Kia ora all
With the Government’s release of the new COVID-19 Protection Framework, the rules around how we manage basketball activities under these red, orange and green settings are now becoming clearer.
A general understanding of what you can (and cannot do) within the traffic light map is available via the Government framework guides, dependent upon whether you use the Vaccine Pass system as part of a controlled entry process or not.
Thanks must go to Sport NZ for their recent work around the interpretation of this framework for the play, active recreation and sporting landscapes. Last week, they released more sport-specific guidance to help the sports sector navigate these new rules. This guidance includes PDF guides for general activities under the Red, Orange and Green settings, an FAQ around the Covid Protection Framework in the sports setting and a one-page PDF which shows the traffic light settings within different sport settings (gatherings and events).
The recommendation we have received from Sport New Zealand is to operate our events under the Vaccine Pass System, in the belief that it is safer for sports to operate under this system – and with less limitations.
For these reasons, Basketball New Zealand will be operating all our events under the Vaccine Pass System – this includes our Leagues, tournaments, conferences, camps and other basketball activities. We have also made the decision to have a Vaccine Pass as a condition of entry into our BBNZ offices from this point onwards.
We are also passing this recommendation onto our member organisations. Again, the advice we have received is that as the traffic light system fluctuates between red, orange and green, operating under the vaccine pass system offers the most flexibility with less restrictions. That said, it is up to you to read through the advice and decide how best to apply it to your situation. We encourage you to review the above advice.
Should you wish to discuss particular scenarios, or if you need guidance around where your specific basketball activity sits within the new framework, feel free to email us via community@nz.basketball. (Please put ‘COVID’ in the subject line).
Thank you for your patience as we considered how these new rules apply and how we adapt to operating within the new COVID-19 Protection Framework. We will continue to monitor the advice from the appropriate authorities including the Ministry of Health and Sport NZ, and will update you as required.
Ngā mihi
Dillon Boucher
BBNZ Chief Executive
