Dominic Thiem & Co. in training soon? Sports Minister Werner Kogler announces easing
Austria's Minister of Sport Werner Kogler announced on Saturday that top athletes would relax the measures against the spread of the corona virus. The ban on entering sports facilities is to be relaxed as soon as possible - in a few weeks.
by Lukas Zahrer
last edit: Apr 04, 2020, 12:48 pm
If there are only a few people in sports facilities, additional precautions are taken to protect against infection and the mandatory distance between people is observed, Kogler can imagine the complete ban on entry being lifted. He explicitly named tennis - as a sport that is played outdoors and does not involve physical contact - as one of the first areas where relaxation could be implemented quickly.
Kogler explicitly appealed to everyone's personal responsibility and reason. If the measures are actually gradually relaxed, great caution should still be exercised.
Professionals such as Dominic Thiem, Dennis Novak, Barbara Haas and Co. could benefit directly from these plans. As a result, Kogler also wanted to consider offering several options in mass sport again. In order to make data available to the Ministry of Health, tennisnet and eTennis are calling for a survey to help ensure a quick but regulated resumption of tennis. Click here for the survey!
Werner Kogler: Aid fund for sports clubs
However, large events are still far from being allowed again. The risk of contributing to infection again in the event of crowds at the entrance or when selling and checking tickets is too great. Here Kogler did not want to give a forecast of a possible time horizon.
Nevertheless, Kogler clearly warned against reckless sporting activities. Risk sports - he specifically cited mountain bike trips and ski tours as examples - should continue to be avoided. The risk of accidents is too great, which would put an additional burden on the healthcare system and thus take up capacity.
In order to ensure the survival of the numerous sports clubs in Austria, Kogler is endeavoring to set up an aid fund for sports, which will be set up together with Sport Austria. Following the model of support in business, sports clubs are to be provided with financial liquidity. This could also be used by tennis clubs, nobody will be left alone, but details are not yet available. Sports grants that have been pledged in the past should always be paid out in a fixed manner.