Concussion Care Special Awarded Emmy
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 19, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Yellow Flag Productions – which produces State Champs! Sports Network – and FOX Sports Detroit received a Michigan Emmy Award on Saturday for their “Concussions and the Modern Athlete” program that detailed the effects of concussions in athletics and steps being taken by the MHSAA to enhance awareness and care at the high school level.
The award – presented by the state’s chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences – came in the category of “Children/Youth/Teens – Program/Special.” The show was hosted and reported by State Champs’ Kiara Hay and included interviews with MHSAA Executive Director John E. Jack Roberts and Assistant Director Kathy Vruggink Westdorp.
The show was part of the State Champs! Summer Series in 2017 and aired on FOX Sports Detroit.
MHSAA Suspends Winter Tournaments
March 12, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Postseason events sponsored by the Michigan High School Athletic Association have been suspended immediately and indefinitely due to concerns related to COVID-19.
The Ice Hockey, Girls Gymnastics and Lower Peninsula Boys Swimming & Diving Finals had been scheduled for this weekend, while the Girls & Boys Basketball Tournaments are midway through earlier rounds of their playoff progressions.
On Wednesday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recommended a stoppage of large gatherings in order to assist in preventing the spread of COVID-19.
“Based on the events of the last 48 hours and with things changing by the minute, we believe we have no choice but to suspend our winter tournaments immediately,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said. “This is a suspension until we have a better handle on the situation. The health and welfare of everyone involved is our number one priority.”
Uyl added that more information and updates will be forthcoming over the next few days. No timetable has been determined for possible rescheduling for tournaments.
Click for a video statement from Mark Uyl.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.