All - Please see a message from US Lacrosse who is supporting Boy's Lacrosse in CT - Please do your part and send a message into the Department of Public Health. This will be a key step in CONNY have a spring 2021 Season. Note Girls Lacrosse was deemed Moderate Risk.
CT DPH Report - https://portal.ct.gov/DPH/Communications/Guidance/General-Guidance-for-Youth-and--Amateur-Sport-Activities-during-COVID-19-Pandemic
NYS DPH Report- https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/governor.ny.gov/files/atoms/files/SportsAndRecreationMasterGuidance.pdfNY DPH Contact form - https://www.governor.ny.gov/content/governor-contact-form
Thank you,
CONNY Exec Committee
PS - There are more resources located in the CONNY 2021 Documents folder http://CONNYLacrosse.org/Documents.asp?n=92801&org=CONNYLacrosse.org
Message from Ryan Larkum, USL
We at US Lacrosse are initiating a grassroots effort to reach government decision makers in Connecticut to have boys/men's lacrosse reclassified from "High Risk" to the "Moderate Risk" category.
Please read the letter below composed by Ann Carpenetti, US Lacrosse Vice President of Lacrosse Operations. My ask is that you please share this with your lacrosse contacts with whom this decision effects in hopes that we can work together to get this change made and get kids safely back out on the field.
Action Item from Ann's message below:
You can help with this effort by reaching out to
to share with the CT Department of Public Health how you feel about the guidance, request the modification to change their risk classification for lacrosse to "moderate risk" and share how important lacrosse is to you and your athletes.
Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions!
Best,
Ryan
November 6, 2020
Hello friends of Connecticut,
We hope that you are all faring well during these challenging times. US Lacrosse has been working hard to provide resources and a road-map for return to play https://www.uslacrosse.org/return-to-play to for our lacrosse community, and as policy makers and school administrators across the nation are tasked with the difficult job of guiding communities back to school and athletics in the Fall, we have found that some states, like Connecticut, could benefit from hearing from our community about recommended approaches to safely bring athletes back to the lacrosse field. This is why we are reaching out to you!
US Lacrosse has joined many friends and leaders in the state of Connecticut in urging the leadership of the CT Department of Public Health to modify its classification for lacrosse by removing "contact lacrosse" from the high-risk category list and adding boys’ and girls’ lacrosse to the moderate risk section. This adaptation acknowledges the sport-specific risk classifications made by US Lacrosse medical experts and creates consistency with other states that have classified both disciplines as a moderate risk. US Lacrosse has sent a letter to Commissioner Gifford today formally requesting this modification and also released an updated position statement on the COVID-19 transmission risk classification for lacrosse at https://www.uslacrosse.org/blog/us-lacrosse-advocates-for-youth-boys-lacrosse-as-moderate-risk-activity
Neighboring states that have followed a similar public health response to mitigate COVID-19 infection risk in sports allow both versions (boys' and girls) of lacrosse to return once their states entered a phase allowing for outdoor gathering sizes of 50. Those states (NJ, PA, MD, DE) allowing youth sport to return have not reported outbreaks or rising positivity rates specific to games played outdoors during the summer. These states allow for lacrosse teams within and outside of the state to compete if the positivity rates of the regions to which they travel are within WHO recommended limits. While this news is promising, we know that the potential for COVID-19 exposure remains in every facet of public life. Accordingly, US Lacrosse is participating in a multi-sport, national survey to help clarify the incidence of COVID-19 among youth athletes, as well as the risk reduction procedures that organizations are using.
While there remains an inherent risk in participating in sports, we see no differences in risk between boys’ and girls’ lacrosse when played outdoors and following US Lacrosse Return to Play Recommendations. These and other COVID-19 risk mitigation strategies included in our Return to Play recommendations have served as a roadmap for programs and event operators who seek to provide safer playing opportunities during this pandemic. While both versions of lacrosse allow varying degrees of contact, US Lacrosse has concluded that these differences do not place boys at a greater risk of COVID-19 exposure than girls. The US Lacrosse Sport Science & Safety committee has classified both versions of lacrosse as presenting a moderate risk for COVID-19 infection because both disciplines are played outdoors, the games are fast moving, players don’t handle the ball with their bare hands, no equipment is shared and, even when athletes are within close proximity to one another, movement is constant. Additionally, infrequent periods of extended closeness, such as the face off or draw, can be easily eliminated through rule modifications.
You can help with this effort by reaching out to
to share with the CT DPH Commissioner how you feel about the guidance, request the modification to change their risk classification for lacrosse to "moderate risk" and share how important lacrosse is to you and your athletes.
Please feel free to use the information in this outreach as you personalize your communication to the DPH, as you are coaches, parents and educators within the state of CT and the staff would appreciate knowing that bringing lacrosse back to safely in Connecticut is important to you.
Thank you so much for your willingness to assist with this important effort and share this request with others in the CT lacrosse community who want to have their voices heard. Please feel free to copy us on or share your individual letters with us so we can recognize your efforts! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to our Return to Play staff lead, VP of Lacrosse Operations, Ann Kitt Carpenetti at
Best,
Ann
Ann Kitt Carpenetti
Vice President, Lacrosse Operations
US Lacrosse
2 Loveton Circle | Sparks, MD 21152
P: 410-235-6882 Ext. # 117
USLacrosse.org | USLaxmagazine.com
