Virus boots Valley soccer season
It’s “full time” even before the first whistle for Kelowna soccer this season. No organized soccer will be played this spring in the Central Okanagan, organizers announced Friday.
Board members of the Central Okanagan Youth Soccer Association on Thursday approved a motion to cancel the 2020 season as it is currently configured because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Normally, by mid-April, nearly 5,000 children and youth would be playing soccer through associations that represent the Westside, Kelowna, Lake Country, Rutland and the Mission.
The outdoor season typically runs till the end of June, breaks for summer, then resumes after Labour Day until Thanksgiving. In mid-March, all organized soccer across the province was suspended by B.C. Soccer as cases began to mount of people with COVID-19. Some form of soccer may resume when health orders allow for it, according to a new post on the Kelowna Youth Soccer Association’s Facebook page.
“While we are still hopeful that we will get a chance to play soccer in 2020, it won’t be in the format that our players registered for,” the post states.
“So, KYSA will begin the process of issuing refunds to all members,” it says.
The group asks parents to be patient while the refunds are provided. “If there is a safe opportunity to get a soccer season in for your children in 2020, KYSA will move quickly to organize a new season,” the group says.
After the conclusion of outdoor play, about 1,000 Kelowna kids and teens also play soccer indoors from fall through early spring.