maintained during one of the events.
The PIAA had earlier released guidelines on how to start sports safely in the state.
–Why did Wolf give a ‘strong recommendation’ not to play high school sports in Dad until January 2021?–
Like the last point Lombardi makes in the letter, he declares that the PIAA wants to complete the season “in good autumn weather and stay away from the heart of the flu season.” He added that while in some areas the situation of coronavirus may not allow schools to compete in some or all sports, the PIAA believes that there is a year ahead for students at other schools to have a chance to to play.
Lombardi then agrees with Wolf to say that the PIAA wants a dialogue with his office and “develop an approach that would be acceptable to you.”
The letter was sent days after the PIAA announced it would suspend the start of its fall sports season for two weeks while it waited to get in touch with the mayor’s office and try to find a way to finish high school athletics on one or other time to start the year. Wolf, briefly followed by the Department of Public Health and the Department of Education, had recommended that athletics of high schools in the state be put on hold until January 1, 2021.
Already, several schools and conferences have taken their own steps to address concerns about the coronavirus. The Philadelphia Public League announced it would postpone sports until 2021 and Milton Hershey became the first Mid-Penn school to say it would sit out the 2020 fall sports season.
The Mid-Penn Conference and Lancaster-Lebanon League had both previously made decisions to push back the start of their seasons.
MORE:
– Follow Ed Sutelan on Twitter, @EdwardSutelan
Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please remember to support our work.
