AIA Reverses Course, Will Allow High School Winter Sports In AZ

ARIZONA — Arizona high schools will see sports this winter after all.

The Arizona Interscholastic Association voted Tuesday to reinstate winter sports seasons for all Arizona high schools. The 5-4 decision came days after the association voted to cancel high school basketball, soccer and wrestling as Arizona grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases.

Board member Jim Love made the motion to move forward for reconsideration of the board's previous decision. He also changed his prior 'no' vote to 'yes.'

"I want to give the schools the choice to play or not," he said.

There will be some limitations: no fans permitted at games and masks will be mandatory during competition, though two parents or guardians per player will be allowed to attend. Student athletes will also have to submit a coronavirus monitoring form showing they met all requirements for participation.

AIA Executive Director David Hines said any school in violation of the protocols will lose access to AIA officials or possibly lose AIA membership altogether.

The seasons will start Monday after being delayed and then canceled altogether.

Hines reiterated the importance of the schools and urged the public to continue following mitigation efforts on behalf of their children.

"Bottom line, we're trying to help kids," Hines said.

Arizona set a one-day record for daily deaths at 335 Tuesday, with 8,559 new infections of the coronavirus. Hospitalizations topped 5,000 for the first time.