The Carleton Ravens won’t sell tickets to games before Feb. 21, including the annual Capital Hoops basketball games between Carleton and the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, out of an “abundance of caution.”
Two men’s hockey games against the Concordia Stingers, scheduled for Feb. 18 and 19, will also be played without fans. Athletics made the decision “following guidance from Carleton University and public health authorities,” according to a statement provided to the Charlatan.
Ontario’s COVID-19 restrictions currently limit capacity for sporting events to 50 per cent or 500 people, whichever is less. On Feb. 21, the 500-person limit will be lifted, but the limit of 50 per cent capacity will remain in place.
Capital Hoops, scheduled for Feb. 18, is one of the biggest sporting events of the year for the Ravens and Gee-Gees. It regularly draws more than 8,000 fans and is hosted at Ottawa’s largest sporting venues, most recently TD Place.
“It is what it is,” men’s basketball head coach Taffe Charles said in an email. “[I’m] disappointed for fans of Carleton basketball that won’t be able to enjoy [the games] in-person.”
This year marks the second in a row fans will be unable to attend the games, after the cancellation of last year’s season due to COVID-19. Océane Kounkou, a guard for the women’s basketball team, said she was looking forward to her first Capital Hoops and is disappointed about the news.
“My [veterans] have been talking about this game since before the schedule came out,” Kounkou said in an email. “We are all a little bit disappointed but I think it is always fun to have a good competition no matter the circumstances.”
The Laurentian Voyageurs, which Carleton basketball is facing in away games on Friday and Saturday, announced they will play without fans until the end of February. The Gee-Gees are continuing to sell tickets to their home games.
The Queen’s Gaels and RMC Paladins announced Wednesday that their annual hockey rivalry, the Carr-Harris Cup, will be suspended for the 2022 season. In 2020, the last year it was held, 4,121 fans attended.
Featured image by Spencer Colby.
