By Rachel Kohl
The cancellation of sports on Friday, March 13 remains a vivid memory for members of George Brown College’s athletic community.
Tammy Nopuente, an Athletics and Recreation Coordinator at GBC who oversees the Huskies’ varsity soccer teams, recalls the exact moment she heard the news.
“In the morning, we all wake up, ready to play in the tournament, and find out that it’s canceled”, Nopuente says.
At 7:30 that morning, Nopuente received an email stating that the remainder of the tournament was canceled after the province of Ontario sanctioned soccer activities, including training, coaching, refereeing, and competitions due to COVID-19.
Both teams competed the day earlier. The men’s team was preparing to defend their Varsity Men’s Indoor Soccer title
“We were completely disappointed and shocked that they would [cancel] so suddenly when it was in the middle of a tournament”, Nopuente says.
COVID-19 has forced the entire GBC community to adjust to a new learning environment, but the college’s student-athletes have the added pressure of adjusting to school without sport. It is a tough loss to absorb.
George Brown’s indoor soccer season was canceled on the day its men’s team was supposed to defend its title.
Jessica Barrios, a member of GBC’s women’s volleyball team, left a pair of running shoes in her school gym locker on March 12, anticipating that she would need them for Monday’s practice. The student-athlete had been attending practices Monday through Thursday, in addition to many other commitments. Over six months later, the sneakers still sit in the same locker.
Barrios’s decision to enroll in a postgraduate program this fall at GBC was largely influenced by her desire to continue playing women’s volleyball for the Huskies. She has been on the team since Fall 2018.
The cancellation was, in her words, “devastating.”
Having to create a new routine for herself, minus the volleyball, has been an understandably difficult process.
“It was just really sad. I do [volleyball] because I enjoy it, it was a stress reliever for myself and a way that I stay social with my teammates,” says Barrios.
Barrios is while navigating a demanding postgraduate program. Though she has managed to maintain some level of online connection with teammates in the GBC athletic community, she admits that the transition to the digital sphere for studies has been too depleting to want to spend much more time interacting online than necessary.
She says that this time period has caused her to think about other ways to get involved and stay connected to the athletic community, apart from active participation.
“[I’m] still trying to find time to be active because it is good for you, regardless of whether or not you’re training, and just trying to rewire my brain… continuing to do the things I do minus one aspect,” says Barrios.
She encourages others to focus on their priorities and find some positives out of the current situation.
Nopuente also recognizes online learning can be draining and acknowledges the challenges students face while studying during COVID-19.
“Not having that outlet of physical activity, or seeing your teammates, it is definitely a challenge,” said Nopuente.
She says that without the emotional benefits of sport, which includes an increased mood and boosted confidence, the transition to virtual learning can be even more daunting.
“Everything is online… I just find that it would be a challenge no matter who you are” she says.
Nopuente, who spent the summer planning towards the potential of September sports reopening at GBC, says she has been rolling with the punches in these times of adversity.
What lies ahead for the Huskies and GBC organized sports is unclear, and the outlook changes frequently.
“We have been trying to plan for a future we’re uncertain of,” said Nopuente.
George Brown College’s athletic facilities continue to stay closed on both Casa Loma and St. James campuses until further notice.
