Recently, both indoor and outdoor sports, and physical activity, have been resumed across Da Nang, provided prevention and control measures and gathering rules are adhered to.

Tennis table players are pictured at the Hai Chau District Culture, Information and Sports Center on 54 Le Hong Phong Street in Phuoc Ninh Ward

Kieu Van Dong, a male resident of Hai Chau District, along with his friends, often spend their free time in late afternoons to play badminton at the Phan Chau Trinh Sports Club in the district’s Binh Thuan Ward.

Dong said, before he returned to practice sports here, he had received one dose of a COVID vaccine and made a compulsory medical declaration in accordance with the city’s pandemic prevention and control regulations.

“I feel very happy when the COVID-19 pandemic has been basically brought under control in Da Nang. Thanks to this, I can play my favorite sports again after a long time at home for social distancing" said Dong.

As noted, at some sports facilities citywide, such as Phan Chau Trinh Sports Club, a tennis court on 50B Nguyen Du in the district’s Thach Thang Ward, and the Hai Chau District Culture, Information and Sports Center on 54 Le Hong Phong Street in Phuoc Ninh Ward, all most of participating individuals, groups and clubs are seen strictly complying with the 5K regulations recommended by the Vietnamese Ministry of Health. Included are disinfecting hands and wearing face masks before and after playing non-contact sports, making medical declarations, keeping a certain distance between themselves and others, and limiting mass gatherings.

According to Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Anh, the Deputy Director of the Hai Chau District Center for Culture, Information and Sports, after gymnastics and indoor sports were allowed to resume, his centre has asked participating units and clubs to make commitments about seriously practicing the city’s pandemic prevention and control regulations.

Tran Ngoc Doan from the Le Hong Phong Table Tennis Club said that he was very excited about the resume of physical activity in the city from early October, so he could play table tennis again with his friends.

He added most of the club members have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Also, they complied with the medical declarations, and avoided attending mass gatherings.

In a similar vein, private sports and fitness facilities, such as Mega Fitness and Yoga Center, and HD Sports and Fitness Centre, require all arrivals to comply with 5K regulations, and show QR codes for medical declarations.

To ensure pandemic prevention and control, many fitness and sports centres are limiting the number of people who can be in the facility at a given time.

In particular, the HD Sports and Fitness Center requires all members to register for their training schedules following a center-provide link. Only a maximum of 40 members are allowed to involve in a training session lasting 60 minutes. Participants must be present at the centre at the time of registration and leave as soon as the training session is over.

“While some social distancing restrictions - such as capacity - may ease, it is still important to keep members from congregating at any point—on the fitness floor, at the front desk, in locker rooms or other communal areas, in the pool area, and around group exercise” emphasized Deputy Director Anh.

Reporting by XUAN SON - Translating by M.D