BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) has postponed all competition until January 2021.
The conference announced the decision Monday in an effort to give schools, staff and students additional time to adjust to new safety protocols as the coronavirus pandemic persists.
"Though both the MIAC Athletic Directors' and Presidents' Councils felt that MIAC institutions have made every reasonable effort to return to competition as safely as possible through stringent on-campus and conference planning, guidance from the Minnesota Department of Health, and NCAA resocialization requirements, the latest NCAA Administrative Committee recommendation led the conference to reach the difficult decision to postpone competition through the fall term," said MIAC Assistant Commissioner BJ Pickard in a press release.
Last month, the MIAC postponed all medium and high contact risk fall sports until the spring season. Now, winter sports, which include basketball, hockey, indoor track and field, and swimming and diving, will begin their seasons in January. The MIAC Golf Championships, which were scheduled for October, have also been rescheduled for spring of 2021.
"All MIAC teams will maintain the institutional autonomy to practice, train, and conduct other athletic-related activities throughout the academic year in accordance with NCAA and campus protocols," Pickard said in the release. "MIAC winter-sport coaches have begun work on building a framework and schedules for a compressed conference season beginning in January 2021. The MIAC will release schedules for all postponed seasons in the coming months."
The conference also approved legislation for a five-year eligibility relief package to match NCAA Eligibility Bylaws and accept all NCAA blanket waivers, allowing student-athletes flexibility to plan their academic paths amid the pandemic.
"The legislation is effective immediately and will be in place through the 2024-25 academic year," Pickard said in the release. "The conference granted a similar exception for graduating seniors impacted by COVID-19 this past spring."
Updates and information related to college athletics and the pandemic can be found on the MIAC COVID-19 Resources page.
