The start of the winter season for contact sports hit another delay last Friday.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced winter contact sports including girls and boys basketball, competitive cheer, ice hockey and wrestling must remain non-contact through Sunday, Feb. 21.
The previous emergency order was set to expire at the end of January and would’ve allowed those sports to begin contact activities on Feb. 1.
“We found out about this decision at 9:30 a.m. like everyone else, and we will address it as quickly as possible after taking the weekend to collect more information,” said Michigan High School Athletic Association Executive Director Mark Uyl.
MHSAA was still evaluating options on Monday.
“We are unable to provide specific plans yet as we are still evaluating the best options for delivering a memorable experience for 60,000 athletes involved in winter contact sports.” Uyl said. “We will continue asking questions and advocating for all of our schools and athletes as we work toward building our next plans for seasons in basketball, competitive cheer, ice hockey and wrestling. We will be ready with specific timelines as soon as MDHHS clears contact sports to begin full activity.
“We have said from the start of the 2020-21 school year that we would do everything possible to have three seasons, and play all three to completion. Our strong advocacy for all sports and seasons – and especially winter sports – continues every day.”

  COVID, MHSAA, winter sports