NSW COVID Update 24/8/20

In the last week there have been some changes and new information released with regards to community sport.  It has taken considerable consultation with a number of key stakeholders within government, law enforcement, and peak sport bodies to seek clarification on the changes so that we can provide you with the correct advice.

In summary, sporting organisations have been asked by NSW Ministry of Health to suspend competitions and activities that result in the mixing of participants from different regions for 6 weeks.  The challenge for sporting organisations is what constitutes a zone or region as it is reasonably subjective. TBA has made the decision that all tournaments and travel leagues must be either suspended, cancelled or postponed for the next 6 weeks (effective immediately until 30th September) to comply with the request of the Chief Medical Officer.

Our decision was not based merely on compliance matters, but rather the sport taking a strong stance and playing our part in minimising the spread of COVID-19 to help minimise the risk that no further restrictions are imposed.  Whilst there are no guarantees and circumstances can change very quickly, our sport needs to co-operate with authorities to help win the fight against COVID-19.

Tournaments and travel leagues

There are a handful of accredited tournaments that are scheduled during this period that have been notified and Bowl Sydney and InterDistrict have agreed to suspend their events.  A sincere thanks to both Derek Kellard and Adam Gillett for their support and co-operation  and I appreciate this is disappointing for those bowlers impacted.

What’s the impact on league?

Thankfully there is no impact on your regular leagues.  We strongly recommend that those bowlers that bowl in multiple centres to consider limiting your attendance to one centre for the next 6 weeks. Alternatively, please utilise the flexible rules available with pre or post bowling at quieter times to minimise inter-mingling with others.

Some further recommendations from the Chief Medical Officer include:

• Please avoid carpools or bus travel with people from different household groups where possible – please spread the word to your fellow bowlers.

• Limit spectators to one parent only, where the child requires parental supervision during the sporting activity

• Wearing a mask – due to community transmission occurring in the state, the NSW Government strongly recommends you take extra precautions to protect others by wearing a mask. It is not mandatory, but we do support the government’s strong recommendation to wear a mask particularly given bowling is an indoor sport and the risks for transmission in indoor facilities are higher.

These recommendations are expected to be in place for the next six weeks commencing the 19th August to 30th September.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation in doing the right thing through this unprecedented time.  Please continue to follow the directive of your centre staff and play your role so we can bowl.

If you have any questions, please dont hesitate to contact us on [email protected]