Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte has announced that professional sports teams can start training on 18 May with individual sports resuming on 4 May.
While most eyes turned to football – and the resumption of the Serie A league – it also means there is a date for all other sports to resume and for plans – long and short-term – to be made.
The Italian government ordered a nationwide lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic on 9 March which has seen 26,600 fatalities in the country – a total exceeded only by the United States.
According to the Associated Press, health ministry figures indicated Italy had its lowest day-to-day increase in deaths — 260 — since mid-March.
Conte said in a televised address:
“We’re big fans of sports and we want well for all of our idols.
“We certainly don’t want them to get sick.”
Double Olympic medallist and six-time world champion Federica Pellegrini had been quick to remind listeners that all sports take priority, not only football, when speaking to the Tutto Convocati show on Radio 24 earlier this month,
She said:
“Sport is secondary to health, but secondary to nothing else, when sport can be restarted.
“I am sorry to hear only football these days, football brings money and the sales, but all other sports also exist.
“Health comes first, but when you start to open certain activities again, one of the first must be sport, at least for athletes of national interest.”
In Britain, The Times newspaper is reporting that a cross-sports working group is collating a report on how sports can resume safely.
It claims there has been a government shift in favour of restarting and that live sport could give the country a lift.
This could mean a return for football’s Premier League – suspended since 13 March – in early June with matches behind closed doors.
Wake up Australia… you will get left behind.
Great news
Fabulous. Now get the uk elite swimmers back
Good for them!
This will now be a very popular training spot!
… though travel into the country remains in place and may be there well beyond May 18, depending on what happens next…
Lucky them??
Stay healthy!
Sarah Stanwood Eubanks
Good for them. Now how about the U.S!!
Good luck and stay healthy. I hope Team USA elite athletes will be doing the same soon.
e-mail from USA Swimming today did not state a return date, only the cancelled summer meets….hoping for an update soon on when they can get back into the water once the states allow
Come on Australia our swimmer are way safer in the water full of Chlorine.