Brown Fall Season Athletics Canceled Due To Coronavirus Crisis

PROVIDENCE, RI — When the Brown University women's lacrosse team took the field against Virginia Tech on March 11 the players and coaches knew they were playing their game of the season — having been told minutes earlier that the rest of the schedule was canceled as of the next day due to the emerging coronavirus health concerns.

It turned out that the Bears' 13-11 victory against Virginia Tech was the final game of 2020 on campus.

The Ivy League announced late Wednesday that all fall competitions will be canceled due to continued coronavirus worries. The Ivy League cited travel restrictions, limits on group gatherings and social distancing protocols that are expected to last at least well into the fall for the decision.

"As athletics is expected to operate consistent with campus policies, it will not be possible for Ivy League teams to participate in intercollegiate athletics competition prior to the end of the fall semester," the league said in a statement.

Athletes will be allowed to practice and train in accordance to state and campus guidelines, with the Ivy League also planning to issue guidelines on a phased approach to conditioning and practice that will begin with limited individual and small group workouts.

The Ivy League said a determination will be made at a later date whether it is feasible to shift fall sports seasons, such as football and soccer, to the spring season. A decision on the winter and spring season schedules will be made at a later date as well.

Under the directive, winter sports, such as basketball and hockey, will have at least the start of their seasons postponed to at least the start of the winter semester.

"As a leadership group, we have a responsibility to make decisions that are in the best interest of the students who attend our institutions, as well as the faculty and staff who work at our schools," the Ivy League Council of Presidents said in a joint statement. "These decisions are extremely difficult, particularly when they impact meaningful student-athlete experiences that so many value and cherish.

"With the information available to us today regarding the continued spread of the virus, we simply do not believe we can create and maintain an environment for intercollegiate athletic competition that meets our requirements for safety and acceptable levels of risk, consistent with the policies that each of our schools is adopting as part of its reopening plans this fall."

The Ivy League previously announced that it would cancel all events and practices on Nov. 3 to help promote student participation on Election Day.

The league also announced on June 18 it would develop several programs to advance racial justice and promote civic participation.