The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Cross country seeking low-contact ruling
Coaches confident season will get go-ahead from state
Area coaches are confident their sport will win state approval to contest a season after the Ohio Department of Health did not include it among contact sports in a recent designation.
On the morning of Aug. 3, coach Adam Bailey and the Columbia Raiders got together for their first official practice of the fall season. While the Raiders held voluntary runs over the summer, the Aug. 3 practice was the first time the team got together as a group.
With a vibe that Bailey described as like “Christmas morning” 35 middleand high school runners ran as many as 8 miles on the Metro Park path behind Columbia High School in what marked the official start of the Raiders’ season.
“I’ve never seen a group of kids look so happy to run 8 miles together,” Bailey quipped.
For now, running with each other is the only thing that the Raiders can do because of novel coronavirus-related restrictions. But that could change very soon.
On July 14, the OHSAA put out an announcement stating that cross country had yet to be determined as a low contact sport, a move that puzzled coaches and athletic administrators across Ohio. In a memo on July 28, the OHSAA noted that it was continuing to have conversations regarding the status of field hockey and/ or cross country being placed into the non-contact sports.
On Aug. 1 — the official start of the fall sports season — the Ohio Department of Health omitted cross country from the contact sport category, with the OHSAA sending out a tweet later in the day that it was working to confirm details with the ODH on cross country’s designation.
While cross country’s designation has yet to change, area coaches think a change could be on the horizon.
“I’m not really worried about it because if the ODH can deem cross country as low-contact I’m sure that the OHSAA is going to do the same thing,” Bailey said. “This kind of takes the onus off the OHSAA since now they aren’t going to have to be the one to make the first decision. We’re just planning on going ahead as business as usual.”
Even if the OHSAA deems cross country as a low-contact sport, chances are there will still be changes. Although runners are spread out for most of a race, something would have to change at the start of races, as runners from all participating schools line up next to each other in their starting chutes.
“I don’t know if the state is ever going to come out and say, ‘Here’s what you need to do to have a meet.’ Your guess is as good as mine,” Bailey said. “Each course is laid out differently, and I don’t know if there’s a way to change the starting box at some of these courses unless you move the start of the course entirely. It’s doable, I just don’t know.”
For North Ridgeville coach Andy Dohanos, limiting the amount of interaction at the end of the race is just as important as limiting contact at the beginning.
“The starting line is less scary to me than the finish line because that’s where a large congregation of people sort of hangs together for a longer period of time,” he said. “You could also limit the number of athletes who can participate in any given race.”
Area teams are also having to deal with schedule modifications in real time, as teams and courses adjust to changing recommendations from the state and local health boards.
“Just like everything else, it’s all up in the air,” Dohanos said of scheduling. “I’ve heard rumors about some schools not going to big meets. We’re scheduled to go to Boardman’s Spartan Race this year and that’s a big one for us to visit since that’s where our regional course is. We still don’t know if we’ll take everyone there or instead just take a select group of kids. It’s tricky.”
As of now, the only change Bailey and the Raiders have had to deal with has been the cancelation of Tiffin’s Cross Country Carnival. But more changes could be coming down the pipelines as more health boards make recommendations. The Summit County Board of Health and Portage County Health District advised schools in that county to hold off starting competitive high school sports play until at least Oct. 1. The Cuyahoga County Board of Health recommended July 30 schools begin the school year remotely and that extracurricular activities be suspended during that time due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“We run against a lot of teams from all over the state and some of these counties might not be able to run because their whole county or league is shut down,” Bailey said. “That may change the size of some of these meets as well. It’s impossible to know and that’s the most frustrating part.”
If a season is held, Bailey expects his runners to start the season strong after spending nearly six months away from competitive running.
“A lot of them were so upset with what happened in the spring so they’re excited to get the chance to compete again,” he said.