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Badminton Alberta's COVID-19 Return to Sport Guidelines

 

 

 

 

In reference to the Stage 2 Indoor sport, physical activity and recreation announcement made by the Alberta Government on June 9, 2020, Badminton Alberta has analyzed the published criteria and provided context on the key points relating to badminton.

This should serve as a guide to support the FAQs for participants, operators, and stakeholders of the sport.

 

The below document is a modified version of the full criteria. The full version can be found on the Alberta Government website under their bizconnect section, Stage 2 guidance : HERE

 

Download Badminton Alberta COVID-19 Return to Sport Guidelines here.

 

1.0 FACILITY CONSIDERATIONS

General

  • Designate a responsible person to oversee activities to ensure public health guidelines are followed. 
    • A staff member can occupy this position
  • Consideration should be given to how to appropriately include or accommodate vulnerable persons such as seniors, those with disabilities and persons with compromised immune systems
    • Potential examples: Reduce attendance numbers to satisfy the safe distance requirements, or allocate specific time slots for higher-risk individuals
  • Remove unnecessary communal items such as candy, magazines and complimentary phone chargers. Where disposable water cups are provided, place a garbage receptacle close by for any used cups. 
    • Block off sections of benches or replace them with chairs only so that individuals cannot sit closer than the allowable distance (2m)

 

Staff and Volunteers

  • Assign equipment and supplies to individual staff members and avoid any unnecessary sharing
    • Coaches should have their own box of shuttles and racquet that nobody else can use. Nobody else is allowed to pick up or touch the coaches shuttles
  • Staff who are exhibiting symptoms of COVID19 or who have travelled internationally within the past 14 days or have been in close contact with a case within the last 14 days must stay home and self isolate
    • Under no circumstances should this be neglected by any staff member or participant. It is also recommended that every participant upon entry must sign a waiver form declaring their status of health.
  • It is suggested that facilities designate a responsible person to ensure public health guidelines are followed (e.g., watching for adherence to physical distancing).
    • This person should not be a coach that is occupied with performing their duties on-court.
  • Encourage hand hygiene among staff.
    • Staff should be regularly sanitizing themselves, equipment, and the courts
  • Staff should wear masks when they are not separated by a physical barrier or twometre distance from participants. Guidance is available here.
    • We recommend that all non-coaching staff wear a mask at all times, regardless of whether or not protective barriers have been implemented at the front desk/pro shop

 

Points of Entry and Controlling Access

  • Physical barriers are recommended to separate frontdesk attendants and patrons. 
    • Ideal scenario is that front-desk staff and pro-shop staff are separated by a physical barrier and wearing masks and gloves at all times.
  • Provide hand sanitizer (60% alcohol or higher) at entry and exit points, and encourage patrons to also bring their own.
    • Self explanatory
  • Limit physical contact by using online payment and registration or handsfree check in. If wrist-bands are required, the operator should use self-applied bracelets and advise patrons to remove them once they arrive home. 
    • We recommend that physical cash transactions are reduced and that participants are encouraged to pay with tap-technology or online payment
  • To promote distancing, facilities should consider how to reduce capacity in each room, venue, court, pool or ice surface in the facility. 
    • Communal benches should be removed and replaced with chairs or modified to ensure that adequate physical distancing is possible during seating (at least 2m). Anyone not coming to the venue to actively participate should leave the venue.
  • Consider using a booking system that sets out specified activity durations (e.g., onehour workout periods, 90-minute ice times).
    • As mentioned above, consider allowing certain time slots for certain groups (training groups working in a cohort, senior booking groups, etc)
  • Request that participants arrive no more than 510 minutes before their appointment or game. Coordinate appointment or game times to avoid crowding and reduce wait times. 
    • Self-explanatory
  • Encourage patrons to limit their time spent in the facility and to maintain physical distancing when returning to vehicles or homes.
    • Upon completing your badminton, you should leave the venue immediately. You should also come to the venue already dressed to play

