The Ministry of Sports on Thursday, July 9, issued new instructions giving more sports activities an all-clear to resume outdoor training in compliance with safety guidelines. All sporting activities – training, competitions and events – in the country were suspended on March 15 as the government imposed a strict lockdown to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. But, since last month, a number of non-contact sports such as tennis, athletics and golf were allowed to start training. From July 13, according to the Sports Ministry’s statement, athletes playing Cricket, Boxing, Aerobic, Karate, Kung Fu, Taekwondo, Judo, Skating, Archery, Badminton and Gymnastics will also be allowed to resume training. Athletes in the newly cleared sports are, however, only allowed to train without physical contacts, and respecting physical distancing. Competitions are still banned until September. Before resuming activities, the ministry has called on concerned federations to share with the ministry the location and calendars of their respective member clubs to inform proper monitoring. In addition, owners of private sports facilities that host the sports activities were also requested to submit a request for resumption of activities highlighting training calendars and health safety measures to be complied to. To ensure health safety, athletes must wear face-masks before and after their exercise sessions, and should always carry hand sanitizers and use them whenever necessary. Additionally, they should observe at least 1.5 metres of social distancing. The cleared sports activities are open to the public except individuals with red-flag symptoms for Covid-19 such as flu, cold, fever, cough, sneezing and headache.
