Ivy League cancels all spring sports

The Ivy League has canceled its spring sports competitions and championships this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The league, which includes Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Brown, Dartmouth, the University of Pennsylvania and Cornell, announced the discontinuation of its spring collegiate competitions in a Thursday joint statement.

“We know that this news will come as a disappointment to many in our community,” the presidents of the schools wrote. “We regret the many sacrifices that have been required in response to the pandemic, and we appreciate the resilience of our student-athletes, coaches and staff in the face of adversity during this difficult and unusual year.”

The statement continued, “While we would like nothing better than to deliver a complete season of competition, these are the necessary decisions for the Ivy League in the face of the health concerns posed by the ongoing and dangerous pandemic.”

The league says it will monitor changes in the cases of COVID-19 and determine at a later date if conditions might allow for limited, local competition later this spring.

Teams are still allowed to practice, despite inter-school competition being banned.

The Ivy League was the first Division I conference to announce the cancellation of fall sports last year.