National Gay Basketball Association
Strive, Thrive, and Change Lives
For Immediate Release
01-09-2022
The NGBA Community,
We are less than six days away from The NGBA West Coast Classic. We have a few housekeeping items that need to be taken care of.
Covid-19 Protocols-
As a reminder, we will allow unvaccinated members/spectators who provide a Negative COVID-19 test 48 to 72 hours prior to January 14, 2022. During all NGBA sanctioned events we require all members to always wear a mask over your mouth and nose, not wearing a mask will place you in violation of the NGBA Code of Conduct. Spectators are required to follow all NGBA Covid-19 protocols; failure to comply with the mask directive would be grounds for removal from the event site without refund. Furthermore, the NGBA will hold a member accountable for their fan/spectator non-compliance. Again, if you are actively competing you are not required to wear a mask but strongly recommended. Coaches and bench personnel are required to have a mask on when not actively competing in the game. The team captains are responsible for ensuring the mask mandate is adhered during all scheduled games, any team in violation of the NGBA mask protocol will be in violation of the NGBA Code of Conduct. All vaccinated members that have not turned in their Covid-19 Vaccination card please email to covidcard@ngba.org prior to January 10, 2022. If you aren’t vaccinated, The NGBA and its Board of Health encourages you to get fully vaccinated. Out of the 250 members that have registered for the West Coast Classic, 91 percent of the members are vaccinated.
Registration-
Registration is still open, the longer you wait the more you pay. Late registration fee $140 will start on January 5, 2022-January 11, 2022. We will allow registration up to the first game of your registered team with a fee of $150. If you have submitted an offline registration, you are subject to the same late fees. Members that are not able to attend the tournament will receive a voucher to be used at another tournament. Please notify Mike Green (michael.green@ngba.org) and Darius Binion (darius.binion@ngba.org) if you can’t attend the tournament. We currently have 30 teams signed up, the NGBA app is live with the division breakdowns, the schedule will be released today. Captains are asked to update their team rosters on the NGBA app and ensure your notifications are on for updated information. Changes to the schedule will not be made unless an approved team emergency occurs prior to January 15, 2022. Please take some time to support all divisions when you are in between games. We have over 75 new members and five newly formed teams. The teams are Houston Hotties (Jae Crawford), Jersey Reloaded (Kalif Rozier), Midwest Stormers (Kendal Ross), Southern Kentucky Magic (Samuel Hann), and Peach Hoopsters 2 (Karlos Reed).
Code of Conduct-
The NGBA places a lot of responsibility on the team captain. Please take the time to go over the NGBA Code of Conduct and Sportsmanship. Officiating services are handled by Student of The Game (https://sotgofficiating.com/) any concerns shall be directed to your team captain.
Social Media-
The NGBA social media Director CJ Smith (charles.smith@ngba.org) put in a lot of time and effort updating the sites. Please take the time to download and follow all the NGBA social media pages for up-to-date information. The NGBA app provides accurate schedule times and changes. Don’t forget to hashtag photos, videos, and events you participate in throughout the tournament weekend. CJ will communicate hashtag information later.
Registration Event-
The NGBA will not host a registration event. To pick up your credentials and wristband we will use the hallway around Mark Chambers room (TBA) at the host hotel (Flamingo) beginning 01-13-2022. If you can’t stop by Mark’s room, we will conduct registration outside the gym. Please be mindful if you need to register, allow more time as game times will stay on time. Please review the NGBA forfeit procedures. More information will be provided via social media.
As we receive more information from the Department of Public Health and other entities, we will implement additional recommendations and guidelines. As always, everyone should monitor their health and stay inside if you develop any symptoms. The NGBA and its staff will be strictly enforcing wearing a MASK. If you have a problem with being told to wear your mask, please please reconsider attending.
Should you have any questions regarding this update, please contact the NGBA Commissioner Darius Binion at: darius.binion@ngba.org.
We look forward to seeing you at the 2022 West Coast Classic.
Darius Binion
NGBA Commissioner
darius.binion@ngba.org
