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Return to Swimming – Restart 2.0 Step 2

June 16, 2021

The Provincial Government has now released a revised Gatherings and Events Public Health Order, dated June 15, 2021.  The changes for sport are profound and particularly significant for swimming:

• Sport is now defined as “an individual or group sporting activity and includes training and practice.”  There is no longer any differentiation between Youth, Adult, Varsity or High-Performance sport.  In swimming vernacular, there is no longer a difference between Age Group, Masters, Varsity or High-Performance swimming – all the following bullet points apply equally to Age Group and Master swimming.
• There are no longer physical distancing requirements for indoor or outdoor swimming.
• The capacity limit for indoor and outdoor sporting activities is fifty (50) persons, “including coaches, managers, trainers, and any other persons involved in an official capacity”.
• The capacity limit is not differentiated by activity – it is applied to competition, training, or practice.
• There is no requirement to limit activities to intra-club only.  Inter-club activities (training or competition) are permitted but must be limited to 50 persons.
• All travel restrictions for sport participants are removed.
• Spectators are not permitted at indoor sporting activities
• Up to 50 spectators are permitted to be present for outdoor sport.

It is important to recognize that the standard safety protocols for COVID are still in place:

• Masks are required indoors when not participating in a sport activity
• Hand washing and hand sanitizing stations are essential and must continue
• Health checks – meaning reviewing the entry requirements and self-assessment of health continue to be required.
• Different facilities may have varying interpretations of the permissions within the new PHO.  Clubs are encouraged to work with their facilities, to assist them in understanding the new PHO, and their alignment to Step 2 to of the BC Reopen 2.0 strategy.
• To refresh your understanding of the standard safety protocols and personal hygiene requirements please review those sections of the Swim BC Return to Swimming Guidelines document.  Please note there is content in this document specific to Phase 2 and 3 that is no longer pertinent.

An updated version of the Swim BC Return to Swimming Restart 2.0 Chart can be found here.