Fixtures and training sessions will proceed as normal for Trinity’s sports clubs “for now”, according to Dublin University Central Athletic Club (DUCAC), but some clubs have opted to postpone upcoming games and sessions.
In an email sent to sports clubs today, DUCAC Administrator Aidan Kavanagh wrote that “all scheduled training sessions and fixtures will go ahead for now”.
The College’s facilities – the Sports Centre, Santry Avenue, Iveagh Grounds and the Boathouse – also “remain open and are operating as normal”, according to a statement published by Trinity Sport tonight.
On Twitter, Trinity’s American football club announced that they had postponed their opening game of the season. “Acting on the information and advice given to us by the College”, the club said it was “within best interest of player safety and welfare” to postpone the fixture.
Dublin University Cricket Club (DUCC) have cancelled their training session this week, writing on Facebook that they took the decision due to the announcement of a case of the virus in Trinity.
The announcement of Trinity’s first case of coronavirus last night set off a slew of developments.
Today, Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) announced that next Tuesday’s council was cancelled as a “precautionary measure”, amid rumours that a person at the count night for the sabbatical elections had tested positive for the disease.
Students have also launched an online petition calling on Trinity to let them study at home online, rather than coming into College.
Yesterday, The University Times reported that final-year medicine students could be forced to take crucial clinical assessments a month before they were scheduled to, due to ongoing fears about the threat of the coronavirus.
Students were told that their clinical exams, worth up to 50 per cent of their grade this year, may begin in 11 days time.
The exams were due to take place in the week of April 20th.
The move comes as Trinity plans a raft of contingency plans to deal with the threat of the coronavirus.
The University Times reported earlier this week that the fate of this year’s Trinity Ball could be up in the air, after the College left open the possibility that it could be shut down if the HSE advises it.
Trinity “will not be making any decisions regarding mass gatherings and closures”, and will follow the recommendations of the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre on any gatherings, Thomas Deane, a media relations officer in Trinity, wrote in an email statement to The University Times.
With further cases on campus sure to emerge in the coming days and weeks, questions were raised as to whether upcoming sports meetings would still be held, as the Trinity hierarchy aim to eliminate any potential for the virus to disseminate further.
With increasing uncertainty concerning the occurrence of Trinity Ball, the prospect of a cancellation of sports fixtures would be another blow to students as the virus continues to threaten all pillars of students’ lives.
