LOS ANGELES (CNS) - UCLA football coach Chip Kelley is stricken with the coronavirus, it was reported today.
He tested positive for the virus in late March after campus was shut down, according to multiple people close to the football team who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss a private health issue, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Kelly does not know how he contracted the virus, the people close to the team said. He was tested after experiencing mild symptoms and having followed all public health recommendations, including physical distancing, wearing a mask outside his home and not socializing or going anywhere except to obtain essentials such as groceries. His wife, Jill, also tested positive and recovered at home, according to The Times.
Kelly and UCLA athletic department officials declined to comment on his positive test.
The coach immediately informed athletic department officials, staff and coaches as well as players and their families of his positive test. No one associated with the team or athletic department had to quarantine as a result of Kelly's positive test. UCLA held only four spring practices, including one indoors because of poor weather, before canceling the rest on March 12 as sports leagues across the country began to shut down.
Kelly shared his ordeal with his team to demonstrate how players should take the virus seriously.
Eight UCLA players tested positive upon their return to campus beginning in late June, but none have tested positive since resuming workouts, one person close to the team told The Times. Players are tested every other week and required to follow safety protocols designed to protect them from the virus.
The Bruins are still in the early stages of their return-to-competition plan, which involves physically distanced outdoor strength and conditioning in groups of 10 or fewer. Players are allowed 14 hours of work each week, including eight hours of strength and conditioning and six hours of virtual team meetings.
UCLA is awaiting Los Angeles County and campus clearance for an additional six hours of walk-throughs per week. New Bruins athletic director Martin Jarmond said he was pleased with the school's deliberate approach as it tries to prepare for a season opener against USC on Sept. 26 -- a date that remains tenuous given the rising virus caseload across the country. As of Thursday, 139 athletes across multiple sports were back on campus.
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