 

Facility Screening

  • Facility operators should ask all participants to complete the COVID19 selfscreening tool prior to entrance into the facility and commencement of any activity. The Screening Checklist is attached at the end of the document (Appendix A).
    • As mentioned above, participants should be required to complete a declaration of health every time upon entry to the building
      • See Appendix A at the bottom of this document
  • Any participant that is exhibiting any symptoms cannot enter the facility or participate.
    • Self-explanatory

 

Sanitation, Cleaning and Disinfecting

  • In addition to routine facility cleaning protocols, increase frequency of sanitation of commonly touched surfaces and shared equipment (such as water fountain handles, doorknobs, handrails, light switches, countertops, tables, equipment handles and consoles).
    • A written cleaning and disinfecting schedule is recommended. Encourage staff to document the time a specific area is cleaned.
      • The above-mentioned comment about a cleaning schedule should be followed by the general staff.
  • Increase the frequency of cleaning of gymnasium floors to reduce the risk of transmission from shared objects (e.g., balls) and those who use wheelchairs.
    • Courts and field of play should be cleaned after every use. Shuttles must not be shared in any capacity. Each coach should have their own box of shuttles, racquets, and general equipment that only they are allowed to touch and collect.
  • Provide hand sanitizer throughout the facility and ensure that hand washing sinks are fully stocked with soap and paper towels
    • Locker rooms should be modified to ensure that proper physical distancing can be achieved. If this is not possible due to spacing requirements, locker rooms should be closed and participants should be recommended to arrive at the venue already changed.
  • Follow the cleaning and disinfecting guidance in the General Relaunch Guidance.
  • Ensure that used cleaning supplies are properly disposed of in a lined waste bin that is emptied at least daily
    • Self-explanatory

 

Locker Rooms and Change Rooms

  • Facilities should discourage the use of locker rooms and change rooms whenever possible
    • Encourage participants to come dressed for their activity
      • As mentioned above, locker rooms should be modified to ensure that safe physical distancing can be properly maintained.
  • Set capacity limits on how many people can use locker rooms at the same time.
    • If spacing cannot be maintained, we recommend that participants are asked to arrive at the venue already changed.
  • Adjust lockers to enable physical distancing.
  • Ensure that surfaces, sinks and toilets in are cleaned and disinfected regularly.
    • Self-explanatory. This should be included in cleaning schedule mentioned in the Sanitation, Cleaning and Disinfecting section of the guide.
  • Remove selfserve and common-use items such as hair dryers, cotton swabs and disposable razors.
    • Self-explanatory

 

Physical Distancing

  • Alter booking times of facility amenities (e.g., courts, pools, auxiliary rooms) to create a buffer between sessions.
    • This is strongly recommended by Badminton Alberta that if facilities are implementing a booking schedule, that they stagger play times to ensure there is adequate time between bookings to allow for cleaning and sanitization to occur between sessions.
  • Participants and spectators are expected to maintain a distance of twometres in lobbies, change rooms, multi-purpose rooms, freeweight areas and while off the field of play (players’ bench, bleachers, etc.).
    • For high intensity physical activity (e.g., rows of treadmills and elliptical machines), consider physical barriers or at least three metres distancing between equipment.
      • This is highly relevant for competitive training groups and should be applied in conjunction with cohorts guidance to allow for 3m of safe physical distancing from any other participant or employee who is not a part of the cohort
    • Distancing exceptions can be made for those who are from the same household.
      • This would be considered a small-scale cohort
  • Wherever possible, promote physical distancing by:
    • promoting one-way traffic flow to avoid individuals from inadvertently interacting;
      • Similar to grocery stores, this is strongly recommended to be implemented using stickers and arrows in conjunction with signs and messaging to communicate one-way traffic and directions
    • placing stickers or signage on the wall/floor at two-metre distances
      • Self-explanatory
    • spacing seats, or assigning seating, at two-metre distances;
      • Self-explanatory. No benches unless they are modified to ensure spacing requirements have been met.
    • limiting classes and group fitness to cohort groups only (e.g., assigned class times)
  • Facilities should develop procedures that allow for uncongested drop off and pick up of participants. (e.g., drivethru lanes for pick up and drop off of sport participants, dedicated entrances and exits for incoming and outgoing sport teams)
    • It is strongly recommended by Badminton Alberta that facilities have a dedicated entry point that is separate from the exit point. As mentioned above, drop-off should occur in an indicated lane, and those who are not active participants should not enter the premises.
  • Common area chairs and tables should be stacked, roped off or removed from the area to promote distancing
    • As part of the recommendations for use of communal items, couches and chairs in communal areas should be removed.

