Staff report
On Monday, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association released a memo regarding “Season 2” of the 2020-2021 school year, or traditional winter sports such as basketball, swimming and wrestling.
Here’s a look at part of the memo that was released by the NJSIAA:
“On Monday, October 12, 2020, Governor Murphy issued Executive Order 187, which permits indoor contact practice and indoor competition for all sports activities, regardless of risk level. In other words, all activities in all of our sports are now permitted, provided that gathering limits are followed. The New Jersey Department of Health (NJ DOH) “Guidance for Sports Activities” has been updated and can be found via the link below:
https://nj.gov/health/cd/documents/topics/NCOV/COVID_GuidanceForSportsActivities.pdf
“As a reminder, NJSIAA member schools must abide by NJSIAA protocols, which take into account this NJ DOH guidance. Under the Executive Order, the number of people permitted at a practice or competition will be limited to 25% of the capacity of the room in which the event takes place, with such limit not to exceed 25 persons or be less than 10 persons. However, if the number of individuals who are necessary for the practice or competition, such as players, coaches and referees, is greater than 25 persons, the practice or competition may proceed as long as no individuals are present who are not necessary for the event. If this exception applies, the number of individuals at the event still may not exceed 25% of the capacity of the room or 150 persons, whichever is less.”
The regular season for the traditional winter sports is slated to begin Dec. 21 and end Feb. 3, 2021, with playoffs being held Feb. 5-17. Teams will be held to a maximum of 15 games/meets during the regular season. Multi-team and multi-game events, such as the Seagull Classic hosted by Holy Spirit and War vs. the Shore (Mainland Regional girls) are basically on hold for right now, as the NJSIAA will continue to take guidance from the New Jersey Department of Health regarding Covid-19 policies.
As for spectators, they “will be subject to the capacity limitations established by Executive Order 187. NJSIAA will continue its discussions with the Governor’s office and the NJ DOH and will update its guidance in this regard if capacity limitations are amended,” the memo stated.