THIS year’s annual Varsity between Solent University and Bournemouth University has been cancelled.
The competition was started in 2016, and indoor and outdoor sports are played over two days to showcase the universities’ athletes and teams.
However, this year’s event has been called off.
Team BU and Solent Sport shared a cryptic post on their respective Instagram pages:
Varsity is a big event for UK student-athletes, and final year students will now miss out on their last sporting hoo-rah before graduation.
A typical Wednesday night sighting in UK university towns is hoards of student-athletes strolling the streets heading to their post-match socials.
Some would say it lowers the reputation and integrity of UK university sport, especially to those keeping their eyes on what is on offer across the pond.
There are a multitude of scholarship agencies supporting European athletes in attaining places to study and compete in the U.S.
American collegiate sport is all about the grind, and NCAA DI athletes train at the same level as professionals, but without the pay.
However, March Madness basketball teams will now be paid, with the women’s starting fund being an astounding $15 million.
The notion is unfathomable to the humble British mind.
College sporting towns garner huge weekly turnouts and students, staff and local residents alike flock to the venues.
The Crowchild Classic is an annual hockey event between the Mount Royal University Cougars and the University of Calgary Dinos.
Both sets of men’s and women’s teams compete under the spotlights of the Scotiabank Saddledome in front of up to 10,000 spectators.
Michigan and Ohio State have a long-time footballing rivalry, having met 120 times since 1897.
The fixture between the two Big 10 teams is known as ‘The Game’, and it attracts over 100,000 people.
The North Americans have always gone big with their collegiate sporting structure, which is aided by their draft system into the professional leagues.
The UK however is home to one of the biggest sporting leagues in the world – The Premier League.
Unlike in the US, there are set divisions for club sport, so university sport sits on the side as a separate entity.
The best of the best youngsters trial for places in regional training centres and academies, which often don’t allow their players to also compete for their colleges or universities due to risk of injury.
With its facilities and scholarship athletes, Loughborough University and the University of Bath are regarded as the biggest sporting universities in the UK, but what true success is there for them without big-time competition?
And what if there is no event to compete in in the first place?
We reached out to the Department of Sport and Health at Solent University, but unfortunately they were unable to provide further comment.
You can listen to the full 4pm Solent Sports News radio bulletin below:
