We are all familiar now with the global pandemic that has halted the lives of many and put a long pause on sports around the world starting back in March of 2020. The NBA was the first major sport to cancel its season after a player tested positive for COVID-19. With the severity and quick spread of the virus, other sports leagues were quick to follow suit. 

Both professional and college sports have resumed their seasons with some still playing and others already putting in work during the off-season. High school athletics were the last to get the green light to resume playing. Thirty-five states played traditional fall sports seasons with the okay from their respective governors, local health authorities and school districts. Fifteen states elected to postpone the fall season to winter and spring of 2021, Oregon included. 

A major factor in considering the resumption of high school sports is the impact it has on community spread of the virus. The science clearly tells us that high school sports—both indoor and outdoor, low contact and high contact—are not a significant contributing factor in contraction and spread of the coronavirus. 

If we remove emotion from the equation and dive into the science, it is clear that participating in high school sports does not contribute to the increased risk of teenagers contracting COVID, despite what some make it out to be. In a major court case in San Diego County, where local athletes were suing the state of California for the right to resume playing high school sports, a San Diego judge ruled in favor of the athletes, citing evidence from UCSF Professor of Medicine Dr. Gandhi and her writings on immunology, AIDS and COVID.

“She states to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, the rate of virus transmission in high school sports is equal to or less than that observed in Major League Baseball and National Football League studies,” Judge Earl Maas wrote in his ruling. “Children are less likely to develop severe illness or die from COVID and are less commonly infected with SARS-COV-2 than adults.”

Quarantine has done a number on teens’ mental health and well-being, secluded from friends, distant relatives and the community at large. Athletes rely on their sport as a safety net when all else fails. When stripped of that outlet, there is nowhere to turn and no place to escape the dark realities. Seniors may just be hit the hardest, especially considering their high school season may be the last time they play the game they love. 

“High school kids are impacted in a multitude of ways; they are undergoing hormonal changes and use sports as a way to help reduce stress and control anxiety and depression,” University of Maryland Medical Center sports medicine specialist Kyle Yost said. 

Fear. Fear of catching the virus, fear of spreading it to someone you love and fear of putting at-risk citizens in harm’s way. Why not be fearful? After all, we have been living through a global pandemic for the past year. If there is a way to move forward safely we must take it, and as of now, 35 states have moved forward with high school fall sports, including Wisconsin. According to Dr. Andrew Watson, who conducted a survey in conjunction with the University of Madison-Wisconsin of over 207 Wisconsin schools that played fall sports, high school sports did not contribute to community spread of the virus. In fact, he found it was incredibly safe to play high school sports. 

“The survey found 271 athletes contracted the virus overall compared with 2,318 Wisconsin children aged 14-17 over the month of September. No sports were found to have a higher incidence rate of COVID-19 overall than 14-17 year-olds. None of the cases among the athletes resulted in hospitalization or death,” Watson confirmed. 

With the necessary precautions – including daily monitoring for symptoms, temperature checks and a mask mandate for all players and coaches – there is little to no harm in allowing contact high school sports. There is nothing like the bond between an athlete and their sport; it can last a lifetime. It is safe, and it is time to let them play.