By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The National Sports Authority (NSA) and the Ministry of Sports have given permission to national teams to resume training in preparation of forthcoming competitions. A press statement from NSA on Friday ended the almost five-month long ban that was put in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
NSA said they lifted the ban based on the advice of the National COVID-19 Emergency Response Center (NACOVERC).
Despite lifting the ban, they cautioned sporting disciplines to follow strict health protocols.
“Sporting associations, coaches, athletes, referees, umpires, judges, sports administrators, among others, are strongly advised to follow all health directives and precautionary measures prescribed by NACOVERC,” the statement noted.
The release now means the national football team, Leone Stars, can now start official preparations for its AFCON 2021 qualifier against Nigeria which comes around in November. Leone Stars has already lined up a friendly against Mauritania next month as a warm up in preparation for the Nigeria clash.
Head Coach, John Keister had already released names of 51 home based players who were due to start training once the ban was lifted. The home based players are expected to be joined in the coming weeks by foreign based players.
Other sporting disciplines like Cricket, Swimming, Boxing are all set to prepare for different international competitions in the coming months. Swimming Association became the first sport in the country to book its place for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics which will now be held in 2021. Boxing also has pending qualifiers for the games.
Despite resumption in training, competitions will not be allowed for now. This means the Sierra Leone Premier League and the Basketball season won’t be allowed to resume just yet. Both competitions had to be abandoned once the Ministry of Sports slammed a ban on all sport activities.
“Further information on the status of the ban on other levels of competitive and recreational sports maybe communicated as and when the Ministry of Sports and the National Sports Authority so desire,” the release stated.
NSA said they could also prescribe additional measures for different sporting associations. They will also inspect the training facilities of all sporting associations.
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