By: Sophia Pilot

December 14, 2020

School sports canceled, gyms closed, and equipment on backorder…what do we do now? This was a question that many Malibu students were asking in 2020 and were met with never-ending restrictions from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), along with Los Angeles county’s public health guidelines. With health becoming the priority, stay at home orders and restrictions following the outbreak of COVID-19 required people to find new, innovative ways to exercise. 

Upon transitioning to virtual school in March of 2020, the cancellation of school sports was inevitable. LA County was severely hit by the pandemic, and as the number of cases increased, holding sporting events was determined to be unsafe. The increased potential for spreading the virus among teammates meant that practices were also canceled. 

To those who frequent gyms, at-home workouts were quite the adjustment as they turned to live streams, YouTube videos, and Zoom workouts. The demand for at-home gym equipment increased as people wanted to translate the atmosphere of the gym to their house. Once the novelty of at-home workouts wore off, students were eager to get back on the field or court with their teammates. 

Working to make that happen while adhering to the CDC’s guidelines is MHS athletic director, Chris Neier. He explains how voluntary workouts are being conducted, “student-athletes are wearing masks at all times, keeping 8 feet from each other when working out (6 feet otherwise), and all workouts are outside.” Most of the boys’ and girls’ winter sports have resumed voluntary practice at Malibu High School. As for the rest of the sports, Mr. Neier assured us that the existing facilities will accommodate 13 different sports postponed to the new year. All the schools in the Citrus Coast league have different restrictions for practicing depending on their country, but they aren’t competing. The start dates are tentative as the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is monitoring the spread of the coronavirus. Thus, playoffs, regionals, and state championship dates are postponed until further notice. 

Both students and staff are eager to resume play. Neier wanted to send a message to the student-athletes, “First off I miss all of you! I miss Braedin Taylor tackling, Sydney Morrison’s left foot, Liam Moore’s spikes, Alex Sudmann sprinting, and Diego Franco’s passing…to name just a few. I love watching all of the student-athletes participating in games and practices. I also really miss the camaraderie that sports brings to our campus. I am hopeful we will get to play games this season!” Students can stay in shape at home knowing there’s a possibility they will return to the field or court in 2021.