DeWine’s approval of Ohio sports highlights Big Ten’s mistake



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Ohio state sports, including football, will not take place this fall due to concerns from the Big Ten over the COVID-19 pandemic. But other sports, contact and non-contact, in the state of Ohio will go ahead and play. Governor Mike DeWine announced on Tuesday that all high school, college and youth sports can compete this fall.

During his press conference, DeWine said he spoke with parents, athletes, coaches, doctors and health experts about the decision before coming to the conclusion.

“We know, just as going back to school in person increases the risk of spreading, we know sports, especially contact sports, they do too,” DeWine said. “It has been said many times, the more there is spread in a community and the more there will be dispersion in the school, the higher the risk is in the community. And among athletes too.

“On the other hand, we all know the importance of sport. We have seen it with our own eyes. Athletics can make a difference … It brings joy to an athlete and their family too … A young person, if he does not play sports, will do something else with his time, and this must also be kept in mind. “

In addition to DeWine’s announcement, Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center sports medicine doctor James Borchers, who played football for the Buckeyes from 1989 to 1993, spoke at the press conference about his finding that sporting events were happening during the pandemic.

“Our experiments have allowed us to study the effect of COVID and its effects, not on athletics but on sport and on participation,” Borchers said. “And I think the first thing we’ve probably learned is that the community around our athletes is of the utmost importance for our athletes to be able to compete. When we are able to provide our athletes with a healthy environment and we are able to have them follow the basic behaviors that we have all been asked to follow around the virus, which is important for social distancing and good hygiene , face masks and following proper procedures in and around sport facilities and around athletics conduct makes a big difference to us.

“When the community doesn’t have a healthy environment, we see a high rate of infectivity. We have found that it is more difficult and sometimes we have a hard time having athletics and organized sports. I think. so that’s probably, above all, the most important. thing. “

Borchers’ statement will likely only further frustrate fans in Ohio State. Borchers’ words only seem to reinforce the argument of many Buckeye coaches and players that Ohio State facilities are the safest place for student-athletes because they are monitored, tested regularly. and help players avoid potential contact with the virus.

While players can still train in the facilities and will likely be able to train to a certain level this fall, there isn’t the same incentive to stay healthy and sacrifice themselves as during the season.

Borchers also discussed the mental health of athletes without sports, which the head coach Ryan day discussed last week as well. When players who dedicate their lives to their sport suddenly see this taken away, the results can be alarming.

“I think the second thing we know, and I think everyone knows that, is how important athletics and sport are to our mental health and well-being and how important it is to come together to allow the sport to happen, ”Borchers told me.

While the Big Ten have not disclosed their specific reasoning for choosing to cancel fall sports, the concern over myocarditis, inflammation of the heart muscle, which is usually the result of a viral infection, was a major factor.

Although Borchers has acknowledged the risks and unknowns of myocarditis due to COVID-19, he does not see it as a reason not to exercise and the focus should instead be on preventing the spread of the virus to people. athletes.

“Sudden cardiac death in athletics is a tragic event. Fortunately, it is a very rare event,” Borchers said. “It’s not something common, but something that we all hear some reports of and that really requires vigilance when preparing. So, all of our great Ohio State athletic trainers who provide excellent emergency care are CPR training in the use of the Automated External Defibrillator. These are really the ways to save lives. So even more than our screening, it is our preparation.

“(It) highlights the need for prevention and healthy communities and rather than worrying about what we do when it happens, which is a rare event, how can we prevent it from happening.”

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Fans in Ohio State will have a hard time understanding why kids will be allowed to participate in contact and non-contact sports at all levels this fall, but the 18-22 year olds have been told they won’t. couldn’t decide whether or not they wanted to take the risk and gamble.

While the Big Ten need to consider more than Ohio, the conference covers 11 states with different rules and factors to consider, today’s DeWine decision and Borchers’ comments further underscore that the Big Ten acted too quickly to cancel sports.



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