An outbreak of a contagious rash called herpes gladiatorum among Minnesota high school wrestlers led the state to suspend matches and halt contact practices, authorities said on Wednesday.
The eight-day suspension affecting 7 500 wrestlers on 262 teams was the first time a United States state’s entire high-school programme in a sport has been shut down, authorities said.
The Minnesota State High School League acted after 24 wrestlers from 10 schools contracted the rash, which was first noticed and spread at a tournament in December.
”I think it’s a bold step by our high school league to protect our athletes — and it’s better now than at post-season tournament time,” said Scot Davis, the wrestling coach at Owatonna Senior High School, whose wrestling programme has one of the best records in the country.
Davis said the suspension should allow infected wrestlers to recover as herpes usually disappears within 10 to 14 days. Any wrestler with the rash is barred from competing. – Reuters