After more than a year without sports, Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is planning a return to game action in the 2021-22 season with new protocols and league structures amid COVID-19.
The changes include reduced cross-regional travel with the introduction of new divisions, as well as eliminating overnight trips entirely for teams visiting other universities on the road. Teams will play back-to-back games against the same opponents and training camps will be altered to align with semester start dates.
“The OUA consulted all 20 of its universities on what they expected the fall to look like before making the decision to resume sports,” OUA president and CEO Gord Grace said.
The changes come as the OUA has announced the 2021-22 schedules for basketball, hockey, football, soccer, field hockey and rugby, setting the annual Panda Game between Carleton University and the University of Ottawa for Oct. 2. Basketball and hockey regular seasons will start on Nov. 3.
This year’s football season has been reduced from eight games per school over a nine-week span to six games over a seven-week span. Men’s and women’s soccer has been reduced to 10 games, while men’s and women’s basketball has been condensed to 16 games.
Less travel, back-to-back games and no overnight stays will be beneficial in preventing the spread of COVID-19 and improving the efficiency of contact tracing, Grace said. Smaller divisions also reduce expenses while increasing player safety.
In the regular season, schools will not play any games against teams outside of their division. However, that may change in the playoffs, Grace said.
Carleton will play in the eastern division for most sports, Grace said.
The OUA also recommends “student-athletes, coaches and all OUA stakeholders receive their vaccines to assist in creating a safe return to competition this season.”
Grace expects 90 to 95 per cent of OUA staff, student-athletes, coaches and referees will be fully vaccinated when their season starts.
If an athlete or coach tests positive for COVID-19, that individual will have to self-isolate and test negative several times before they return to the team, Grace said.
“Every university has its own protocols for how long an athlete has to sit out or how many consecutive negative tests they need before they return to play,” Grace said.
Jennifer Brenning, assistant vice-president of recreation and athletics at Carleton, said in an email that varsity athletes are screened before every practice with a COVID-19 questionnaire, temperature check and rapid antigen test.
If an athlete tests positive, Brenning said they will quarantine for 10 days in accordance with public health guidelines. Contact tracing will be completed by Ottawa Public Health and those determined to be in close contact with the positive athlete will be required to quarantine for 14 days.
“Team members that were training with [the positive] athlete on the same day would need to self-isolate, which could mean the entire team and coaching staff,” Brenning said.
At the conclusion of the 14-day quarantine period, Brenning said a risk assessment would be completed and the team would return to normal activities.
The changes to OUA league structures and protocols were developed in conjunction with the OUA’s Recovery and Sports Committees, with the health and safety of all athletes, coaches and stakeholders in mind, the association said.
Grace said his biggest hope is to have a successful season that students can enjoy and to have it feel like a return to normalcy. To do that, he recognizes “getting the athletes on the court, field or ice to play the sports they love is a major win.”
Limiting COVID-19 outbreaks will also help the season be competitive and have championships at the end of the year.
“It will be different as there will be limited fans and there will be less games in each team’s schedule, but hopefully this season is just as successful as years prior,” Grace said.
Carleton athletes and coaches react
The return of sports at Carleton will have a significant impact on the athletes, coaches and students.
Sean Kim, a defender on the men’s soccer team, said he is very excited to return to the field after not playing an official game in nearly two years.
“I’m itching to get back on the field, especially with [U-Sports men’s soccer] nationals being hosted at Carleton this year,” Kim said. “I’m very excited for the opportunity to help Carleton win the first national championship in its history.”
The Carleton men’s soccer team will also be vying for its third consecutive OUA championship when it returns to the pitch Sept. 24.
Kim said he aspires to play soccer professionally after graduation and this season will be crucial to develop his skills.
Kwesi Loney, the men’s soccer head coach, said he is excited for soccer to return and believes it will improve student athletes’ mental health.
“I think it’s very important for the student athletes to get back into competition,” Loney said. “It’s been almost a year and a half since we were able to play in a competitive environment.”
To help avoid the spread of COVID-19, Loney said he and his staff run socially-distanced training where each player takes a COVID-19 test before every practice and rapid tests are done two to three times a week.
Loney said athletes have been able to stay in shape at home throughout the pandemic.
“The OUA has done a great job allowing coaches to engage with athletes virtually over the summer, to help with continuity and training as some of these athletes haven’t played in nearly two years,” Loney said.
Due to changing provincial health and safety regulations, there is no set date for soccer tryouts or training camp. Loney said he hopes they’ll set a date closer to September.
With files from Mark Colley. Featured image from file.
