Due to Covid-19, many student athletes are on the edge of their seats wondering when club sports will continue. The good news is that club sports faculty for UW-Whitewater are working very hard to give athletes the opportunity to play their sports. Lots of the club teams are still in the process of making their plans official, but most are planning to at least hold practices in spring 2021. 

Each club team has been put into three categories, which determines whether or not they can be played in the spring.

“We split every club into high, medium, and low risk. Clubs that are categorized medium to high risk have to change their practice plans to make sure everyone is keeping their distance and wiping down equipment as much as possible,” said Maddie Cummings, club sports student coordinator.

The Covid-19 case numbers are continuing to rise at a fast rate, but the faculty for UW-Whitewater are doing everything they can to allow students to participate in club sports. As of right now there is not an official list of sports that will be played in the spring, but the faculty is working on it.

“This is a very involved campus, and our campus community is full of many different passions. We will do everything we can to help advocate for opportunities and continue to ask for patience and understanding while we navigate these atypical situations,” said assistant director of intramural and club sports Matt Schneider.

If teams want to play they must follow campus guidelines and policies which includes wearing a mask at all times and participating in social distancing, which means teams cannot have more than 10 athletes at a time at practices. Teams must be sure to sanitize all equipment after people are done using it.

Unfortunately teams will not be able to host any home games, away meets or competitions because it puts others at risk of Covid-19 and goes against campus policies. However, teams can still host practices without exceeding the person limit on gatherings.

If the Covid-19 cases continue to rise, club teams will have the choice to practice via Webex or not have their team host any practices at all so team members are not put at risk.

“Most likely we will continue to host virtual practices that are centered around different aspects of rugby such as rugby law, positions and film and fitness. These meetings have been a great way to keep the team connected through this challenging semester and we have been fortunate enough to pick up some new members through these meetings, which has been great to see,” said Katie Sorenson leader for the girls club rugby team at UW-Whitewater.

If Covid-19 cases rise to the point where club team leaders decide not to host practices, gym facilities will remain open. The plan is to have the Williams Center and University Fitness to be open under regular hours, and memberships will continue being sold. Both facilities are intended to stay open over winter break as well.

As unpredictable as Covid-19 is, UW-Whitewater’s sports faculty is doing everything they can to allow students to participate in club sports in the spring semester. As long as club teams follow campus policies and guidelines, they will be able to host practices and keep their teams together.