NCAA Season 96 pushed back to June amid new virus surge

The opening NCAA Season 96 is now being pushed back to June following the most recent critical surge of COVID-19 cases in the “NCR Plus” bubble.

NCAA Season 96 Management Committee (ManCom) chairman Fr. Victor Calvo of season host Colegio de San Juan de Letran confirmed the development on Thursday, April 8.

Calvo attributed the new delay to the “lack of workforce and mobility” for both the league and its new broadcast partner GMA under the extended enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) for the entire month of April.

This is yet another blow to the country’s oldest collegiate league after previously opting to go with the safest sports events, namely online chess, taekwondo, and poomsae, just to get the season going.

The ManCom is also entertaining the idea of holding skills challenges for basketball and volleyball that can be aired by GMA, NCAA’s new broadcast partner for the next 5 years.

However, the bare minimum logistical requirements for the execution and broadcast of such events will likely get too difficult once again following the extension of the enhanced community quarantine in “NCR Plus” until the end of April.

Prior to the new surge, the league was reportedly planning a bubble setup for some of its mandatory sports. But that plan was quickly shut down as the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) did not lift its long-standing ban on all amateur sporting events and practices. – Rappler.com