The Progression of Sports Throughout the Pandemic
My article looks over all the stats and mental affects of athletes who's seasons were cut short by covid.
Covid has affected us all in various ways, but one group that was very largely affected was the sports and fitness community. In January 2020 the first few cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Washington state. Soon after, the respiratory disease spread throughout the country and started making a serious impact on everyday life. On February 3, 2020, the Trump administration declared the coronavirus outbreak as a public health emergency, and WHO eventually categorized COVID-19 as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. This created a lot of fear and uncertainty among people worldwide. They didn’t know what this disease was, if it was curable, how it spread, or how long it would last.
As everything started to be shut down gyms were one of the first to go. Gyms and other fitness facilities didn’t receive financial relief from Congress like restaurants and venues did and had a hard time staying in business. Most gym attendees lost a lot of progress in their fitness and some stopped caring completely They found it too bothersome to exercise at home and figured gyms would be back soon enough. Many people including gym employees, personal trainers, and operators became unemployed overnight and in the end, about 47% of jobs in the fitness industry, about 1.5 million positions, were lost. With California being one the worst cases, our gyms were closed for nine months before being allowed to reopen at 10% capacity. By being shut down for so long it’s calculated that the fitness industry lost about 29.2 billion dollars in revenue. Since the pandemic began studies have concluded that 42% of adults in the U.S. reported having gained an undesirable amount of weight, an average of twenty-nine pounds. They also communicated that the pandemic changed eating habits, heightened stress, and worsened levels of food insecurity. I asked my longtime friend Mallorie Beauchamp, who plays soccer, basketball, and softball, about how covid affected her fitness progression, mental health, and consistency in exercise and she shared that “Before covid, I was very fit and enjoyed playing sports every day but after the shutdown, as things were starting to reopen, I felt lazy and didn’t want to see people and wasn’t motivated anymore to workout as consistently as before,” proving that isolation changed the mindset and compassion of many people. As of now sixteen of the fifty U.S. states have exceeded or met the mark of having an adult obesity rate over 35%, while twenty have over 20%. Considering this all the things that transpired during this period weren’t all negative, many people held their heads high and pushed through and it shows. My mom goes to the gym to do CrossFit at HCF every day, these were her experiences with covid altering her progression, “All my friends worked hard to get it [the gym] back ASAP by adjusting to do outdoor workouts. I’ve come to appreciate my coaches and gym staff and all that they did and still do to make it possible to exercise safely. Since I was so eager to get back when I did, I came back and worked harder and in return have gained more muscle than I ever had before.”
Within the sports scene, covid took it downhill and very quickly. Between March 6th, 2020 to March 13, 2020, the NBA, the ATP Tour, Major League Soccer, the NHL, Major League Baseball, the WTA, the NCAA, and the PGA Tour suspended, delayed, or canceled the remainder of their seasons. Nothing in the nation's recent history had ever brought such a long suspension of play, not even 9/11. Without fans in the stands and the worry for their own families, professional athletes found it hard to find the motivation and resources to keep their game in check. Famous basketball all-star LeBron James told the press, “I play for the fans; that’s what it’s all about. If I show up to the arena and there ain’t no fans there, I ain’t playing.” With fans' attendance playing such a big role in the industry, areas were only announcing warnings that attending the games would result in a higher chance of contracting the virus but didn’t exclude fans from attending entirely. With little understanding and trying to continue normal life, the cases increased further and further until sports got shut down entirely. All sports are done, just like that. This made a large impact on the mental health of communities. Even those who didn’t participate in sports still enjoyed going to games and it brought in a majority of fundraising to schools everywhere. California is the only state where high school athletes are set to profit off their name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights. I questioned my friend Jenica who is a retired dancer about how not being able to go to sports games affected her engagement and enjoyment at school and she confessed: “School sports are a part of the whole high school experience that every high school student wants to have and remember. Not having games to go to or something to look forward to during the whole pandemic was something that was taken from kids like me that were dependent on these types of outings to stay connected to each other. I know I took socializing, showing school spirit, and watching my friends play sports for granted and I’m glad it’s starting to come back!” As sports came back to my school especially recently in my basketball season there have been way more student attendees than I’ve ever experienced. They help to boost the morale of my team and really can help through those tough times when I’ve got nothing left in the tank. Their encouragement can turn a game around. By them showing up with double the numbers than usual you can tell they were eager to be back and missed the competitiveness and adrenaline rush from the games.
With all this said you can see how covid has affected everyday people and activities. It’s created obstacles for people who seek fitness and has shown some people rock bottom. Sports are such a big part of our community because they bring people together and teach valuable lessons like dedication, persistence, consistency, and teamwork. Without them, I’d be unrecognizable in comparison to who I am today and I’m forever grateful to have the opportunities that I do!
https://www.ajmc.com/view/a-timeline-of-covid19-developments-in-2020
https://gmtm.com/articles/california-to-give-high-school-athletes-name-image-likeness-rights
