EAST LANSING, MI (WTVB) – The Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association has reaffirmed its commitment to play Winter sports when current restrictions are lifted by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
The winter contact sports of basketball, competitive cheer, ice hockey and wrestling are allowed presently to participate in non-contact activities only due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The non-contact Winter sports of bowling, girls gymnastics, skiing and boys swimming & diving are able to participate in those activities fully.
The M.D.H.H.S. limitations on Winter contact sports were extended last week through February 21.
M.H.S.A.A. Executive Director Mark Uyl expressed his displeasure in a statement released by the association, “Each week, we see hundreds of examples of children and families competing in non-school competition, both in-state and out-of-state. This not only is in violation of current M.D.H.H.S. orders, but sending all of these families into different states will only become an impediment to getting students back in school fulltime. But we can contribute to students returning to in-person learning by allowing MHSAA member schools to begin full activities, participating locally and against more local competition, and under the guidance of trained, professional educators.”
The M.H.S.A.A. pointed out that fall sports were allowed to complete their seasons because those teams took part in the M.D.H.H.S. rapid testing pilot program. Of all of the individuals tested, the M.H.S.A.A. said only one percent tested positive at some point in the pilot. Nearly 30,000 rapid antigen tests were administered and 99.8 percent were negative. In a bit of irony, the data was given the M.H.S.S.A. by the M.D.H.H.S..
As of this past Monday, Winter contact sports had begun in 38 states, including the border states Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin.
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