Spectators

  • Spectators (excluding parents and guardians where necessary for player support) should be kept out of participant spaces (e.g., fields of play, courts, ice surfaces).
    • Spacing between parent/guardian and family cohorts must be safely maintained, preferably through physical barriers or indicators, up to a maximum spectator capacity of 100.
  • The maximum number of spectators is determined by how many people the space can hold while keeping two metres of distance between attendees from different households/cohort families, up to a maximum of 100 persons.
    • As mentioned above, there can be a maximum of 100 spectators as long as they can fulfill the 2m distancing requirements between parents and/or cohort groups.
  • Unless from the same household, spectators should maintain a minimum twometre distance from one another at all times, whether the activity is indoor or outdoor.
    • Self-explanatory
  • It is strongly recommended that all spectators wear masks, especially in an indoor setting. Cheering and yelling is strongly discouraged at this time as it presents a high risk of spreading droplets.
    • Masks should be strongly encouraged, and Badminton Alberta recommends that facilities ensure that masks can also be provided to spectators.
    • In regards to cheering and yelling, this should also be followed the participants themselves to ensure that the safe distance requirements are not compromised.

 

Encouraging Participant Hygiene

  • Encourage participants to bring their own equipment to the facility. Wherever possible, limit the use of shared equipment unless participants engaged in the same activity are from the same household. 
    • Participant-owned equipment, including sport gloves, should be visibly clean.
      • Self-explanatory. This applies to coaches and participants
    • Equipment handled by hand or head (e.g., tennis balls, basketballs, soccer balls) during play should be frequently cleaned.
      • As mentioned above, coaches should have their own box of shuttles and equipment that nobody else may touch or use.
      • Players must designate personal marked shuttles that are assigned to them and touch only those shuttles during play.
  • Where rental equipment is provided, it should be assigned to one person only and be cleaned and disinfected upon return. Do not use equipment that cannot be disinfected.
    • Self-explanatory
  • Participants should not share any personal items (e.g., water bottles, towels).
    • Self-explanatory. Bring your own water bottle and towel and do not share.
  • Enable and encourage participants to perform frequent hand hygiene before, during and after the activity.
    • Participants can be encouraged to carry and use their own hand sanitizer.
      • Self-explanatory. Hand sanitizer should also be provided upon entry and exit to the building.
  • Participants should refrain from touching their eyes, nose, mouth and face while participating or while wearing sporting gloves.
    • Self-explanatory
  • Encourage participants to exhibit good respiratory etiquette (i.e., sneezing or coughing into the crook of the elbow, no spitting, no clearing of nasal passages, coughing or sneezing into a tissue).
    • It is especially important during this time to ensure that participants are not exhibiting any of the above-noted behaviours. These behaviours should be monitored by a supervisor and not tolerated in any capacity.

Masks

  • Guidance on how to wear a mask properly can be found here.
  • Patrons and participants may wear a mask when they are not engaging in intense physical activity
    • Self-explanatory. All non-coaching staff should be wearing a mask, and preferably gloves at all times. Spectators and cohorts are also strongly advised to wear masks at all times inside the building.

