USA Hockey announced it has canceled its series of upcoming National Championships, including high school, youth, girls, adult and sled, that were set to begin in various locations across the country on March 26th. In addition, the organization also announced it has canceled its Disabled Hockey Festival, which was set to take place over two weekends (March 26-29 and April 2-5) in Pittsburgh, Penn.
“We felt it was important to get the news of the cancellation out immediately,” said Pat Kelleher, executive director of USA Hockey. We’re sure there will be many questions and we appreciate everyone’s patience as we together work through this unprecedented situation.”
“While we’re disappointed that we had to make this decision, we celebrate the success of USA Hockey teams across the country this year, as well as the time and effort so many people invested into these signature events. We’re thankful to our national sponsors, tournament directors, volunteers and so many others for their support in making hockey an enjoyable experience for all.”
USA Hockey will continue to provides updates regularly on the coronavirus situation at USAHockey.com.
“Safety of our participants has always been our top priority and with the current coronavirus situation, our executive committee unanimously decided to cancel these national events,” said Jim Smith, president of USA Hockey
There are games/tournaments played throughout the U.S. at the local level that include USA Hockey members that are not national-level events and are operated by districts, affiliates, local associations or even private operators. The decisions relative to those events are made at the local level.
USA Hockey continues to encourage all involved to engage with local health and medical professionals, and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization, in making educated decisions.
As the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation continues to evolve, USA Hockey remains diligent in the daily and indeed hourly review of information with medical experts and stakeholders as we evaluate the staging of upcoming USA Hockey national level events, including the series of National Championships, the Disabled Festival and Adult Classics.
They encourage you to visit USAHockey.com daily for the most updated information.
The situation continues to change rapidly and we appreciate the patience and understanding of everyone involved. In the end, the safety of all those involved remains the top priority.
It is worth noting that there are many other games/tournaments that may include USA Hockey members that are not national-level events and are operated by districts, affiliates, local associations or even private operators. The decisions relative to those events are made at the local level. We continue to encourage all involved to engage with local health department professionals, and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization, in making educated decisions.
This article was written using information and media generated by the USA Hockey website. It is almost entirely a repost of their original release. For more college sports, follow us on Twitter@MWSNsports or like our page on Facebook.
