Under the extended Manitoba Public Health orders that take effect on Friday, March 26, 2021, that permits indoor "group basketball training to a maximum of 10 players and 3 coaches while masked", Basketball Manitoba will permit the following to indoor basketball training in all health regions of Manitoba. One change of note that Basketball Manitoba will be making is a move to the Canada Basketball Phase 4 stage which will now permit 5 on 5 full court scrimmages within the group of 10 players. All other forms of basketball including games, tournaments, championships, etc. remains paused under the Red / Critical Health restrictions set by Manitoba Public Health.
Basketball Manitoba also has announced today the formal cancellation of the annual Basketball Manitoba Club Championships that were scheduled for May 6-9, 2021. With the extension of the health orders to not include any team to team competition, the uncertainty to access enough facilities and the ability to safely host a large, mufti-team provincial championship has become no longer feasible.
PANDEMIC IMPACT ON BASKETBALL IN MANITOBA UPDATE
PHASE 4 - Effective Friday, March 26, 2021, small group basketball training to a MAXIMUM OF 10 PLAYERS AND 3 COACHES all wearing non-medical masks present in a standard sized gymnasium will now be permitted.
Additional Details...
- Basketball Manitoba stresses that coaches lead a gradual return to basketball over the coming weeks and months understanding that athletes may not have been active for a long period of time with a focus on athlete health and injury prevention being stressed during all training. More information on this topic can be found in the Canada Basketball Return Plan. (pages 5-8)
- Normal team drills involving shared equipment are now permitted including ones involving dribbling, passing, shooting and other offensive and defensive team drills.
- NEW Scrimmages within this group of 10 players are now permitted to include 5 ON 5 FULL COURT (up from 3x3 half court under the previous restrictions).
- All coaches and players are to wear non-medical masks including when active on the court at all times while in the facility.
- All equipment including basketballs and hands are to be properly sanitized before and after all training sessions. Sanitizer Notes:
- A liquid form of hand sanitizer with 70%+ alcohol content in a spray bottle works well cleaning basketballs and other equipment with a clean rag and on hands at the same time.
- The cleaner dries fast and leaves no residue or smell on the basketball or hands and shows no damaging effects to a rubber or synthetic basketball.
- The liquid sanitizer and empty spray bottles can be purchased at home repair and department stores including Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Lowe's, Home Hardware, Walmart and many other locations including many online retailers.
- Social distancing (2m) is to be maintained at all times between players and coaches on the sidelines and follow all restrictions imposed by a facility when using change rooms / washrooms.
- The maximum 10 players and 3 coaches in a training group is a firm number and cannot be exceeded under the current health orders and is set by Manitoba Public Health (official health orders can be seen below).
- Spectators are limited to no more than one person accompanying the athlete at a time and are to be masked and remain socially distanced from others at all times.
- Contact information must be kept by the head coach of all players they are training with and may be requested by the facility prior to attending the training session for contact tracing purposes.
- The full Basketball Manitoba Return to Play Guidelines with the above exceptions remain in place can be found HERE.
Please note that the Basketball Manitoba Insurance Program will return to protect all registered members under both accident and liability coverage effective April 1, 2021. Only participants who are registered members in the 2020-21 membership year are covered under this liability coverage. All others will participate at their own risk. Membership and insurance inquires can be made to Adam Wedlake at Basketball Manitoba.
NEW MANITOBA PUBLIC HEALTH ORDERS EFFECTIVE MARCH 26, 2021
CLICK HERE to view the press release with full details from the Province of Manitoba announcement. The current legal health orders have been updated and made available online here (PDF). Those pertaining to sporting activities include:
ORDER 13 - OUTDOOR SPORTS - As of March 25, 2021
- 13(1) Outdoor sporting facilities may open, subject to the requirements of this section.
- 13(2) Persons must not engage in outdoor sporting activities as part of a group of more than 25 persons, unless all persons in the group are participating in an organized practice, game or competition at an outdoor sporting facility.
- 13(3) Organized practices, games and competitions at outdoor sporting facilities may take place, but the operator of a facility must ensure that no multi-team tournaments are permitted at the facility.
- 13(4) Warming shacks, washrooms and other indoor facilities associated with outdoor sporting activities may open if the operator of those facilities
- (a) implements measures to ensure that members of the public are reasonably able to maintain a separation of at least two metres from other members of the public at the indoor facilities;
- (b) limits occupancy to all indoor facilities other than dressing rooms to 25% of the usual capacity; and
- (c) limits the number of persons in dressing rooms to 50% of the usual capacity or to a number that ensures that all persons in the dressing room are able to maintain a separation of at least two metres from other persons, whichever is lesser
ORDER 14 - INDOOR SPORTS - As of March 25, 2021
- 14(1) Indoor sporting facilities, including swimming pools, may open if the operator of the facility complies with all requirements of this Order.
- 14(2) Individual play, group and individual instruction and team practices may take place at an indoor sporting facility but no organized team games or tournaments may be held at the facility, except as authorized under Order 16 (Professional Sports).
- 14(3) The operator of an indoor sporting facility must
- (a) ensure that any group of persons participating in a sporting activity at the facility, excluding coaches or instructors, does not exceed 10 persons;
- (b) take reasonable measures to ensure that there is no interaction between different groups of participants who are engaging in a sporting activity at the facility at the same time; and
- (c) limit the number of persons in dressing rooms to 50% of the usual capacity or to a number that ensures that all persons in the dressing room are able to maintain a separation of at least two metres from other persons, whichever is lesser.
- 14(4) The operator of an indoor sporting facility must
- (a) implement measures to ensure that members of the public at the facility are reasonably able to maintain a separation of at least two metres from other members of the public at the facility, excluding participants engaged in a sporting activity; and
- (b) limit occupancy to all portions of the facility other than dressing rooms and the areas where sporting activities are conducted to 25% of the usual capacity.
These Manitoba Public Health Orders will go into effect on Friday, March 26, 2021, and will remain in place for at least 3 weeks to be renewed or changed on April 15, 2021.