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With cases of COVID-19 increasing rapidly, and the province clearly entering the second wave of the pandemic, it appears team sports are about to become the next casualty.

Premier François Legault on Monday is expected to announce the suspension of team sports for at least the month of October in red zone areas, including Montreal and its suburbs, Quebec City and the Chaudière-Appalaches region.

There were more than 1,000 new cases reported in the province on Friday for the first time since the spring. On Monday, Mylène Drouin, Montreal’s public health director, said outbreaks among sports teams has been on the rise recently.

That has led to some consternation among sports organizations and schools, which will see their football, hockey, basketball and soccer programs affected to varying degrees.

“It’s been a very rough, roller-coaster ride. I don’t have any more words. Every time we think we have a solution, something happens and we have to go back to the drawing board,” said Stéphane Boudreau, deputy CEO for the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), the governing body overseeing sports at the primary, secondary school, collegiate and university levels.