Ohio will be allowing all sports this fall.
Governor Mike Dewine said in a press conference Tuesday that sports instill “discipline, brings order, structure in the lives of student-athletes, and certainly brings joy to those athletes and certainly to their families as well.” Other concerns mentioned were the mental health of students not allowed to play sports, and the importance of a final season for many student-athletes graduating next year.
The order allows sports to be played not just by K-12 athletes competing in school leagues but includes “youth, collegiate, amateur, club, and professional sports,” to take place in the state, as long as guidelines are followed.
The guidelines are range widely from the number of spectators allowed in indoor venues to the protocols for travel to and from games.
Social distancing requirements include six-foot gaps between players waiting in lines, a ban on congregating before or after events, and hand sanitizer being easily available for participants.
Spectators will be required to sit with their family units, spaced six feet apart from other groups.
Indoor facilities like those used in volleyball, basketball, wrestling, will have limited seating. The requirement will allow either 15% of the available seating to be occupied, or 300 people, whichever is less.
How seating will be assigned should there be a shortage is not included in the guidelines, and it is likely school districts will be in charge of deciding.
The order requires that everyone involved in sports including spectators, coaches, athletes, trainers, and officials are subject to daily symptom checks. Anyone with symptoms of the virus will be required to stay home.
Masks will be mandatory for anyone at a sporting event not currently involved in the game, including players on the sidelines. There are some exceptions to this rule, including people under ten years of age or who are medically incapable of wearing masks.
Anyone who comes into contact with a person infected with the coronavirus will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days and anyone with the coronavirus will need to be cleared by a doctor before returning to sports activities.
The order states that all organizers involved, including schools, the venue, and sponsoring organizations enforce the restrictions and even designate a person to help ensure that participants are following the new rules. State and local law enforcement are allowed to help with enforcement, and people found guilty of violations are subject to a fine of up to $750 and up to 90 days in jail.
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Ben Kolodny is a reporter at The Ohio Star and the Star News Network. Follow Ben on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