 

Communications

  • Communicate to all participants (coaches/staff, instructors, officials, participants, and their guardians, volunteers) about the risk of COVID19 and practices that should be undertaken to mitigate risk.
    • Communication platforms could include online registration forms, rental contracts and automated telephone switchboards.
      • Generally speaking, all facilities should convey general information about the risks of COVID-19 and best practices to mitigate risk. This advice can be referenced directly from the Alberta Government website.
  • Information posters and fact sheets can be downloaded here. Place appropriate signs throughout the facility explaining:
    • Physical distancing expectations
    • Hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette
    • Cleaning and disinfection practices
      • Self-explanatory. Facilities should include plenty of signage and information to ensure that all participants and spectators are aware of physical distancing and hygiene requirements while within the premises.
  • In the event that a participant requires basic first aid, consider having a family member attend to the injured. If not possible, if the first aider is a facility employee they should use appropriate personal protective equipment, including a mask and gloves.
    • Self-explanatory

 

Equipment

  • Reconfigure fitness equipment (e.g., weight machines) to promote physical distancing. Consider installing physical barriers between equipment wherever increased distancing is not possible.
    • It is strongly recommended that both physical barriers and at least three metres of distance greater distances be placed between equipment used for high intensity activities (e.g., treadmills, stationary bikes) to lessen the likelihood of transmission from higher exertion.
      • As mentioned above, this is highly applicable to high-intensity training groups. For general equipment separation, apply this guidance to separation between spectator seating.
  • Have processes to ensure enhanced cleaning and disinfection of shared fitness equipment between each use by having readily available supplies and cleaning reminders and instructions located in accessible places. Facility staff should ensure that cleaning occurs between uses.
    • Spectator seating sanitization should be included in the regular sanitization schedule mentioned above and carried out by general staff.

 

Rapid Response to Symptomatic Individuals

  • Facilities and organizers are required to have a rapid response plan in place to manage symptomatic participants, spectators and staff. A rapid response plan sets out a fastaction plan for operators when an attendee shows symptoms of COVID-19.
    • Details on rapid response can be found in the General Relaunch Guidance.
      • Plans must comply with the guidance outlined in the General relaunch Guidance document
  • Plans should include:
    • Immediate isolation of the symptomatic participant from others, including arrangement for safe travel home (e.g., no public transit).
    • Consideration of suspension or temporary cancellation of the event.
    • Cleaning and disinfecting of all equipment and surfaces that may have come into contact with the symptomatic participant.
    • Performance of hand hygiene by remaining participants.

 

Facility Amenities / Food and Beverage

  • Venues that offer food or beverage services must adhere to the Guidance for Restaurants, Cafes, Pubs, and Bars.
  • Ensure vending machines are cleaned frequently, in particular touch keypads. 
    • These should be included as part of the sanitization schedule mentioned above and carried about by general staff

 

2.0     GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR SPORT, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND RECREATION ORGANIZATIONS

Considerations for Modifying Activities

  • In order to help plan activities, practices or games, consider the following:
    • Can the activity be modified to reduce the sharing of equipment touched by hands or sporting gloves?
      • Participants should only touch their own personal equipment and their own personally marked shuttles.
    • Can the activity be modified to increase opportunities for physical distancing?
      • Participants and facilities should recognize that playing doubles while maintaining a safe physical distance at all times is impossible by nature. The only exception to this is through a cohort, however, booking different cohorts specifically for badminton can pose extenuating logistical challenges for an operator. As such, Badminton Alberta recommends that for the time being, singles play only is the safest route forward until further information is available.
    • Can the activity be done outdoors instead of indoors?
      • Not applicable to indoor badminton facilities
    • Can activities, practices and game play be shortened, or performed with fewer participants?
      • Self-explanatory. Badminton Alberta recommends that safe physical distancing requirements are strictly adhered to at all times, such that scheduling and sanitizing of the facility can occur as intended. This almost certainly will impact the total volume of participants that can flow through a facility on any given day, as such, operators should consider and plan for a reduced intake over the course of the Stage 2 re-launch and use the time to practice with employees and staff how to safely operate with the new protocols in place.

