With Governor Ralph Northam's announcement this morning that all Virginia schools remained closed for the rest of the 2019-2020 academic year to help curb with the spread of the coronavirus, the decision all means the cancellation of the 2020 high school outdoor track & field in the state.
On the same day, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics are expected postponed to 2021. The NCAA spring season was already cancelled, while the status of many other professional sports seasons are in limbo or already canceled. It seemed only inevitable that such a decision would trickle down to the high school level.
Virginia is one of the first states in the country to take such a definitive measure with the remainder of their school year. Kansas was the first six days ago. With the decision by the Governor, it takes the decision out of the hands of the VHSL, VISAA, or any school system to make a call on school and athletics for the rest of the spring. The VHSL did make an announcement today following the Governor's decision with VHSL executive director Billy Hahn making a statement in agreement and support.
This is a historic first and might have to date back towards periods of major wartime conflicts such as the World War II when high school athletics were completely ceased within the state of Virginia.
It is a sad and unfortunate conclusion to the year. We will do our best during these times with our content, coverage, and social media posts to highlight all of the great performances by Virginians over the past year and historically in the sport to keep some semblance of normalcy and take our minds off these troubled times.
Especially our thoughts go out to high school seniors in Virginia who will not get the opportunity to race one more time for their high school teams.