Update #11 – Coronavirus (COVID-19)

From: Gary Corbett – Softball NL President
Dave Feener – Softball NL Executive Director
Softball NL Board of Directors
Date: Saturday, March 27, 2021
RE: Softball NL Sanctioned Programs/Activities Resume

Softball NL Membership,
Please Be Advised That As A Result Of The COVID-19 Update Provided By The Provincial Government On Friday, March 26 And The Move To Alert Level 2 As Of 12:00am On Saturday, March 27, Softball NL Have Lifted The Suspension On All Of Its Programs/Activities In Accordance With The Sport Guidance Provided By The Provincial Government.

As Most Minor Softball Associations Are Not Currently Running Programs This Time Of Year, Softball NL Would Like To Take This Opportunity To Advise What Is Or Isn’t Permitted At This Time. What Is Permitted Now Is Practice, Skills/Drills And Intra-Squad Games With Your Individual Teams. In Other Words, If Your Association Was/Is Operating Now, And You Have For Example A U14 Boys Team, Then That Group Can Practice Or Have Scrimmages Amongst Themselves. This Can Happen As Of Today (Saturday, March 27) Without An Updated Return-To-Play Document And In Consultation With Your Municipality And/Or Facility Owner/Manager.

Moving Forward, All Other Activities Are Not Permitted To Take Place Until Such Time As The Updated Return-To-Play Documents Are Completed And Submitted To Sport NL And Government For Final Approval. Softball NL Will Be Working With Sport NL Over The Next Couple Of Weeks To Update The Softball Return-To-Play Document. Softball NL Are Confident That Much Of The Information That Was Included In The Softball Return-To-Play Document In 2020 Will Still Be Pertinent, But There Will Need To Be Additional Information Provided This Year Which Was Anticipated.

Sport Guidance Applies To All Types Of Sport And Sport Operators, Including Association, Private, Recreational, Community-Based And/Or Other Sport Providers/Opportunities. This Guidance Is To Be Used With Provincial Sport Organization COVID-19 Return-To-Sport Plans.

Please Consult With Municipalities Regarding The Use Of Municipal Owned And Operated Fields, Courts And Other Recreation Facilities, As A Municipality Will Likely Assess Its Own Capacity To Make Facilities Available, In The Context Of Public Health Guidance, As Owners/Operators Of Public Sport And Recreation Facilities.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION – ALERT LEVEL 2

Individual, Team And Group Sport And Recreation Activities Will Be Permitted.

Team Practice And Training Is Permitted To Resume And Intra-Squad Competition (Involving Members Of The Same Team) Is Permitted. All Other Competition (Inter-Division, Inter-League, Inter-Association) Would Be To Submit A Return-To-Sport Plan To The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts And Recreation (michellehealey@gov.nl.ca) Prior To Competition Being Permitted.

Return-To-Sport Plans Should Include Competition That Would Fall Within An Organization, Team Or Group’s Regular Competitive Schedule. As An Example, If A Soccer Competition/League Has Always Been Regional In Scope, Regional Competition May Be Permitted Following Review And Approval Of The Return-To-Sport Plan. If The Competition/League Has Always Been Provincial In Scope, It May Be Permitted Following Review And Approval Of The Return-To-Sport Plan. Exhibition Tournaments Will Not Be Permitted At This Time.

Approved Return-To-Sport Plans Will Be Posted For Public Viewing On The Sport NL Website www.sportnl.ca. Any Changes To Plans Should Be Resubmitted And Updated On The Website.

All Inter-Division, Inter-League, Inter-Association And Inter-Squad Competition, Should Be Restricted To A Maximum Capacity Of 50, Including Athletes, Coaches, Officials And Facility Staff. (Note: Capacity Limits For Alert Level 2 May Change Over Time.)

Athletes And Coaches Are Reminded To Keep Their Number Of Close Contacts Low. Individuals May Consider Participating In One Sport And/Or One Team During Alert Level 2. For individuals Who Are Members Of More Than One Sport/Club/Team, Individuals Should Consider Limiting Their Number Of Contacts (Including Social Contacts), But They May Continue To Participate On Both Sports/Clubs/Teams.

ACTIVITIES/SERVICES NOT PERMITTED

Inter-Squad Competition, Unless A Return-To-Sport Plan Has Been Submitted, Reviewed And Approved.
Tournaments Are Not Permitted At This Time.
Sport Group/Team Socialization Activities, Including In Facility Change Rooms.

For Full Details Visit: https://www.gov.nl.ca/covid-19/information-sheets-for-businesses-and-workplaces/sport-guidance/

UPDATES

Canada Games/Provincial Team Training Pods
Regular Activities, Such As Canada Games Team, Provincial Teams And High Performance Programs Are Permitted To Occur, As Long As Operators Are Complying With The Respective Guidance Documents (e.g. Sport Guidance, Arena Guidance, etc). There Is No Requirement To Restrict Training To Groups From A Specific Regional Health Authorities Regions, However PSOs May Continue A Regional Approach At Their Discretion.

High Performance Training Camps/Events For Athletes Within Atlantic Bubble
Given The Atlantic Bubble Has Not Yet Open, It Is Difficult At This Point To Provide Approval For These Activities. It Is Recommended That PSOs Include Relevant Details In The PSO Return-To-Sport Plan For Consideration.

Dividing Large Indoor And Outdoor Facilities To Accommodate Multiple Groups Of 50
Nothing Definitive On This Yet And It May Come In The Guidance, But There May Be An Opportunity For Facilities To Work With Service NL Environmental Health Officers To Determine If A Space Can Be Divided.

Sports Camps
Sport Camps (Regardless Of The Time Period They Are offered), Should Comply With After School Program/Day Camp Guidance, Sport Guidance And Other Guidance Documents That Would Apply.

Moving Forward, Softball NL Will Continue To Follow Public Health Protocol. With A Couple Of Months Before Things Kick Into High Gear It Helps To Start Planning Now. On That Note, Softball NL Will Distribute The 2021 Tournament Schedule This Coming Monday, March 29. Once The 2021 Tournament Schedule Is Released, Softball NL Will Then Be Looking For Associations To Apply To Host Tournaments. While There Is No Guarantee That The Provincials Will Go Ahead This Year, Softball NL Are Confident That If Things Keep Improving That Approval For Provincial Tournaments Will Be Granted.

All Decisions That Have Been Made To This Point Have Been Made With Everyone’s Health And Safety In Mind And That Has Been Consistent From Day 1 And Will Continue To Be The Case Moving Forward.

Gary Corbett – Softball NL President
Dave Feener – Softball NL Executive Director
Softball NL Board of Directors

Softball NL
1296A Kenmount Road
Paradise, NL, A1L 1N3
Email: executivedirector@softballnl.ca
(709) 576-3418

Website: www.softballnl.ca
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Softball NL