 

Mini-Leagues and “Bubbles”: Cohorting Participants

  • All aspects of organized sport, physical activity and recreation may proceed (programming, training, practice and competition) if physical distancing is possible.
    • Self explanatory. 2m of physical distancing is the ultimate benchmark for considerations of what sorts of organized badminton activities can occur within the spacing of a badminton facility
  • If those not participating in physical activity are unable to maintain safe physical distancing, masks should be worn. In sports and activities that generally involve interaction between participants at a distance of less than twometres, it is recommended that:
    • The activity occur outdoors, or
      • Not applicable to indoor badminton facilities
    • Modification of the activity or sport occur to keep participants at a safe distance.
      • As mentioned above, BA recommends singles only play as the safest route forward for the time being.
  • Where sports and activities cannot be moved outdoors or modified to maintain distance, it is essential to limit the number of contacts between different participants. This is done by playing within set cohorts (e.g., minileagues or bubbles with a fixed number of participants).
    • Mini-leagues and bubbles cannot exceed 50 people. This number includes those participants, officials, coaches and trainers who cannot maintain two metres of distance from others at all times. This number does not include parents and spectators.
      • Badminton Alberta recognizes that groups may want to form cohorts in order to play doubles within the confines of the Alberta Health guidelines. Badminton Alberta’s position on this is that while in certain situations a cohort may be effective, it also presents a large logistical challenge to effectively and safely time different cohorts at different times while still allowing for safe physical distancing and sanitization to occur between different cohort groups that are coming and going. 
  • Cohorts, minileagues and bubbles should remain together during Stage 2 of Relaunch and only play within the same geographical region (e.g., within a county, town or quadrant of a city).
    • Cohorts must remain together without compromise in any capacity, or it defeats the purpose entirely. As such, this area must be carefully tracked and planned by any operator that intends to allow cohorts to play badminton in close contact.
  • It is recommended that minileagues and bubbles be supervised by a responsible person whose role is oversight over maintenance of the group and other public health guidance.
    • As mentioned above, this should be included in the role of a supervisor who is not also immediately occupied with coaching duties.

 

Public Health Recommendations

  • Participants, coaches, instructors, officials or volunteers who become symptomatic during an activity are required to be isolated from others and must return home immediately.
  • To support public health contact tracing efforts in the event that an attendee tests positive, operators should consider collecting the names and contact information of attendees.
  • Providing information is voluntary for attendees. An organization must obtain an individual’s consent and notify them about the purpose and legal authority for the collection.
  • Information about attendees will only be requested by Alberta Health Services if a potential exposure occurs onsite.
  • For businesses/workplaces, this includes staff, workers and volunteers on shift. Where feasible to do so, and particularly for personal services and group events, it should also include patrons/customers/the general public.
  • Records should only be kept for two weeks. An organization must make reasonable security arrangements to protect the personal information.
  • Any personal information that is collected for COVID19 contact tracing can only be used for this purpose, unless an individual provides their consent.
  • For more information, the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner has released Pandemic FAQ: Customer Lists about collecting personal information from customers during the COVID19 pandemic.
  • For questions about your obligations under PIPA, please contact the FOIPPIPA Help Desk by phone at 780-427-5848 or by email at sa.accessandprivacy@gov.ab.ca.
  • Organizations may encourage participants to download the ABTraceTogether contacttracing app to assist public health officials with contact tracing in the event an outbreak should occur.

 

Masks

  • Participants can wear masks when they are not engaging in intense physical activity.
    • Badminton Alberta recommends that all attendees in the facility not engaging in badminton activity should wear a mask at all times
  • Masks should NOT be worn when conducting intense physical activities.
    • Masks and face shields cannot be assured to stay in place during the course of intense activity.
    • There is some evidence to suggest that wearing a mask during high intensity activities could have negative health effects.
    • Mask use during swimming can increase the likelihood of choking or drowning.

