NEW SOUTH WALES STATE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Friday, March 13th – Sunday, March 15th
- Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Center (SOPAC)
- 50m (LCM)
- Start Lists
- SwimSwam Meet Preview
The 3-day New South Wales State Open Championships is still slated to take place this weekend at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Center (SOPAC) amidst other international meets recently being cancelled or postponed.
Just this week alone due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation worldwide, meets spanning the Italian Olympic Trials to the U.S.-based YMCA Nationals to the Norway-hosted Bergen Swim Festival have all been cancelled due to concerns over the international outbreak.
According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, at the time of publishing, there are 107 reported cases of COVID-19 within Australia, with 55 of those falling within the state of New South Wales. Among those cases, 2 deaths resulted, while 4 have recovered as of this time.
Courtesy of Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
With the NSW State Open Championships still taking place, organizers have released specific advice for all attendees to the meet. Organizers are offering refunds for any competitor who is unable to compete due to illness. Additionally, spectators, athletes, etc. are urged to leave the venue if they are feeling ill.
Of particular note, there will be no handshaking among any athletes or medal presenters during medal presentations. Also, organizers reserve the right to request any attendee who is displaying signs of cold or flu to immediately leave the venue.’
You can read the official announcement verbiage below:
Earlier this week, SNSW released advice on the COVID-19 situation. You can view the advice here: COVID-19: SNSW advice. As this is a rapidly changing situation, Swimming NSW will continue to provide relevant updates through this dedicated page.
We have additional advice for all attendees at this weekend’s State Open Championships.
- We request that any Swimmer, Coach, Official or Spectator who is feeling unwell not attend the event. Swimming NSW will provide a refund for any competitor who is unable to compete due to illness. Please email the following address to arrange for a refund of your entry fees: [email protected]
- If you feel unwell at the event, we request that you leave the venue immediately.
- For medal presentations, we ask that all competitors and medal presenters not shake hands and rather acknowledge the exchange of the medal with a nod of the head
- We have requested SOPAC to provide additional cleaning staff to ensure the venue remains as clean as possible throughout the event
- We also reserve the right to request any attendee who is displaying signs of cold or flu to immediately leave the venue.
We understand that this is a worrying time for many in our community. We want to assure you that our staff and SNSW Board are responding to the situation as it evolves.
Thank you again for your ongoing support in putting the health and safety of our Swimming NSW family first.
Shayna Jack’s been given a 4 year ban and is appealing to the CAS.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-13/four-year-suspension-recommended-shayna-jack-swimmer-appeal/12053916
I wonder if I can still attend this event as a spectator given the whole virus thing or is it a closed door event now?
To substitute for the handshake, people can “elbow bump” or “feetshake”
Hopefully we’ll see a surplus of finger guns
Ok really you can’t shake hands now
Do a little research about how quickly and easily this spreads. It’s a precaution if anything. At least they’re allowing them to swim unlike other events around the world.
Trust me I have done my research. Yes it spreads easily. But they are out here banning handshakes from meets.
Trust me I have done my research…but I’ve decided that despite the evidence presented, an arbitrary form of congratulations cannot be replaced even in the interest of public health
Agree, at this point appreciate they are swimming at all.
Question I have is would a hand dripping with cholrinated water mitigate the risk?
On a related note Rogan had an infectious disease expert on recently who had some good insight.
https://youtu.be/cZFhjMQrVts