ACAA Winter Competition timelines and processes update

Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association Sets Timeline and Process for Decision on 2020-21 Second Semester Varsity Sport Competition  

After deliberation among the presidents of its 10-member institutions, the Atlantic Collegiate Athletics Association (ACAA) will make a decision in mid-November regarding varsity winter sport competitions for badminton, basketball and volleyball.   

In a conference call this week, the presidents of the ACAA institutions agreed to make a decision by mid-November pending the receipt and review of a conference-wide Return to Play plan drafted by the ACAA athletics directors.  The plan must be reviewed and approved by provincial health authorities in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island before it is presented to the presidents. 

As member institutions are making announcements related to their core education activities, they have been clear that adherence to public health directives will be applied to all learning, living, and campus activities. This includes varsity athletics in all its aspects from practice, travel, accommodations, and competition for student athletes, coaches, and athletics staff.  Thus far, teams at each of the institutions have been practicing based on operating plans that have been reviewed by local public health authorities.   

Each athletic director will be consulting with their administration to ensure that the health and safety issues are identified and can be reviewed and approved by the public health authorities in each province. In addition, individual institutions may have issues related to the practical and viable operations of competitive varsity athletics.  

Based on direction from its members conferences, the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), recently made the decision to cancel all winter CCAA Championships due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The decision was made in response to the sport restrictions that are in place across the country, the variety of provincial health restrictions CCAA hosts were facing, and the limitations effecting travel of teams across the country. 

On June 9, 2020, the Atlantic Collegiate Athletics Association cancelled its first-semester sports schedule in light of health and safety considerations.  The decision to cancel first-semester sports affects men’s and women’s soccer and cross country and women’s rugby, as well as exhibition and early season competitions for men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball and badminton.

ACAA members institutions include: STU, UNBSJ, Mt. A, Crandall, Holland College, UNB, MSVU, Dal AC, UKC and Universite Sainte-Anne.