New York spectator sportsmanship policy to check unruly parents at sports games: 'Can no longer tolerate'

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A new policy in New York state intends to keep rowdy parents and other spectators in check at high school sporting events.

Parents are often enthused when it comes to their kids' athletic careers, but some are animated to the point where they distract players and coaches. The New York State Public High School Athletic Association's spectator sportsmanship policy, which was implemented on May 3 and will go into effect at the start of the 2023-24 school year, is a three-tiered policy laying out guidelines for disciplining spectators' poor behavior, the Buffalo News reports.

"This regulation just now provides the same type of punitive [action] or punishment for spectators as it does for student athletes and coaches," NYSPHSAA executive director Robert Zayas told Fox News Digital. 

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In the past, Zayas explained punitive measures were done on a case-by-case basis. But the new policy "formalizes what the process is."

A new sportsmanship policy in New York intends to crack down on unruly parents and spectators at interscholastic events. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

Athletes in New York high schools have shared some observations about some of the more unruly spectators who shout at either players, coaches or officials, with one reportedly threatening an official.

"A parent said to the ref, ‘If you keep making calls like this, you’ll be lucky to make it to your car,’" Megan Aichinger, a junior who plays field hockey and lacrosse at Iroquois, told the Buffalo News. "You could tell the ref was terrified, and that’s such an extreme, over a high school sport."

The NYSPHSAA policy reads that a first