Wisconsin Official Breaks Up Potential Adorable Sibling Hug Situation

Appleton North won its first Wisconsin state girls high school basketball title over the weekend. After being presented with medals, the players were being ushered off the stage when junior Sydney Levy’s little brother came in for a hug. At least until a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association employee told the brother and sister there would be no hugs.

That just looks bad. After the video started making the rounds online, the WIAA kind of apologized. Via the Post-Crescent:

"“The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association acknowledges that the short video clip that was released on social media Sunday may be seen by the casual observer as insensitive. In the celebratory situations following a State championship, it is not possible for the WIAA to know the individual traditions and rituals of all the schools, teams, families and players involved. For the safety of all involved, we keep spectators off the playing surface. As an organization that runs large events on a regular basis, our focus is always on the safety and ‘what if’ situations that can evolve quickly and cause potential harm to innocent bystanders. When the WIAA staff receives advanced requests regarding special family situations or needs, we do our best to accommodate if and when possible. The WIAA has reached out to the family to express its regrets for any distress they may have experienced.”"

This is a classic case of the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law. Spectators aren’t allowed on the court. So let this be a reminder to little boys everywhere to give the WIAA plenty of advanced warning about potential hug situations.

According to ESPN‘s recruiting page, it appears that Sydney Levy already has a verbal commitment to play college ball at Milwaukee.