 

Participants, Coaches, Instructors, Staff, Volunteers, Officials, Aides

  • Participants should proactively and regularly monitor for symptoms. Symptomatic individuals are prohibited from participating.
    • If you feel any symptoms, it is imperative that you do not bring yourself to any facility and follow the proper Alberta Health guidelines for testing. This will ensure that all badminton facilities can make a safe and gradual return to normal operations over time.
  • Hand hygiene should occur before and after each activity.
    • Hands should be cleaned before and after using sporting gloves.
    • Gloves should be cleaned after each use.
      • Self explanatory. Wash your hands before and after play. Sanitize your hands as needed.
  • To the extent possible, participants should refrain from touching their eyes, nose, mouth and face during activity.
  • Practice respiratory etiquette. Participants should refrain from spitting and clearing their nasal passages during activities.
    • This should be one of the duties of the supervisors in charge of monitoring the facility to ensure that all safety procedures and protocols are functioning effectively.
  • Limit group celebrations and other customs during activities (e.g., handshakes, high fives, fist bumps, chest bumps) that bring participants with twometers or promote contact.
    • Badminton Alberta recommends that no yelling, loudly celebrating, screaming, or any other similar notions or customary contacts occur between participants, players, or spectators so as to prevent any unnecessary exposure between individuals.
  • Water bottles should be labelled with the name of the owner. Do not share water bottles.
    • Self explanatory. Bring your own equipment and personables and do not share with others.
  • To the extent possible, arrive dressed and ready to participate. There will be limited access to locker rooms to prevent gathering.
    • Self explanatory. Arrive for badminton already dressed to play.
  • After activities, individuals should minimize time spent in dressing/locker/change rooms and maintain physical distance lobbies and common spaces.
    • Badminton Alberta recognizes that many groups and programs instill stretching time before and after group sessions. Badminton Alberta recommends that stretching only occurs on the field of play without touching any surfaces other than the badminton court, and only within the confines of a scheduled practice time. Players should not hang around after practice to stretch more, or outside of the field of play.
  • Transportation to and from activities should be arranged so that only cohort members, or members from the same household, share rides.
    • Self explanatory. Do not share rides with individuals that are not in your own cohort.

 

Competition and Mini-League Play

  • For those activities where participants are unable to adhere to physical distancing, cohorts of a total of 50 individuals should be formed (minileague).
    • Mini-leagues should remain together for the duration of Stage 2 of Relaunch.
    • Mini-leagues allow sport teams to return to a safe level of play, and will help to mitigate risk of widespread transmission by limiting the number of athletes that come within close contact.
  • Each minileague can be comprised of multiple teams, to a maximum of 50 people. Game play between teams must be limited to teams within the same cohort/mini-league.
    • Teams in different mini-leagues cannot play each other.
  • The 50 person maximum includes coaches/staff, instructors, participants from multiple teams, officials, and volunteers who cannot maintain two metres of distance from others at all times. 
  • Within each mini league, game play can resume between teams. At least twometres distancing should be maintained between all when off the field of play (e.g., on benches, during intermission).
    • The two-metre physical distancing rule can be relaxed for participants from the same household.
  • Badminton Alberta recognizes that cohorts may be a consideration for some facilities to allow certain programs and/or groups to continue. Badminton Alberta’s stance on cohorts is that great caution and care must be implemented by any facility seeking this pathway. Scheduling different cohorts while maintaining safe physical distancing and allowing time for proper sanitization to occur between cohorts, while at the same time supervising and monitoring each group such that guidelines are properly upheld will pose a significant challenge for any operator.
  • As such, Badminton Alberta strongly recommends that for the time being, facility operators strongly consider only allowing singles-only play for the simplicity and ease of monitoring.
  • Over time, and as more information becomes available, Badminton Alberta’s recommendation may change, however, there is no way to safely guarantee that allowing cohorts will be effective in containing an outbreak. Cohorts are simply an option provided by the Alberta Health Guidelines that will allow for enhanced tracing and speed of containment in the event of an outbreak, and in no way do they have a meaningful impact on reducing the chance of contracting the virus.

