Authors: Ramy Qutami & Rocco Domine
As State and Territory governments ease restrictions around the country, Sport Australia has released a Return to Sport Toolkit. The Return to Sport Toolkit provides resources for associations and clubs to safely return to organised sports in the wake of the national shutdown following the COVID-19 crisis.
The toolkit includes resources such as detailed checklists, safety plans and guidelines for sporting associations regardless of the number of members or participants. Additionally, the Return to Sport Toolkit, operates in conjunction with the Federal Government’s National Principles for the resumption of Sports and Recreation activities and the Australian Institute of Sport’s Framework for Rebooting Sport in a COVID-19 Environment.
The framework with respect to the Return to Sport Toolkit sets out to ensure that:
- actions are taken to eliminate or reduce the risk of further transmission;
- actions are taken that build capacity of an organisation to manage transmission risk;
- actions are taken to minimise the impact if a further transmission occurs; and
- actions are taken to return an affected community to normal.
Some of the key features of the Return to Sport Toolkit include:
- Limiting the number of spectators that attend games;
- Recommending that a Covid-19 Safety Coordinator be appointed. The role of the Covid-19 Safety Coordinator is to liaise with clubs, other associations, state and national sporting organisations and other relevant stakeholders to ensure safety plans are being followed;
- Recommending a record or log be kept that provides details of all the spectators attending sporting events. This will be used as a precautionary measure, should an outbreak occur; and
- Ensuring appropriate COVID-19 hygiene guidelines are adopted and followed, to keep participants, volunteers and spectators safe.
Currently most sporting associations and clubs have recommenced training in small groups in accordance with various State & Territory Public Health Orders. Ultimately, it is now up to the State & Territory governments to further ease restrictions to allow associations and clubs to return to organised sporting matches and fixtures. However, it is important to note that the onus remains with local and community sporting associations to ensure safety plans follow all State, Territory and Federal laws, regulations and directions in relation to organised sports.
In order to assist sporting associations, you can find the complete Return to Sport Toolkit here.
Our team of sports law experts can arrange and review your association’s safety plan to ensure it is compliant with all Government regulations so that players, staff members and spectators remain safe while they return back to sport. Please click here to contact us.
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