Sports

Shelter Island 10K canceled amid lingering COVID-19 concerns

The Shelter Island 10K will not be held this year.

The popular event, now in its 41st year and previously set for Nov. 7, has been pulled from the schedule.

Deputy Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams said the 10K committee pulled its application from the Town Board after receiving a number of comments from residents expressing concerns about the race at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has led to continued social distancing.

While few cases of the coronavirus have been reported on Shelter Island, fans of the race said they were concerned about the event happening, even with a reduced number of participants and various other changes to protect both runners and residents.

In a letter to the Town Board, resident Zibby Munson asked the town to reconsider hosting the race at this time.

“While I think the event has been wonderfully executed in past years and will continue to be well executed in the future, it is my belief that it is too risky to hold it this year, in the middle of Covid-19,” she wrote.

In an email announcing the cancelation, Ms. Brach-Williams called the organizers a “dedicated group of Shelter Islanders,” saying they took all of the factors into consideration, including the comments they received from various sources.

The Town Board was expected to act this week on the application to hold the race in November before the committee opted to follow the requests to pull it from the schedule.

The inaugural Shelter Island 10K was held in 1980 and the event has held prestige runners from all over the world, including past Olympians.