Ivy League cancels winter sports season, delays spring play

PHILADELPHIA -- The Ivy League is canceling winter sports for the 2020-21 season.

The conference is also postponing spring sports until at least the end of February and won't conduct competition for fall sports during the spring semester.

"The Ivy League Presidents made an incredibly difficult decision to not conduct intercollegiate competition for fall and winter sports in the spring 2021 semester. This decision was not taken lightly and came after careful consideration and analysis of the current trends of the COVID-19 virus and ongoing campus restrictions," said Dr. M. Grace Calhoun with the University of Pennsylvania:

These decisions were made unanimously by the Ivy League Council of Presidents.

In July, the Ivy League became the first Division I conference to say it would not hold sports in the fall because of the coronavirus pandemic.

READ: Joint statement from The Ivy League Council of Presidents:

"Throughout the last nine months, we have asked our campus communities to make extraordinary adjustments in order to do our part in combating the global pandemic and to safeguard the health and wellbeing of our students, faculty members, staff and the communities in which they live and work.

Regrettably, the current trends regarding transmission of the COVID-19 virus and subsequent protocols that must be put in place are impeding our strong desire to return to intercollegiate athletics competition in a safe manner.

Student-athletes, their families and coaches are again being asked to make enormous sacrifices for the good of public health - and we do not make this decision lightly. While these decisions come with great disappointment and frustration, our commitment to the safety and lasting health of our student-athletes and wider communities must remain our highest priority.

We look forward to the day when intercollegiate athletics - which are such an important part of the fabric of our campus communities - will safely return in a manner and format we all know and appreciate."

ESPN contributed to this report.