NEWS PHOTO MO CRANKER - The 40th annual Rattler Run begins at Medicine Hat College April 26, 2019. The 41st edition was cancelled Monday.
Events further and further away in the Medicine Hat sports calendar continue to be wiped out due to the global pandemic.
Monday saw the 41st annual Rattler Run cancelled, while other spring and summer sports groups issued statements without officially delaying the start to their seasons.
The run, originally slated for April 25, announced that all racers will be fully reimbursed for their registration fees.
“Making the decision to cancel the 2020 MHC Rattler Run was not an easy one, but the health and safety of the community comes first,” read the race committee’s statement.
“We will see you on Saturday, April 24, 2021!”
With schools including the college closed indefinitely and their associated sporting events unable to take place, holding an event which regularly attracts upwards of 500 participants simply wasn’t a good idea, even if it was still a month away.
As of Monday the Alberta government recommended any event with more than 250 attendees be cancelled due to the danger of spreading COVID-19. Events with more than 50 involving high-risk populations such as seniors and international participants – both a fixture of the Rattler Run – are also to be cancelled.
“We are as disappointed as all racers and volunteers at this turn of events as we know this 41-year-old event is something the community looks forward to each year,” read the statement. “However, due to the unknown timeline of the pandemic and the large amount of preparation leading into the race event it is difficult to reschedule, and therefore the decision to cancel has been made.”
The Medicine Hat Lacrosse Club was to begin athlete assessments next week, but those have been postponed after the Alberta Lacrosse Association instructed its members to suspend all “in-person” events until April 5.
Both Medicine Hat Little League Baseball and Medicine Hat Minor Softball issued similar statements.
Softball cancelled its assessments and practices after hearing from the provincial body that all activities are to be suspended until April 14. “We are a strong ball community and the game will return,” read the Medicine Hat statement.
Little League noted that “our plan is to not cancel or provide refunds until we know 100% of what our league is required to do.” Registrations have been closed but nothing else has yet been cancelled.
Soccer registration continues while ball hockey hasn’t released an update since Friday, when it also noted registration was continuing.
Volleyball clubs shut down their respective seasons Friday, while swim clubs followed suit Sunday once both of the city’s indoor pools were closed.
