THE government might soon allow selected sports to be played in areas under the general community quarantine (GCQ).
Athletes and sports fans gained optimism following a statement made by Department of Interior and Local Government secretary Eduardo Año that the government is reportedly looking into allowing selected sports activities to be played in the GCQ.
Año said the government could already be allowing selected sports activities so long as the participants practice social distancing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
“‘Yung mga sports na merong physical distancing naoobserve siya, sa susunod na paguusapan namin ‘yan naman tatalakayin namin na pagdating ng GCQ (na) may i-a-allow na tayong sports,” Año told dzMM as quoted by the Inquirer.
The government earlier said after a recent Inter-Agency Task Force against Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF-EID) that sports remained barred from being held even under areas that have been downgraded from the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to GCQ.
Under the IATF-EID definition, sports activities including but not limited to trainings, games, tournaments, and championships are being considered as a mass gathering which is not allowed during the current state of the pandemic.
But after Año’s statements, non-contact sports such as golf, tennis, and badminton might already be played in GCQ areas pending approval by the IATF-EID.
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