Padel Now Part of New Normal Sports in Malta
Now that the world is slowly recovering from the standstill we all have been in during the hit of the COVID-19 pandemic, regulations all across the globe are evolving. Restaurants, schools and businesses are getting back on track but in the “new normal”. One of the bests news today is that padel is now officially one of the few sports health officials in Malta are allowing.
The Superintendent of Public Health in Malta has released a list of presently permitted sports activities and the requirements that must be adhered to during such events. This is excellent news after legislation was passed prohibiting any “organized” sports activity.
Initially, there was a lot of confusion regarding which activities could be practiced and which couldn’t. There were reports of individuals still practicing sports despite the new regulations.
Authorities quickly clarified the regulations and specifications of the rule to make sure that gatherings are controlled, and COVID spread is prevented.
“Sports activities and the formal practice of sport in groups that are organized and planned, and carried out by a sporting organization such as an association, club, or federation or a sporting event, even when organized by an individual organizer or a group of organisers,”
Malta Health Superintendent
This is why news that padel games are now permitted was a pleasant shock to the Malta padel community
The authorities have produced a list of permitted sports activities as long as they follow a set of norms and laws and do not come within the prohibition on organized sports activities.
- walking
- power walking
- jogging
- running
- fitness and dance sessions with adequate social distancing of 2m between all persons
- cycling
- climbing
- horseback riding
- golf
- tennis
- padel
- shooting
- swimming
- sailing on individual dinghies or larger boats with adequate social distancing between all persons
- archery
- fishing
- gymnastics
- motor sport
- model aircraft
- scuba diving
- skateboarding
- surfing
The following standards and rules must be followed for all of these actions:
People may only congregate outside in groups of no more than four people (unless they are from the same family) to engage in a recreational physical activity or athletic activity to exercise and fitness.
Indoor athletic and physical activity in private premises must follow the same rules as to persons in residential properties.
Masks must be worn at all times except during high-intensity physical exercise, and contact between people is banned.
According to the authorities, any competition is completely forbidden. Furthermore, no sports or physical activity should be conducted in such a manner as to draw or attract spectators.
The law document further indicates that the Superintendent of Public Health may exclude national Maltese sports teams from the Organised Sport Activities Regulations in international games, at her discretion and subject to any limitations she may apply.
