The University of Idaho Track & Field/Cross Country and Tennis teams prepare for their first scheduled practices since the pandemic started. Both men and women’s teams saw their seasons cut short last spring. The UI Athletic Department has set the beginning of all fall sports practices to Sept. 14.
“Our athletes are doing voluntary workouts that we’ve given them, and I know they are chomping at the bit to get started,” Director of UI Track & Field/Cross Country Tim Cawley said. “As an athletic department, we’re trying to make sure that we are taking our time and not rushing into things, but also doing our best to take the athletes health and wellness as a factor.”
Both teams have dramatically different roster sizes and plans for preparation for the spring season.
Track & Field/Cross Country
Cawley said that protocols were put together to decide how practices were to be scheduled and delivered. Research was done on different organizations like the World Athletics Association and U.S.A. Track & Field to see what these organizations had put into place.
The idea of the research was to look at what practices these organizations were conducting and how to implement them in the safest way possible at UI. Cawley plans to set up small groups of 10 or less people to practice together. Workout partners will be designed around who the athlete’s roommates are. This is the case for track teammates who are also roommates. Athletes will run reps together at a regulated distance.
In specific events like the long jump and triple jump, it will be more individualized with athletes working one at a time throughout the day.
“I want to give my athletes the chance to do some things and have a less contagious situation,” Cawley said.
Cawley mentioned that he and his staff will be doing more cleaning throughout the year in order to keep everyone safe. Freshman track athletes during this time can feel a sense of uncertainty when it comes to competing and uneasiness, but Cawley offers this piece of advice for them.
“A part of it is perspective, understanding that no matter where you are, everyone in the world right now is going through changes and figuring it out,” Cawley said. “Understand that you just have to have patience in that perspective, and that you still have picked an amazing team. A lot of times going through something like this can bring groups closer together because you’re fighting through something together.”
Tennis
For both tennis teams, they start practices on Sept. 14 with men’s tennis coach, Daniel Hangstefer, unsure of what is/is not allowed outside of practice. No other activities are planned as of now.
The International Tennis Association Tournament that is planned every fall has no plans to return in the spring. The fall season only affects preseason rankings heading into the spring season.
The lack of a fall season creates less opportunity, but this challenge goes across the board for every tennis team. The head coach of women’s tennis, Babar Akbar, gave this statement for his team.
“Taking it one day at a time,” Akbar said. “No matches planned as of now. So it will be a lot of working on your game, working on your academics and preparing for the spring.”
Armin Mesinovic can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @arminmesinovic