Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel releases statement on coronavirus response

University of Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel released a statement this afternoon on the cancelation of all athletic events through the rest of the academic calendar in the ig Ten Conference in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Here is Manuel’s full statement:

“Today, we took the unprecedented and proactive decision to suspend intercollegiate activities to protect the health and well-being of our student-athletes, staff and community members. This decision, reached in collaboration with the Big Ten Conference and campus leaders, was reached after thorough discussion and was necessary given the magnitude of this global issue. The hard work and dedication of our student-athletes, coaches and staff is a source of inspiration for so many. So, too, will be our response as we confront the spread of this global pandemic. On behalf of our entire department, I thank the Big Ten Conference, presidents and athletic directors, our head coaches and community partners who have offered input and unwavering support.”

And the statement from the athletic department:

The Big Ten Conference has cancelled the remainder of the winter and spring sports seasons due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. In response, the University of Michigan has suspended all athletic activities, including practices, effective immediately, until further notice. For complete details, please visit the resources below.

Here are the updates provided earlier this afternoon:

The Big Ten Conference announced that it is canceling the remainder of the winter and spring sports seasons due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

In response, the University of Michigan has suspended all athletic activities, including practices, effective immediately, until further notice.

To be clear, the University of Michigan will not compete or hold organized practices in any team or individual sport until further notice.

As far as what all of this means for our coverage and how we move forward as a website, we are discussing that behind the scenes now. But we are not going anywhere. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens next.