11-05-2021 | News

Stricter Safe Management Measures for Basketball (8 to 30 May 2021)

STRICTER SAFE MANAGEMENT MEASURES FOR BASKETBALL (8 TO 30 MAY 2021)

Dated: 6 May 2021

On 4 May 2021, the Multi-Ministry Taskforce announced that with effect from 8 to 30 May 2021, there will be a tightening of safe management measures to curb the transmission of COVID-19 within the community.

These measures are directed towards reducing or containing community spread of COVID-19 by stopping sport and physical activities that take place in high risk environments. In general, high risk environments are enclosed, confined indoor spaces, where participants are likely to be engaging in strenuous activities unmasked.

 

STOP SPORT & PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES / EVENTS IN INDOOR HIGH-RISK ENVIRONMENTS

The stricter measures described in this guidance have to be adhered to starting 8 May 2021 and ending at the close of 30 May 2021.

The following conditions shall apply to all basketball activities and basketball facilities from 8 to 30 May 2021:

·         Basketball facilities can only admit a maximum number of persons according to its Gross Floor Area based on 10 Sqm per person3, up to a maximum of 50 persons. No facility, regardless of size, shall admit more than 50 persons.

·         Group activities must be confined to groups of no more than 5 individuals. The physical distancing (2 metres) between individuals and groups of up to 5 individuals must be maintained while exercising and playing sport. If there is more than one group sharing a space, the groups must not interact and must maintain a distance of 3 metres apart from one another at all times.

o   For organised programmes and classes, an additional service provider (such as an instructor or a coach) from a permitted enterprise may guide the group. Multiple groups of 5 remain allowable up to 30 persons or the capacity limit of the venue, whichever is lower. The groups of 5 are not to intermingle and should remain 3 metres apart.

o   Basketball activity of a social nature should be kept to 5 participants.

·         Human traffic flow is to be managed to ensure no mixing of groups, and no loitering or waiting outside of basketball facilities.

 

OTHER SAFE MANAGEMENT MEASURES

·         Mask should be worn as a default. Masks can be taken off when performing strenuous activities, although it is still recommended as good practice even under such circumstances.

·         Sharing of common equipment should be avoided. Personal equipment should not be shared. If this cannot be done, then equipment should be wiped down / sanitized frequently. This includes gym equipment such as weights, and sport equipment such as basketballs. If training bibs are used, then players should bring them home, wash and bring them back to the next training.

·         Owners or Operators of facilities are responsible for ensuring safe management measures are implemented, and that their patrons/users comply.

·         SafeEntry must be implemented for participants and visitors. All participants and staff members are to use either the TraceTogether App or Token for SafeEntry from May 17.

·         Isolation. Any guest who comes down with fever after entering the venue should be isolated in a room that has been assigned and an ambulance will be activated to bring the guest to a hospital/Covid-19 test facility.

·         Temporary closure & Deep-cleansing of facility. Upon being informed of any guest being tested positive for Covid-19, the venue will be immediately closed until deep cleansing has been performed by any of the vendors listed on the National Environment Agency (NEA) website.

·         Reduce Physical Interaction and Ensure Safe Distancing. Basketball facility operators will have to organise human traffic flow and space management to ensure that the mixing of groups does not take place. Equipment should be arranged to allow users to exercise at a safe distance with each other.

·         Crowd Management. Basketball facility operators will have to devise systems to ensure there is no overcrowding at or around their premises, such as through the use of booking systems. Wherever a queue can be expected to form (entrance and lobby area), floor markings should be installed to ensure 1m distancing between people in the queue. Basketball facility operators will have to manage rest areas and changing room operations to prevent crowding and loitering. In order to better crowd management, basketball facility operators are advised to build in at least 30 mins buffer between bookings of the same court to allow the venue time to disperse crowd and cleaning to take place.

·         Wear Masks & Ensure Hygiene. Basketball facility operators will have to ensure that all visitors don masks when they enter the facility. Hand sanitisers should be placed in close proximity of the facility entrance and high-touch surfaces like door handles. Visitors should be encouraged to sanitise their hands before entering the facility.

·         Ventilation. Indoor spaces should be kept well-ventilated. For non-air conditioned spaces, windows should be kept open and additional fans should be put in place.

·         Enhance Cleaning Protocols. Facility operators will have to frequently disinfect common spaces and interactive components (e.g., smart kiosks, turnstiles, door handles). Equipment will have to be thoroughly wiped down and cleaned after each use. Personal equipment should not be shared.

·         Watercoolers. Although some facilities may have installed watercoolers, they will not be accessible to the public/users. The users are therefore required to bring enough water for their own hydration.