COVID-19 has caused more than 844,000 deaths worldwide and over 186,000 deaths in the United States, resulting in an economic recession. It has affected just about every aspect of people’s lives, from simply going to the grocery store to getting exercise. 

A group that has been greatly affected are athletes. They have had to find new and different ways to train for their upcoming seasons. With sports slowly starting to come back, many teams have implemented new safety guidelines into their practices.

One athlete affected by COVID-19 is Easton Wiggins, senior, and punter/kicker for the varsity football team. He and the football team have to follow very important steps to ensure a safe return to the field.

“We have to social distance six feet; we have to wear masks to and from the field;, we have to show up early to get our temperature checked,” Wiggins said.

COVID-19 has not only affected what they have to do before and after practice but also how they practice, both in season and during the off-season. Due to the shutdown the football team hasn’t been able to have their desired offseason training.

“It [COVID-19] definitely has affected our endurance and strength because we haven’t been able to practice a whole lot,” Wiggins said.

A big part of football games are the fans, but this season it is very unlikely that there will be spectators allowed at games. This could have an impact on the outcome of some games since most athletes are used to there being fans.

“I feel like that will definitely make an impact just because most of us are used to there being people in the stands,” Wiggins said.

Another part of sports that affects the OHS sports teams is the team camaraderie. Due to the limited physical contact allowed between teammates, some athletes feel as if they are not as close as they would like to be with their teammates. such as Alyssa Ivankovich, sophomore. She is a girls basketball player and played on the freshman team last season. When asked what COVID-19 has affected the most she thought that her team could be closer.

“Team bonding, I feel as if our team could be closer together if coronavirus wasn’t happening,” Ivankovich said.