Sport return Under threat

Ministry of Health says the rapid rise in Covid-19 cases, poses a threat to plans to resume sport as proposed by some associations.

As of Monday, Covid-19 cases in the country had reached  1 224 and 14 deaths following the announcement of 73 new cases.

The ministry’s spokesperson Joshua Malango said with the continued rise of cases, it would be suicidal to even think about resuming sport, football in particular.

He said: “Our position still stands, otherwise we would be putting the lives of people at risk.

“In countries such as Europe where football has resumed, the cases are decreasing while to the contrary, our cases are sharply on the rise.

“As at now, we are at the peak or heading towards the peak. It is alarming so we need to take extra caution. Should the situation improve, we will advise accordingly,” he said.

In an interview yesterday, Malawi National Council of Sports (MNCS) acting executive secretary Henry Mereka in an interview said the spike could push the country being on coronavirus high alert.

“Though there is need to accept to live with this coronavirus, let us be mindful that the rapid rise makes it difficult for restrictions on public gatherings like sports events should be lifted,” he said.

FAM, MNCS and Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture recently submitted proposals on the return of football and sports in general, potential challenges and measures to combat them.

In the report, the football governing body said it had planned to kickoff the season in August, nearly five months after it was postponed due to the pandemic.

In the meantime, Mereka has said he would not be surprised if the national Covid-19 taskforce decided to delay the sports events’ restart.

“Personally, such decision would not shock me. This country has not yet reached its peak of local transmissions. So, it would be dangerous to resume football and sports in general,” he said.

Mereka said in countries where football has resumed, the spread reached its peak and cases started decreasing which is contrary to the Malawi scenario.

However, on his part, FAM president Walter Nyamilandu believes the measures drafted in football restart blueprint are still good enough to allow football to restart.

He said: “Our proposal is to restart playing football in the safest manner possible where the lives of all involved is not put at risk even when the rate of infection is increasing.

“What we are saying is that we need to find feasible solutions to play football safely in the midst of the pandemic because it is clear from the look of things that the pandemic is here to stay.”

But Nyamilandu pointed out that they are open to getting guidance from health experts.

“Having submitted our blue print on how matches will be organised safely, we are open to the advice and guidance of the health experts and necessary  authorities,” he said.

Reacting to the issue, Karonga United general secretary Ramzy Simwaka said acknowledged that the rise in coronavirus cases creates a major threat to lives.

However, he said the club is of the view that football should resume with strict adherence to preventative measures.

Among other measures, FAM proposed reduction of stadium capacity by half, raising ticket prices to discourage more fans from watching the matches and to stop selling tickets at gates where overcrowding would spur the coronavirus spread.