RI Announces Rules Allowing Some Winter High School Sports to Compete
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Basketball is one of the sports being allowed to resume competition. File Photo: Chuck Nadeau for GoLocal
“We all recognize and appreciate that Rhode Island athletes have had to sacrifice a lot during the pandemic, and in recent weeks by not engaging in competitions. Similarly, indoor sports facilities have suffered during the pauses,” said DEM Director Janet Coit, who has led state efforts regulating sports throughout the pandemic. “Although school sports will experience a shortened winter season, we hope that participating in competitive games and meets will benefit our kids’ physical and mental wellness and help them feel more connected to their school communities.”
Although interscholastic teams for these lower and moderate risk sports have been allowed to practice, competitive meets and games have been paused since December. The new guidance can be found here.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe new guidance strongly encourages sports teams and leagues to require athletes, coaches, and officials to get weekly COVID-19 tests. A weekly testing protocol can quickly identify COVID-19 positive athletes, even those who do not have symptoms, and move them to isolation more quickly, which will help stop the spread to teammates and other close contacts.
If a player, coach, official, or member of a team, sports organization, or stable group tests positive for COVID-19, all members of the team or group who have been in close contact with the individual who tested positive for COVID-19 will need to quarantine for up to 10 days or in accordance with Executive Orders and directions from the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) – or in accordance with school quarantine policies in the case of a student athlete.
If RIDOH identifies a positive COVID-19 case or outbreak connected to an athlete, coach, official, or sports team or organization, all activities associated with that case or outbreak should immediately cease, and all participants and organizations should fully and promptly cooperate with RIDOH case investigation and contact tracing, and follow the instructions provided from RIDOH regarding the need to quarantine and when activities may resume.
RIIL Issues Statement
The Rhode Island Interscholastic League issued the following statement on Wednesday:
"Through a tremendous amount of collaboration between state officials, the R.I. Department of Health and our member schools, the R.I. Interscholastic League has received authorization to begin games/competitions in the low- and moderate-risk sports of indoor track & field, basketball, hockey, gymnastics and swimming beginning no earlier than Friday, January 22nd. The State of Rhode Island released the updated Phase III Youth, Adult and School Sports guidelines this morning.
Although we are thankful to receive the authorization from the State of Rhode Island and everyone is anxious to play, we also recognize that each member school and our officials associations will need time to adjust schedules and implement the new guidelines prior to hosting any competitions. Therefore, we strongly encourage each member school to take the appropriate time necessary prior to hosting its first events.
Please note that games/competitions are contingent upon schools being prepared to adhere to the following parameters:
Each winter sports team must have completed the required number of practices prior to their first competition.
All student-athletes, coaches, and staff taking part in RIIL sports activities are strongly advised to obtain a COVID-19 test weekly except in cases where they have tested positive within the past 90 days. Testing can be done as part of an in-school testing program or student-athletes, coaches and staff may obtain a test at one of the many statewide testing sites available throughout Rhode Island."
Related Articles
- RI High School Sports Delayed, Announces Interscholastic League
- 2020 Rhode Island Spring High School Sports Season Is Officially Canceled
- RI High School Sports—The Newest Stage for Politics and Bad Behavior
