USA Masters Games Postponed to 2021

An international sporting event in Grand Rapids was postponed.

The 2020 USA Masters Games, which was scheduled for June 19-21 and June 26-28, was postponed. The Games were rescheduled for June 24-27, 2021, and will remain the 2020 USA Masters Games.

“On behalf of the USA Masters Games, and our Grand Rapids host organization, the State Games of Michigan, we want to emphasize that our No. 1 priority is the health and well-being of all participants in the USA Masters Games,” said Hill Carrow, CEO of the USA Masters Games. “With that objective in mind, and given the great uncertainty and concern surrounding the current worldwide coronavirus pandemic, it has been determined that it is in the best interests of the safety of Games athletes for the Games to be postponed for one year.”

The decision for event organizers to postpone the Games was made after realizing the inability of Masters athletes to train due to shelter-in-place requirements or closed venues, combined with the challenges of travel, both domestic and international.

The Olympic-style event features 24 sports, including cross-country, basketball, golf, rowing, tennis, wrestling, waterskiing, track and field, synchronized swimming, shooting, figure skating and bowling, among other sports. The event also incorporates opening and closing ceremonies, games village, social activities and entertainment.

“We’re following the example of the International Olympic Committee,“ Carrow said. “When they decided to keep it the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in 2021, we said to ourselves, ‘That’s a good idea!’ So, we are doing the same thing with the USA Masters Games.”

Athletes who are registered for the Games will be eligible for one of three options:

Option 1: A transfer of their registration to the postponed dates in June 2021 in Grand Rapids.

Option 2: A donation of their registration fees to the USA Masters Games.

Option 3: Receive a refund via the original payment method.

In addition, athletes who have booked their hotel through the 2020 Games registration system will be contacted and allowed to cancel the reservation without penalty.

“We understand that many of those athletes who have registered, or who were considering registering for the USA Masters Games, will have questions, and our intent is to provide the answers as soon as possible,” said Eric Engelbarts, executive director of the State Games of Michigan and the local organizing committee for the 2020 USA Masters Games. “However, we ask for patience as we work through the large number of details while our LOC staff is having to work remotely under state and local government lockdown restrictions.”