Sports While In Quarantine
People are finding ways to be active and watch sports.
During the Coronaviurus, many sports leagues have been cancelled. This is the first April without baseball since 1883. It is crazy to think that not only are professional sports cancelled, but there is no one else on the face of the earth that is playing sports, even a pickup game. MLB, Season postponed. NBA and NHL, Seasons suspended. NFL, Season in question.
Archbishop Stepinac was defeated by Cardinal Hayes on Saturday October 14, 2017.
How will you go without sports? Phil Barber writes for the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, outside of San Francisco. He weighed together multiple scenarios for what could happen for the future of professional sports. “We play games without the fans? Nah, that’s impossible,” said Lebron James, of the Los Angeles Lakers. “I ain’t playing if I ain’t got the fans in the crowd. That’s who I play for. I play for my teammates, and I play for the fans. That’s what it’s all about. So if I show up to an arena and there ain’t no fans in there, I ain’t playing. They can do what they want to do.”
Kyle Flanagan is a Utah man, and has just divorced. He thought sports would be his escape from the emotions that came with the split. “Not coping at all with no sports,” said Flanagan. “Can’t even watch old games because it makes me sad,” “I had tickets to six Braves games in the first week of the baseball season — three in Phoenix to open the season and three in Atlanta following that.
Some alternatives to these games.
On apps such as TikTok, many people are playing sports and getting other forms of exercise in their private games. On ESPN, and other sports channels, NBA Finals games from ten years ago are being replayed. “The sport I miss the most right now is definitely basketball,” said Kaihl Brassfield, a junior from Staten Island, New York, who is a double major between Journalism and Communications. “Going from having a game on every night to not having any games at all is tough. It gets boring when all they plan on ESPN are old games.”
Susanna Granieri is a sports reporter for the New Paltz Oracle. She says that this is taking a toll on people involved with sports. “To deal with the sports withdrawal during the COVID-19 pandemic, I am focusing my mind on the other side of sports such as the off season, popularity of athletes, how families are grieving the loss of their child's season,” said Granieri. “Through my job at the SUNY New Paltz Oracle, I still get to write about sports without the ongoing NCAA season or any professional league, but rather the administrative side of how to handle the pandemic, the off-season health benefits for athletes or the allocation of funds and different deficits from the loss of events.”
Martin Frank writes for the Delaware News Journal in the Philadelphia area. He has given a variety of options. Frank says that people should watch All or Nothing, an Amazon Prime special that further goes into detail each episode about the 2019 season, or watch any other movies about sports. Frank also says another option is people being interested in the 2020 NFL Draft, considering it will be soon.
MLB’s New York Yankees have put together something for their fans to get through quarantine. The “Bronx Bracket” is now on social media. There people can vote for their favorite moment in the history of the franchise.
SUNY New Paltz Athletics is taking a hit.
“Like it has for everyone, this crisis has been one that has completely turned our world in athletics upside down,” said SUNY New Paltz Associate Director of Athletics, Wellness and Recreation. “It is so sad that student athletes that worked so hard in preparing for their seasons lost the chance to compete in the sports they love and have dedicated most of their life to. Sport for these students is an essential part of who they are, and to lose this is very difficult. But I will say athletes are trained to handle tough circumstance and are used to adversity. So this crisis is a true life test that they can apply the skills learned in sport in coping with all that comes with this new world we find ourselves living in.”
“I am dealing with this by preparing for when we are finally able to get back to playing. We are working hard to figure how best to do this and with what restrictions we may face. It is very difficult because things will probably not be back to a semblance of normal for some time.”
“The difference in atmosphere now compared to last year at this time is almost explainable.....last year we were enjoying the success of the Men's Volleyball team winning its second National Championship and really enjoying historic success we had as a department overall. There was such a strong feeling of community and a almost euphoric feeling of what the future will bring to our department. Now, it is a ghost town. Empty quiet fields and gyms. No students to been seen anywhere on campus and a very surreal feeling even after the past six weeks of this.”
“I really do not know about the fall and sports starting up again. The health and safety and preservation of life is the most important thing. If asked, I would urge caution in starting up to soon and possibly sending us into another crisis. But I have to be optimistic as well that maybe there is a chance sports start up. I do not count out the human spirit and ingenuity in figuring this out...sincerely hope the great scientific minds around the world will come together in finding a vaccination that protects us all.”
A combination of exercises you can practice at home.
Yoga is a popular form of exercise that can be easily done at home, and you can get lessons on Youtube.
“Taking matters into my own hands,” is what Nadia Ahmed will do. She is a Spanish and Latin American and Caribbean Studies Major from Queens, New York. Ahmed said she will lift grocery bags and do lunges as her main forms of exercise at home.
“I plan to do push ups and sit ups at home to try to stay in the best shape I can,” said Brassfield.
“I do yoga in my living room every morning,” said Amayah Spence. Spence is a sophomore Psychology major from the Upper West Side of Manhattan. “Sometimes I go on walks in the evening,” said Spence.
“I walk around my neighborhood,” said Lara Morales. Morales is a junior double major in Journalism and Digital Media Management, from Bayside, Queens.
“Working out at home has not only made me more creative with my workouts, but also expanded my arsenal,” said Kat Mangan, a second year Psychology major from the Upper West Side. Mangan also is a personal trainer with NASM certification. “I actually enjoy researching new workouts, and will definitely be taking some of the new workouts, and will definitely be taking some of the new exercises I learned into the gym when they reopen. Our school’s wellness center has been doing a really good job making home workout resources available through our Instagram page, @npwellrec.”
On the account, there are multiple workouts such as yoga, abs, full chest, and triceps.
The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo are now cancelled.
The Olympic torch will not burn this year, but it hopefully will, when the games will, in 2021.
Coronavirus has now cancelled the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. This has upset many across the World. Athletes have been training for four years since the 2016 Summer games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Now, they will have another year to train, since their hopes are now put off for another twelve months. Thomas Bach, the President of the International Olympic Committee, from Germany, and his board decided the safest move was to postpone the games until 2021. This was supposed to be huge for Tokyo, and the Japanese economy.
Swimmers like Haley Anderson and Phoebe Bacon are working out at home, since many public pool facilities are closed. Anderson, from Folsom, California, uses beer and wine bottles to help her with balancing activity. Bacon, from Bethesda, Maryland, is using a neighbor's private indoor pool.
Rugby player Carlin Isles from Massillon, Ohio, that he is not really phased by this. “I was always self-motivated,” said Isles. “So this isn’t a foreign to me. I’m used to it.”
What are you looking forward to when sports return?
Photo by Liam Sullivan. Archbishop Stepinac lost to Iona Prep at Iona College, on Saturday February 1, 2020. This game took place a little over a month before the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic greatly affected much of the United States.
“I’m really looking forward to being around the Tennis team and competing again in the fall,” said Kat Mangan. “Preseason was arduous but a great experience that I can’t wait to relive.
“Talking about certain games, teams, players with family or friends,” said Andrew Powers. Powers is a senior History major from Poughkeepsie. “Being able to unwind at the end of a long day and flip on the Yankees or Suns game,” is another aspect that Powers is looking forward to.