 

Travel

  • For Stage 2 of Relaunch, activities should be restricted to local community opportunities.  Participants should not seek sport, physical activity and recreation opportunities in other regions, or out of province.
    • Cross-jurisdictional, or inter-regional, play should not occur at this stage.
      • Self-explanatory. At this time, no cross-regional activity should occur.

 

 

 

3.0 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

 

Can I play doubles?

    • Technically speaking, doubles play is not forbidden if played under the umbrella of a cohort. However, Badminton Alberta recommends at this time that doubles play does not occur. It is physically impossible to maintain a safe physical distance according to the Alberta Health guidelines.

 

Can my group lesson/training group/league occur?

    • Yes, but it must operate within the confines of either:
      • 2m of physical distance (or 3m if considered an intense physical session)
      • A cohort

 

Can I play drop-in?

    • Technically speaking, yes. However, Badminton Alberta strongly recommends against drop-in play at the current time.

 

Can I watch if I am not playing?

    • Yes, however Badminton Alberta does not recommend that facilities allow for spectators at the current time.

 

What is a cohort?

    • A cohort is a group of individuals that are committed to each other and can disregard the safe physical distancing measures, as they will only interact with each other and therefore allow for faster tracking and containment should one of the members contract COVID-19. A cohort must operate with integrity and not allow others into the cohort. A cohort can, technically speaking, play doubles. Members of different cohorts may NOT interact or come within 2m of each other. From an operators perspective, allowing multiple cohorts to function in a facility presents a massive risk and is strongly advised against.

 

What is the safest way to play?

    • At this time, Badminton Alberta recommends that play resume by booking appointments only, with singles-play only. This is the simplest and easiest way to allow gradual play to resume without overloading an operator with additional procedures to safely monitor and sanitize the facility and equipment.

As a player, what are the do’s and don’ts?

    • Badminton Alberta recommends the following:
      • Arrive already dressed to play, no more than 5-10 minutes prior to your appointment
      • Bring your own equipment, personal items, personal marked shuttles, water bottle, etc and do not use anyone else’s
      • Do not touch anything in the facility that is not necessary
      • Be sure to wash your hands and sanitize upon entry/exit
      • Do not stick around in the facility after your appointment

 

As an operator, what are the do’s and don’ts?

    • Badminton Alberta does not recommend for facilities to resume operations until they have, at a minimum, concrete procedures and protocols for the following aspects:
      • Tracking – Whether or not a person is part of a cohort, every single individual that enters the facility must be logged and tracked to allow for tracing should a case of COVID-19 occur. This is extremely important, and a large part of why Badminton Alberta recommends for play to only occur by appointment-only and not in cohorts at the current time.
      • Sanitization & bookings – Do you have a procedure in place that will be carried out by employee(s) to properly and regularly sanitize your facility and field of play after every use? Have you determined how to properly stagger booking times so that employees have enough time in between bookings to perform these duties?
      • Markings – Do you have adequate signage, directional arrows, and markings to clearly indicate one-way walking pathways for players/spectators for entry, exit, etc.
      • Communal spaces – Have you removed or modified your communal spaces to ensure that anyone using the space is able to maintain a safe 2m physical distance from any other individual?
      • Enforcement – Do you have a procedure in place for staff to monitor and enforce all of the guidelines? (This cannot not be a coach that is occupied)
      • Coaching – Have you separated your coaches’ equipment and do they all have their own personally marked shuttles (or baskets of shuttles)?
      • Health Declarations – Do you have Health Declaration waivers prepared for every person to sign every time they enter your facility?
      • Reach out to your insurance provider to ensure that you have taken all of the proper measures.

 

For questions or additional information on any of the above questions, please refer to Badminton Alberta’s analysis of the Alberta Health Stage 2 Indoor Sport Guidelines (full version). Happy Phase 2!

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