The numbers are in, and the WNBA has something to brag about. The league declared Monday that 99% of its players have been vaccinated against COVID-19 and all 12 teams are considered fully vaccinated.
That’s impressive, though it’s a bit odd that league officials chose to use percentages instead of giving actual numbers. Still, assuming the percentages are accurate, it means just one player — or possibly two — in the entire league remains unvaccinated.
That by itself is a remarkable success story for the WNBA. It’s also a statement to other leagues that a vaccine that has proven extraordinarily effective can provide a path toward normalcy once again.
North Carolina State baseball coaches should have been paying attention. Had they pushed players to get vaccinated anywhere near the WNBA level — and gotten vaccinated themselves — they very well could have been playing for the national championship in Omaha, Nebraska, this week instead of watching from home on TV.
Meanwhile, seven Major League baseball teams remain under the 85% vaccination threshold they need to reach to have coronavirus protocols relaxed. Potential trouble also looms as the NFL prepares to open training camps next month with more restrictive rules — including masks and daily testing — for players who aren’t vaccinated.
And then there’s Japan, where an Olympics postponed one year because of the pandemic begins July 23. Nerves that were already on edge over the prospect of thousands of people from around the world entering the country were frayed a bit more with the news that two Ugandan team members who arrived in Japan early tested positive for the virus — with at least one having the highly contagious Delta variant.
To be clear, there’s a lot to cheer about during the first real summer of sports…
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