Re: Washington 2020
Posted: March 9th, 2020, 11:59 pm
The Northwest region Division B tournament at Bothell High School is cancelled.
Board members in the Northwest region are still discussing the possibility for Northwest teams who intended to but could not participate in a regional (due to COVID-19 concerns) to be represented at the state tournament. The board is aware that affected teams include not only the teams registered for the cancelled tournaments, but also teams from districts that have placed sanctions on travel for school activities (with some extending beyond the date of the state tournament); the board is paying attention to each school's situation.Tonight, the NW regional board made the difficult decision to cancel the March 21th Northwest B Science Olympiad Regional tournament. This decision was based on the most recent information from the King County Health Department and the fact that multiple schools have reported that their districts would not be allowing them to attend the tournament. We believe that this decision, while conservative, is in the best interest of the students, volunteers, and their communities.
https://kingcounty.gov/depts/health/com ... ction.aspx
Due to the nature of coronavirus (COVID-19) precautions on social distancing and community spread, as well as the timing of the tournament, rescheduling is an unlikely option. The idea of hosting virtual tournaments has come up; however, Science Olympiad’s Commercial General Liability insurance does not cover virtual tournaments.
At present, we are still hoping to hold the April 11 State Tournament and will continue to monitor the situation, specifically the advice from public health officials; we will inform you if anything changes. The NW board will be looking into options to potentially allow NW teams to be represented at state; we will let you know if such a viable pathway is found.
We appreciate your support and look forward to future events. Please let us know if you have any questions.
Judy Mannard and Nick Stephens, tournament directors
, but I understand health is first priority always!!!