Victorian premier Daniel Andrews announced on Sunday that from 11.59 pm on November 1 non-contact indoor community sport for those aged 18-and-under would be allowed to resume, with limits on spectators set to be put in place.
This would include sports like table tennis and badminton.
Non-contact indoor physical recreation — such as dance classes — will also resume from that date for those aged 18-and-under.
Groups involved in that category would be limited to 20 people at a time.
Ahead of the weekend's announcements, State Member for Northern Victoria Tania Maxwell urged the State Government to further separate the immediate fate of sport in regional Victoria from that in metropolitan Melbourne.
“Community sport is integral to social connection and physical and mental wellbeing, particularly in regional and rural areas,” Maxwell said.
“Sporting clubs are committed to continuing the safe and hygienic practices they implemented earlier in the year and have offered reasonable recommendations to the government for regional areas to return to sport.”
After undertaking extensive research — which included surveying more than 500 regional sporting clubs, leagues and associations — Regional Sport Victoria has recommended a number of amendments to the roadmap towards a full return of community sport.
These include remodelling the final step of the roadmap so that regional Victoria does not have to wait for metropolitan areas to also have no new cases for 14 days before moving forward, the establishment of five region zones to facilitate a quicker return to sport and recreation for any or all areas which reach thresholds first and a relaxation of some rules surrounding under-18 sport.
The zones recommended were Barwon South West, Gippsland, Grampians, Humeand Loddon Mallee.
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