‘Roses Unlocked’: Varsity returns online over May Bank Holiday weekend

Lancaster University Students’ Union has announced that Roses will return virtually in 2021. The competition, titled Roses Unlocked, will occur over May Bank Holiday weekend – 30th April to 2nd May.

Vice-President Sports Paul McCarthy said: “I’m pleased and excited that we’ve been able to get a plan in place for Roses this year, and looking forward to an amazing weekend of competition.

“Obviously it’s disappointing that the full Roses tournament isn’t able to take place in person, but we have to put safety first and I hope Roses Unlocked will still provide a welcome antidote to lockdown and as many students as possible will take the opportunity to get active, take part, and cheer on Team Lancaster.”

The virtual event will include fixtures such as darts and e-sports via video link, as well as a combined event, including a selection of team challenges, with activities like running, swimming and cycling. The combined event is aimed at “teams that will miss out on participating due to social distancing rules, meaning all our athletes will have the opportunity to represent the red rose this year.”

Scores from both the video link competitions and the combined event will be collated online throughout the tournament weekend as the two universities compete for the title of Roses Unlocked champion.

The university is also working on organising a “festival of sport” on campus during Summer Term. Paul said: “As restrictions continue to lift we will be putting together a special event on campus with some friendly competitions in a wide range of sports.

“This has been a difficult and frustrating year for everyone who plays a sport, and we’re looking forward to bringing everyone together to get back to competition as soon as it’s safe”.

More information on fixtures and competitions will be released by  LUSU in the coming weeks.

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