As we continue to find out, a return to normal comes with some bumps in the road.
Due to unforeseen events, we had to cancel the 2022 Boone County High School Sports Awards show that was set to be held about a month from now.
It wasn’t a decision we made lightly, and it’s one that I wish I could reverse myself. But it’s one that’s unfortunately common across the USA Today Network.
More:Boone County High School Sports Awards live show canceled for 2022
Sports awards across the country have also had to cancel their live shows. It’s not because of a lack of commitment, and it’s not because of a lack of community support. It will just take a little more time to get to where we all want to be.
So, that naturally begs the question: What are we doing instead?
I’m here to answer that question.
The answer is that we’re still doing everything within our power to achieve our goal of highlighting and honoring the top athletes and coaches from around Boone County in the 2021-2022 high school athletics year.
The Tribune will still put forth Boone County All-Stars for the winter and spring sports seasons, just as we have already done for the fall. We are also going to honor athletes of the year for each of those sports.
Furthermore, the Tribune will honor overall male and female athletes of the year, a coach of the year, a Courage Award winner and a scholar athlete of the year.
The winners won’t be announced during a live or virtual show, but rather honored during the summer through the pages of the Tribune’s print edition and online via our website and social media platforms.
I realize this isn’t the same as having a live show, which was last held in person in 2019. But it does allow for us to tell more stories in a more personal way.
We’re going to take this opportunity to write more about our honorees, nominees and our winners while presenting them to the community in a myriad of ways.
Expect our winter sports nominees to be unveiled by the end of April, and our spring nominees to follow by early June.
We started this process in January and have every intention of seeing it through.
When I started at the Tribune last fall, I began preparing for a live sports awards show in 2022. I even began writing my own emcee jokes and started watching game film in the form of past monologues from Saturday Night Live and The Academy Awards.
This serves as a difficult reminder of how even the best of plans can change.
Still, no matter the situation, there is no obstacle that will stand in our way of honoring the best of high school sports from this past year.
Chris Kwiecinski is the sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, overseeing University of Missouri and Boone County sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter @OchoK_ and contact him at CKwiecinsk@gannett.com or 573-815-1857.