According to an email from the NYU Director of Athletics Christopher Bledsoe, on Tuesday, July 21, the NYU Athletics Department officially stated that varsity fall and winter sports, along with club and intramural sports, will be canceled throughout the 2020 fall semester as a result of COVID-19. This news comes after the University Athletics Association’s (UAA) decision to cancel inter-conference competition on July 8 and the University of Chicago’s decision to cancel fall athletics on July 17.
Although the fall and winter athletes will not participate in competitions before January 1, 2021, the NYU Athletic Department intends on continuing to host athletic related meetings for its varsity programs.
“In the interim, you can expect a high level of meaningful, personal engagement with your coaches, as well as staff from sports medicine, academic affairs, and training, strength and conditioning, whether in person or at a distance,” Bledsoe said in an email to the student athletes. “We will all be doing our best to maximize the NYU Athletics experience whether you participate in a fall, winter, or spring sport.”
With the cancelation of athletics for the fall semester, the Athletics Department will work alongside NYU’s administration on a plan to resume athletics for the spring 2021 semester.
“We are hopeful that there will be an opportunity for the winter, spring, and fall varsity athletes to participate and compete in some form after January 1, 2021, and we will continue to work closely with UAA, NCAA, and institutional colleagues to advance this thinking,” the email reads.
Bledsoe understands the necessity of this decision but sympathizes with the NYU Athletic Community.
“While we doubt this decision comes as a surprise, all of us, from NYU leadership to me, understand that NYU Athletics is important to many students, and that this decision impacts them deeply,” Bledsoe told WSN in an email. “While I am confident this is the right decision, I am sorry we got to this point.”
Email Arvind Sriram at [email protected]
